Thoughts for Life: Part 2 of THE CHRISTIAN'S DNA

15. We Walk in Honor.

We honor parents, elders, leaders, and authorities—not because they're flawless, but because honor is kingdom culture. (Romans 12:10; 1 Peter 2:17; Philippians 2:3)

16. We Build Healthy Relationships.

Church is family. We forgive freely, speak truth in love, and fight for unity. (Colossians 3:12-14; Ephesians 4:30-32)

17. We Live House to House.

Bread broken, homes opened. prayers lifted. Hospitality lived. This is everyday church—friendship, formation, and fellowship lived around real tables. (Acts 2:42-47)

18. We Protect Unity.

Unity must be guarded. Gossip dies where it isn't fed. (Romans 14:19; Ephesians 4:29; Philippians 2:2)

19. We Resolve Conflict God's Way

We don't ghost. We don't gossip. We go, we speak, we reconcile. (Matthew 5:23-24; Matthew 18:15-17)

20. We Call Out Sin—Starting with Ourselves.

Exposure leads to healing. Restoration is the goal. (Matthew 7:5: Galatians 6:1)

21. We Stir Up the Gifts in One Another.

We recognize, affirm, and activate what God has put in each person. No spectators—only participants. (1Timothy 4:14; Hebrews 10:24)

22. We Live on Mission.

Evangelism isn't a program. It's our posture. Our conversations. Our prayers. (Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Corinthians 5:20)

23. We Speak Truth Boldly.

Not to be agreeable, but to be faithful. (Romans 10:14-15; Psalm 96:3)

24. We Bring Christ into Culture.

The gospel belongs everywhere—family, education, government, business, media, and art (Jeremiah 29:7; Matthew 5:14-16)

25. We All Have a Role.

Every member has a gift. Every gift has a purpose. We help people find it and use it. (1 Corinthians 12:18; 1 Peter 4:10)

26. We Send Boldly.

Sent ones aren't our loss—they're our legacy. (Acts 13:2-3; Philippians 2:19)

27. We Lead with Integrity.

Shepherds, not celebrities. Transparent. Biblical. Empathetic. (Titus 1:7-9; 1 Peter 5:2-3)

28. We Are Apostolic.

We build with vision. We lead with mission. We make disciples who make disciples. Apostolic doesn't mean chasing titles—it means carrying a sending spirit, pioneering new works, and multiplying leaders and churches. (2 Timothy 2:2; Acts 14:23)

29. We Equip Through the Five-fold.

Apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers—given not as titles, but tools. (Ephesians 4:11-13)

30. We are Part of a Great Restoration.

Jesus is restoring His church—truth, purity, unity, power. We contend for all of it. (Acts 3:19-21; Jude 3)

31. We Steward Everything.

Time. Talents. Homes. Money. All His. All for His glory. (1 Peter 4:10; 1 Corinthians 4:2)

32. We Give Big.

God is generous; we reflect His heart. We give joyfully, sacrificially, and with faith. (2 Corinthians 9:7; Luke 6:38; 2 Corinthians 9:6)

Let's pray-

Father, our desire is to honor You in everything we do in our churches, from dealing with conflict in a godly manner, to maintaining unity. Help us use the five-fold ministries, use our individual gifts, be committed to the missions we support, speak the Truth in boldness and integrity, and be apostolic in everything we undertake to do for You. Help us steward everything and to be appreciative and supportive of the leaders each church is blessed with.

We ask this in Jesus' name, for His glory and the spread of the Gospel. Amen.

My weekly advice from the book, "We All Married IDIOTS, by Elaine W. Miller:

(p, 118) “I give up, Lord. For my prayers to be effective, I must obey your commands and eagerly care for my beloved all the days of my life. I must never stop running or stop caring. I must never give up the race. I just need to give up myself to You, Lord Jesus.”

#127 Testimony- A friend

"I experienced a shift in my battle. I stopped focusing on how much I don't like how things are going and how awful the future seems, and am now choosing to remember that God's plan for me is good. It doesn't mean the first isn't true-like 2 sides of the same coin. My pain and grief are still great, but in the first story, I'm stuck in a pit with the devil beating me up with it mercilessly. In the second, I'm yoked with Jesus and the burden is light."

1681-1685 One-line Scriptures for those of you who want to learn some more verses this week- or to review them from when they were first posted-

1681- Mark 9:24b "Lord, I believe; help thou my unbelief."

1682- Ezekiel 16:62 "And I will establish my covenant with thee; and thou shalt

know that I am the LORD."

1683- Jer. 7:23b "Walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may

be well with you."

1684- Is. 2:11 "The lofty looks of man shall be humbled and the haughtiness of men

shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted."

1685- Ps. 124:2a "If it had not been the LORD who was on our side."

#127 Hymn- There Is a Fountain

William Cowper, [pronounced Cooper], is one of God's gracious gifts to those suffering from depression. Like the Psalmist who cried, "Why are you cast down, O my soul?" (Ps. 42:5), Cowper shows us that our emotional struggles often give us heightened sensitivity to the heart of God and to the needs of others.

William was six when he lost his mother, and it was a blow from which he never recovered. Emotionally frail, he was sent to a boarding school where for two years he was terrorized by a bully which further shattered his nerves. From ages 10 to 18, he had a better experience at Westminster School, developing a love for literature and poetry.

His father wanted him to be an attorney, but, preparing for his bar exam, he experienced runaway anxiety. Concluding himself damned, he threw away his Bible and attempted suicide.

Friends recommended an asylum run by Dr. Nathaniel Cotton, a lover of poetry and a committed Christian. Under his care, William slowly recovered. In the asylum in 1764, he found the Lord while reading Romans 3:25: ". . . whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith . . . ." His life was still to hold many dark days of intense depression, but at least he now had a spiritual foundation.

As he later put it:

"There is a fountain filled with blood

Drawn from Immanuel's veins,

And sinners plunged beneath that flood,

Lose all their guilty stains."

Some encouraging words-

"The fruit of righteousness is not a product of individual personal efforts, but comes through Jesus Christ in order that it might redound to the glory and praise of God. If God is to be honored and exulted in His people, they must bear fruit. If they are to bear fruit, the Lord Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit must cultivate it within them, like you and me. We must therefore, pray!"

Church Notes: WISDOM

Find wisdom, get wisdom, lay hold of wisdom to get understanding.

We're to receive knowledge and apply it as truth of revelation to our minds and hearts.

We're to soak it into our hearts and give action to what we hear.

We're to pursue to have clear understanding.

We're to pray for wisdom from on High.

Upcoming posts:

3/7th- OUR TRUE REFUGE IS GOD- Karen Huang-

14th- READY TO GIVE UP?- Mary Southerland

21st- THE SECRET OF HOLY LIVING- Melvin H. Snyder