UCB Word For Today

One of the things leaders know is that while many people will never step up to be the leader, there are plenty of people willing to criticise any steps towards leadership you might take and tell the whole world how they know better and why you did it wrong! While you will always accomplish more while working with others, you can’t always count on being supported or liked by everyone. No matter what you do, some people will be difficult and negative. So, you must stay focused on your God-given goals, be who you are, and trust God to do what you cannot do. Real leaders make tough decisions, even when it means they end up less than popular. The road to true leadership can be lonely. But once you reach your goals, the rewards are enormous. Paul writes: ‘No one stood with me, but all forsook me. May it not be charged against them. But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that the message might be preached fully through me, and that all the Gentiles might hear…And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom’ (vv. 16-18 NKJV). When others forsake you, the Lord will stand with you. The Lord will strengthen you. The Lord will deliver you. The Lord will reward you. You are called to love others and work with them. And if you find that you’re inadvertently doing things that alienate, discourage, or drive wedges, ask God for wisdom and insight to rectify the situation. But know this: when you have no one left but God, you will discover that God is enough!

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

Envy, in essence, accuses God of being unfair, a respecter of persons, and unaware of what’s best for our lives. Therefore, we should engage in an all-out campaign against envy when it appears in our life. Here are six ways to do that: 1) Confess and repent of your impure intentions for wanting something other than for the glory of God. ‘But if you harbour bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth’ (James 3:14 NIVUK). 2) Count your blessings. Envy is rooted in dissatisfaction. Frequently we are so upset at the good fortune of others that we can’t see our own blessings and advantages. Somebody previously said, ‘Envy is the habit of counting someone else’s blessings instead of your own.’ 3) Understand what envy is telling you about what needs to be changed in order for you to reach your destiny. Pray, ‘God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.’ 4) If feasible, spend time with the person you envy and learn more about their secrets of success. In the process, you may realise they have a multitude of problems that will reduce your envy. 5) When anyone is mentioned with appreciation and admiration, instead of making a negative comment about them, try speaking words of praise. 6) Reject seeing another person’s success as your failure. Instead of thinking their blessings came at your expense, start believing that the God who blessed them wants to bless you too.

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

Self-help books sometimes claim you can change your life in five or ten simple steps. It takes a lot more than that to make substantial and lasting changes in your life. First, change comes by drawing on a power greater than your own – God’s power. Paul writes: ‘I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me’ (vv. 12-13 NKJV). Second, change comes from steady and determined hard work and effort. ‘Let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart’ (Galatians 6:9 NKJV). The key is to understand that a bad day does not make you a failure; it doesn’t last, it’s just a bad day. After you have had one, and all of us have, you just start back on track the following day. Don’t give up. Life is a sequence of ups and downs, stops and starts. Tomorrow is a brand-new day. What’s necessary now is to revive your promise to make changes in your life and start from the place you left off. If you need to, seek God’s forgiveness, forgive yourself, and begin walking forward again. Make your goal your focus, not the fact that you slipped up. Don’t get caught up blaming others or yourself. Let it go and move on. Realise that the next time you come up against a difficult situation – and you will – in God’s strength, you will handle it better.

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

After World War II, Europe was devastated with hungry, homeless children who had been orphaned by the battles. They were put in large camps where they were given food and care. Yet they didn’t sleep well at night; they were nervous, fearful, and fidgety. The caregivers were baffled until a psychologist taught them to offer each child a piece of bread every night, not to eat, but to hold in bed. The outcome was astonishing. The children slept through the night because they realised they wouldn’t go hungry the next day. Clutching the bread gave them a sense of protection (they were safe), importance (somebody cared about them), and happiness (there will be more bread tomorrow). Those three things were what those children needed – and they are what you need too. And all three can be found in a relationship with Jesus. When He said, ‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger,’ He was saying, ‘I am to your soul what food is to your body.’ Bread is one thing most of us have in common. It doesn’t belong only to a particular region or nation. It’s available in all shapes and sizes. In the UK, it may be scones; in South America, tortillas; in New York, bagels; and in Ethiopia, injera. In a simple statement, Jesus reminds us that He is our nourishment, everywhere, every time. So, be sure to read your Bible every day; it’s your daily bread.

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

Perhaps you have heard the joke about the lady who told her friend, ‘I didn’t know what real happiness was until I married my husband, and now it’s too late.’ Seriously, that doesn’t have to be your story. Through God’s wisdom, love, and grace, you can rebuild your marriage. To do it, you will need to learn the art of openness and allow yourself to be vulnerable, transparent, and ready to trust again. The only path to truly connect with someone is to genuinely allow that person to fully know you – your worries, struggles, lack of confidence, hopes, and dreams. It is natural, especially after you have experienced hurt or rejection, to want to shield yourself and your heart from more pain. Doing this makes complete sense in other parts of your life, but in marriage, shutting down your soul to your spouse will definitely result in further pain. Like property increasing in value over time, your marriage builds equity over the years. Like methodical investments into a savings account, modest deposits add up. Your shared experiences, such as the day when your child drove off to [university], the company the two of you sacrificed and saved to start, the death of your parent after a lengthy battle with cancer, the birth of your children, or a surprise week-long trip to celebrate your birthday – it all counts. These experiences come together as a beautiful canvas of intimacy that portrays your lives together. They also bring God’s blessing. ‘He who finds a wife [or husband] finds a good thing, and obtains favour from the Lord.’

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

Other translations say to forgive others’ ‘trespasses’. To trespass means to go where you’re not supposed to and do what you’re not supposed to. Infidelity, dishonesty, and other wrong things are among the trespasses we may experience. Without the ability to practise forgiveness, even for the little things, it’s hard to offer or receive the grace of forgiveness. To forgive means to admit to ourselves that our partner is not perfect, and neither are we. To fail to forgive is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die. Forgiveness not only releases your spouse from your anger and hurt, but it also lets you out of its grasp as well. It’s impossible to stay married without learning to practise forgiveness. We need it not only for each other but to have a relationship with God, since God is in us and in our union. If the barrier between you and your marriage partner seems as big as a mountain, then pray, believing you serve a mountain-moving God. Jesus said: ‘Assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, “Be removed and be cast into the sea,” and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them. And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses’ (Mark 11:23-26 NKJV).

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

Because something is said, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s heard. At least, not in the way you think it is. The apostle Peter uses the words ‘considerate’ and ‘respect’. Both are essential to the art of listening, which is essential to a good marriage. Unless you’re willing to consider what your spouse is saying and respect their thoughts and feelings, you’re heading for trouble. The reason many couples come to a point where they are contemplating divorce is that instead of having conversations, their interactions disintegrate into sermons and monologues. Counselling can help you learn how the other person expresses themselves. When you are focused on being right and getting ‘one-up’, there is no room for solutions to emerge. The key is to try and listen with an open heart rather than a closed mind; learning to be vulnerable and soft in order to come to the place of understanding, where negotiation can take place. Some couples write letters to express their feelings as they navigate their way back to better and deeper communication. Just as an artist waits for the perfect light to capture a subject on canvas, couples must learn the art of waiting to help reset their relationship back on course. This requires patience and dedication that are not always easy but very necessary. God’s timing offers us deeper healing than anything we can construct on our own. If you are considering divorce, be sure that you have exhausted every other option first. No matter how bad things may be between you, with God’s help, you can rebuild your marriage.

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

A pastor advises, ‘To regain true intimacy, physical and emotional, to restore the closeness you once shared, you must be willing to allow your heart and soul to reopen.’ If you have been hurt, that’s not easy. But you must be willing to risk exposing yourself to the unknown in order to reconnect with one another. He continues: ‘To bring a marriage back from the brink of divorce is not easy; in every union, there are unique considerations that must be worked out…Whether the problems in your marriage arise from external circumstances, such as losing a job or undergoing a home foreclosure, or problems with the relationship, such as an affair or addiction issues, you can only rebuild your relationship by revitalising what you once had and reconnecting with each other…The first step in reconnecting with your mate is to practise the art of getting to know the other person.’ The Bible says, ‘Treat your wife [or husband] with understanding as you live together.’ And ‘understanding’ your partner’s needs takes time, attention, and effort. The minister adds this: ‘What typically happens when we are first trying to figure out someone is that we put them in a box based on who and what we think they are. Then we stick a label on the box that we hope will follow them for the rest of their lives. Truly knowing someone is not about deciding who they should be and then wanting them to stay that way forever. The mystery of knowing another requires commitment to lifelong learning.’ If you’re serious about rebuilding your marriage, make ‘understanding’ one another your highest priority.

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

Many of the appliances in your home come with an instruction manual. Taking the time to read and understand it can save you all sorts of trouble. And God has given us the ultimate instruction manual for raising children – the Bible. It says, ‘Parents are the pride of their children.’ One of the highest callings is that of becoming a parent. It involves the most significant and life-changing decision you will ever make. Therefore, you should make it with serious consideration, prayer, and a sense of humour, and it can turn into one of the greatest joys of your life. Your children need you to establish boundaries for them and safeguard them from harm. You need to conduct yourself as their spiritual and moral compass. Today children are being inundated with television shows, advertisements, music, video games, the Internet, and magazines full of images of materialism, cruelty, sex, and drug and alcohol abuse. And a lot of the negativity they see is admired and celebrated. So much so that even possessing a strong moral centre, they may start to feel like something is wrong with them if they don’t follow along. As a parent, your job is to reinforce your beliefs again and again while equipping your children with the tools they need to withstand the pressures of life. It’s a lifetime commitment. In a sense, you will be on call every day, all day, for the remainder of your life. And since God is called ‘our Father’, He understands what you’re up against and will help you when you turn to Him in prayer. If you’re not a parent, why not take this opportunity to pray for the parents and children you know.

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.

Many of our failures result from our failure to pray. As we examine our mistakes, we discover a forsaken prayer altar and an unopened Bible. James bottom-lines it: ‘You do not have because you do not ask God.’ One Christian leader writes: ‘As a burned-out, frustrated young Christian, I realised one day that living in my own strength was useless. I needed to take my problems to God. In other words, I needed to pray more!’ Found in Matthew 7:7, Jesus tells us, ‘Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you’ (AMPC). Sometimes it’s only when we reach the end of our rope that we turn to God in prayer. And even then, when our prayers are not instantly answered, we give up. Over and over in Scripture, we are told to ‘wait on God’. Why? Because while we’re waiting, God is working. Sometimes He is working on the thing we have asked Him for; other times He is working on us. In such times He may be correcting our desires and attitudes or directing us towards His will. Don’t just pray; pray persistently. Don’t stress out trying to make things happen on your own. Give it all to God as you pray. Remember, He has promised that when you seek Him with all your heart, you will find Him (see Jeremiah 29:13). So, put your heart into your praying, wait quietly in God’s presence, and let Him speak to you. You will be delightfully surprised at how He answers your prayers.

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.