THE HEART OF SERVICE (PART 6)

 SEPTEMBER. 8^TH.

TEXT: Revelation 2:8-11King James Version (KJV).

8 And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive;

9 I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.

10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

11 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

8 And to the angel (messenger) of the assembly (church) in Smyrna write: These are the words of the First and the Last, Who died and came to life again:

9 I know your affliction and distress and pressing trouble and your poverty—but you are rich! and how you are abused and reviled and slandered by those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.

10 Fear nothing that you are about to suffer. [Dismiss your dread and your fears!] Behold, the devil is indeed about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested and proved and critically appraised, and for ten days you will have affliction. Be loyally faithful unto death [even if you must die for it], and I will give you the crown of life.

11 He who is able to hear, let him listen to and heed what the Spirit says to the assemblies (churches). He who overcomes (is victorious) shall in no way be injured by the second death.

Some times in life, we have need to encourage ourselves especially when things are not going the way we expected after all the prayer and fasting. When you fast and pray about a particular challenge, you expect things to begin to change once you are done but that may not be the case at all times. Such times are often the period our faith is being tried. At such times, when your attitude is that of complaining, it is a sign that you are sinking and have drifted far from God. When something goes wrong in your relationship with God, every other thing will fall apart. Some of us can no longer hear the voice of the Master, but are still very busy with being religious and have no results. When something goes wrong, check to make sure your relationship with God is right. Too often we blame everything else but fail to look inward, making sure that we are doing what God asked us to do. The church at Syria went through serious trail in the hands of religious people but at such times the word of the Lord unto them were words of encouragement, not that angels will come to stop the trail but that they should be prepared to face the challenge.