Living Today
Articles from Christian teachers and leaders. Designed to help you as you follow Jesus here in Nauru
The Word for Today encourages Teachers and Students
We got this encouraging testimony from Lilian who is a teacher in Vanuatu to our UCB Vanuatu team... Thank you for all that you are doing. It's touching lives. I am a teacher and I find it very helpful in helping my students know about the love of God. All the...
A Testament of Healing: How The Word for Today Guided Me Through Cancer
The following powerful testimony is from Tomu in Fiji... A women shared about her journey since she started receiving, her copies back in 2021. She shared with me how God came through for her during her most difficult time since being diagnosed with breast cancer two...
When All Seems Lost
Now what? That’s something that all of us have said to ourselves at one time or another. In his new message, ‘When All Seems Lost’, Pastor Jeff Vines covers the topics of marriage and keeping relationships strong. Jeff offers encouragement for those of us who are struggling with chaos and feeling lost. God does not give His law arbitrarily. When God tells us He wants us to live in certain parameters and by certain precepts, He does it because He loves us. If He’s the creator and sustainer of...
Compassion and Action
The crewmembers on board Logos Hope all left their homes at one point to come on board the ship to live and work together with others from around the world. They exchanged their familiar environments for a very unique accommodation – a ship – which sooner or later they also call their home for a specific amount of time. They all do know though, that there are many people in the world, who are longing for a place to stay in which they can experience peace and safety. The refugees who leave...
Dad’s Toolkit
It’s a fantastic opportunity to reflect on the value of family, and in particular the role of dads. What are your strengths as a parent? Are there some areas you could grow in? How do you begin your journey of becoming the parent God has called you to be? Brett and Kate Ryan from Focus on the Family, have created a ‘Dad’s Toolkit’ that’s full of ideas on how dad’s can improve themselves. It contains things like conversation starters with your kids, and questions we can ask our dads. Healthy...
Truth, Lies and Financial Freedom
Many Christians divide their lives into categories. Some things they want Jesus to be a part of, but not others. Because we compartmentalise our Christian lives, according to Pastor Jeff Vines, we instantly assume that everything we don’t devote to God is neutral. God will still love us, but any area that we withhold from Him and think we can handle on our own is a false assumption. C.S. Lewis said, ‘There is no neutral ground in the universe.’ Every square inch, every split second is claimed...
God is always wanting to use us
Recently, I was clicking through folders and folders of early photos of our kids. From baby age to the present, I just got lost in it for hours. How good it was to recount the memories, the places we had visited and I just couldn’t hold back giving God the glory for the good things He had done in our family. Towards the end, a certain photo stopped me in my tracks. You see, over 2yrs ago, our eldest daughter moved to Perth to follow God’s plan for her life. While Cindy and I daily still miss...
Bringing Clarity in Confusing Times
Dr Kameel Majdali is an ordained minister of the Australian Christian Churches. He preaches all over the world with an emphasis on the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. He also leads the organisation Teach All Nations, a ministry that is dedicated to sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with as many people as possible. Kameel recently joined the 20Twenty program on Vision Christian Media to share a preview of what to expect in his upcoming Australian tour. His desire is to bring...
God is Always at Work – We’re not Always Seeing It
Did you know that God is not waiting for us to pray before He starts to work? It’s not like He’s saying, “Hey church, if you don’t pray, I can’t do anything.” The fact is that God is always “up to something”. He’s purposely been out-working His redemptive plan, a plan that’s been underway since day one, way back in the garden. In fact, before the garden. He’s busy wooing people back to Him. He’s already working on your neighbour, or friend, or lost family member. He’s actively in the...
How To Read and Study the Bible
Can you imagine being surrounded by the freshest produce, in the best kitchen with the best utensils, but not knowing how to prepare a meal? For many Christians, that’s exactly what reading the Bible feels like. Simply put, we just don’t know how to utilise it effectively. Ben Windle says you can attend church for many years, listen to a lot of teaching and still not learn how to read the Bible for yourself. Yet there is no better way to fuel our growth than personally engaging with the Bible....
God is Always Speaking
“Hello God, are you there? Why don’t you answer me?” I’m sure that has come out of our mouths at least once in our lifetime. Sometimes the idea is that God has turned off or gone quiet. It’s not like He’s keeping silent to teach us a lesson in faith. The reality is, “God is always speaking; we’re not always listening.” Ezekiel 12:25 For I the Lord will speak, and whatever word I speak will be performed. Genesis 35:13 Then God went up from him in the place where He had spoken with him. Psalm...
Be of Good Courage
Seeing in the midst of life's challenges From one day to the next, major events and occurrences change the way we see and live our lives. Daily we hear of: • Another major disaster; • Another hourly murder, rape or life ending behaviour; • Another greedy and injustice business deal; • An unsteady fragile stock market; • Another unexpected price rise; It seems harder to find the “Feel Good” stories in the midst of so much destruction, despair and hopelessness. Jesus said in the gospel of John...
Always do what’s right
‘If our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God.’ 1 John 3:21 NKJV
When you wilfully do wrong, you experience anxiety, stress, and insecurity. ‘“There is no peace,” says the Lord, “for the wicked.”’ (Isaiah 48:22 NKJV) Whenever you choose a plan of action incompatible with what you believe to be right, you forfeit your peace of mind. For instance, a person may accept a job or duty that forces them to do something against their spiritual convictions, something that violates their conscience. Numerous women have faced the predicament of compromising their values so they can get a promotion or attain other advantages. To them at the time, it looked like their only option. ‘There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.’ (Proverbs 16:25 NIV)
This is when a strong spiritual foundation is essential. It takes faith and bravery to let your convictions direct your behaviour and your choices. The truth is that God is ultimately responsible for your advancement and promotion. His Word says, ‘No one from the east or the west or from the desert can exalt [promote] themselves. It is God who judges: He brings one down, He exalts another.’ (Psalm 75:6–7 NIV) Don’t think you can do right in your own power. Sometimes the temptation to manipulate or lie so that you can advance your job prospects is just too much to withstand. That’s when you need to draw on God’s strength. David said, ‘The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?’ (Psalm 27:1 NKJV)
Prayer: ‘Father, please keep me from falling into temptation, and deliver me from the Evil One. Help me to do what’s right.’
SoulFood: Col 3–4, Philem, Mark 11:12–26, Ps 112, Pro 23:13–15
The Word for Today is authored by Bob and Debby Gass and published under licence from UCB International Copyright ©