1 00:00:02,680 --> 00:00:13,800 Speaker 1: Life Audio. 2 00:00:14,960 --> 00:00:17,759 Speaker 2: You're listening to every Day Prayers with Million Praying Moms, 3 00:00:17,800 --> 00:00:20,000 Speaker 2: helping you pray God's word for your family in the 4 00:00:20,040 --> 00:00:23,919 Speaker 2: areas you need it most. I'm your host, Nicolette Bell. Here, 5 00:00:24,200 --> 00:00:27,160 Speaker 2: we believe prayer isn't a last resort. It's our first 6 00:00:27,160 --> 00:00:30,120 Speaker 2: and best response in parenting, and every day we come 7 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:32,800 Speaker 2: together to partner with God for the hearts of our children. 8 00:00:33,120 --> 00:00:34,440 Speaker 1: In the month of April. 9 00:00:34,080 --> 00:00:36,440 Speaker 2: We are hosting the Everyday Prayers for Gentleness book Club 10 00:00:36,479 --> 00:00:39,360 Speaker 2: on the podcast to celebrate our newest release, We're So 11 00:00:39,440 --> 00:00:42,360 Speaker 2: Glad you're here today. The author of our new book 12 00:00:42,360 --> 00:00:45,000 Speaker 2: and mom of three, Christy Thomas, will lead our devotion 13 00:00:45,120 --> 00:00:48,080 Speaker 2: in prayer to challenge us and encourage us on our 14 00:00:48,159 --> 00:00:51,400 Speaker 2: journey to grow in gentleness. To learn more about Christy, 15 00:00:51,560 --> 00:00:54,640 Speaker 2: our new book, and the Million Praying Mom's ministry, visit 16 00:00:55,000 --> 00:00:58,200 Speaker 2: Millionprayingmoms dot com. You can find a link in our 17 00:00:58,240 --> 00:01:01,080 Speaker 2: show notes. After a brief word from our sponsors, will 18 00:01:01,080 --> 00:01:02,480 Speaker 2: pray together for our children. 19 00:01:06,080 --> 00:01:09,640 Speaker 3: Titus three, verses one and two says remind them to 20 00:01:09,720 --> 00:01:13,560 Speaker 3: submit to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready 21 00:01:13,560 --> 00:01:17,480 Speaker 3: for every good work, to slander no one, to avoid fighting, 22 00:01:18,000 --> 00:01:21,160 Speaker 3: and to be kind, always showing gentleness to all people. 23 00:01:22,440 --> 00:01:25,160 Speaker 3: I drove in silence, listening to my boys bicker in 24 00:01:25,200 --> 00:01:28,120 Speaker 3: the back seat. One of my boys angrily brought up 25 00:01:28,160 --> 00:01:31,720 Speaker 3: something his brother had done months ago. I was shocked 26 00:01:31,720 --> 00:01:34,080 Speaker 3: that he'd been holding on to his anger for that long, 27 00:01:34,760 --> 00:01:37,280 Speaker 3: But isn't it just so human of him to do so? 28 00:01:38,000 --> 00:01:41,080 Speaker 3: We can see examples of this grudge fighting all over, 29 00:01:41,319 --> 00:01:44,280 Speaker 3: from political conversations to the way we treat other Christians. 30 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:47,600 Speaker 3: We're angry about what's happened in the past and anxious 31 00:01:47,640 --> 00:01:52,520 Speaker 3: about what might happen in the future. So we are ungracious, unkind, disrespectful, 32 00:01:52,640 --> 00:01:55,840 Speaker 3: and otherwise not very christ Like, both online and in person. 33 00:01:56,600 --> 00:01:59,640 Speaker 3: Titus three, verses one to two tell us to always 34 00:01:59,680 --> 00:02:03,480 Speaker 3: show gentleness to all people. The early Christians lived in 35 00:02:03,480 --> 00:02:06,760 Speaker 3: a society even more opposed to them than ours is 36 00:02:06,760 --> 00:02:10,000 Speaker 3: to modern Christianity. They had a target painted on their backs, 37 00:02:10,000 --> 00:02:13,000 Speaker 3: both by the Romans, who hated their refusal to worship 38 00:02:13,000 --> 00:02:16,120 Speaker 3: Caesar as Lord, and by the Jewish leaders, who disliked 39 00:02:16,160 --> 00:02:19,000 Speaker 3: their belief that Jesus was the son of God and 40 00:02:19,040 --> 00:02:22,200 Speaker 3: their abandon of the ritual laws of Moses. In fact, 41 00:02:22,280 --> 00:02:25,240 Speaker 3: Paul wrote this letter to Titus around eighty sixty three 42 00:02:25,240 --> 00:02:27,960 Speaker 3: to sixty eight, when Nero was the emperor of Rome. 43 00:02:28,440 --> 00:02:31,400 Speaker 3: Nero blamed Christians for the Great Fire of Rome in 44 00:02:31,440 --> 00:02:34,160 Speaker 3: eighty sixty four and began to hunt them down so 45 00:02:34,240 --> 00:02:37,120 Speaker 3: he could kill them in all sorts of cruel ways, 46 00:02:37,120 --> 00:02:39,520 Speaker 3: such as burning them alive or letting them be eaten 47 00:02:39,560 --> 00:02:42,800 Speaker 3: by wild animals. And yet in his letters to Titus 48 00:02:42,840 --> 00:02:46,440 Speaker 3: and the Christians in Rome, Paul reminded them to submit 49 00:02:46,600 --> 00:02:49,040 Speaker 3: to their rulers. They didn't need to put an even 50 00:02:49,040 --> 00:02:52,399 Speaker 3: bigger target on their back by being intentionally disrespectful of authority. 51 00:02:53,120 --> 00:02:55,800 Speaker 3: So what does it mean to submit to rulers and 52 00:02:55,840 --> 00:02:59,800 Speaker 3: authorities in a gentle manner? Surely, sometimes rulers are wrong 53 00:03:00,080 --> 00:03:02,720 Speaker 3: and laws need to be changed, but the way we 54 00:03:02,800 --> 00:03:05,320 Speaker 3: go about pushing for the changes is just as important 55 00:03:05,320 --> 00:03:08,000 Speaker 3: as the change itself. The first thing we need to 56 00:03:08,040 --> 00:03:10,839 Speaker 3: do as followers of Christ is to invite him into 57 00:03:10,840 --> 00:03:14,840 Speaker 3: the conversation. One Timothy two one to four says, first 58 00:03:14,840 --> 00:03:18,520 Speaker 3: of all, then I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions and 59 00:03:18,600 --> 00:03:22,440 Speaker 3: thanksgiving be made for everyone, for kings and all those 60 00:03:22,440 --> 00:03:24,640 Speaker 3: who are in authority, so that we may lead a 61 00:03:24,680 --> 00:03:27,880 Speaker 3: tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This 62 00:03:28,040 --> 00:03:30,640 Speaker 3: is good and it pleases God, our savior, who wants 63 00:03:30,639 --> 00:03:32,640 Speaker 3: everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge 64 00:03:32,639 --> 00:03:36,840 Speaker 3: of the truth. Assuming we're consistently praying about the situation. 65 00:03:37,560 --> 00:03:39,960 Speaker 3: Titus three one to two also gives us clues on 66 00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:43,080 Speaker 3: how political change can be done well. First, we need 67 00:03:43,120 --> 00:03:45,680 Speaker 3: to obey our rulers and authorities in humility, as long 68 00:03:45,680 --> 00:03:48,160 Speaker 3: as they're not asking us to do something morally wrong. 69 00:03:48,920 --> 00:03:51,400 Speaker 3: We need to be ready for every good work because 70 00:03:51,560 --> 00:03:54,880 Speaker 3: we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good 71 00:03:54,920 --> 00:03:57,280 Speaker 3: works which God prepared ahead of time for us to do, 72 00:03:57,520 --> 00:04:01,280 Speaker 3: which is from Ephesians two ten. We're inviting him to work. 73 00:04:01,840 --> 00:04:06,280 Speaker 3: God will ask you to do something too. Second, Titus 74 00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:09,520 Speaker 3: iie reminds us to slander no one and avoid fighting. 75 00:04:10,280 --> 00:04:12,720 Speaker 3: This means we don't get to dredge up past defenses 76 00:04:12,840 --> 00:04:15,360 Speaker 3: or bicker endlessly talking in circles just to make it 77 00:04:15,360 --> 00:04:18,359 Speaker 3: look like we're doing something productive. This also means we 78 00:04:18,400 --> 00:04:21,039 Speaker 3: need to watch what we say online. It is far 79 00:04:21,120 --> 00:04:23,880 Speaker 3: too easy to fight and slander when we're safely behind 80 00:04:23,880 --> 00:04:27,080 Speaker 3: our screens, hiding in a comment section or even instigating 81 00:04:27,120 --> 00:04:31,560 Speaker 3: the fights. Finally, we are to be kind and show gentleness. 82 00:04:32,040 --> 00:04:35,520 Speaker 3: In this case, I think gentleness involves both humility and respect, 83 00:04:35,960 --> 00:04:38,360 Speaker 3: because sometimes the hardest people to be kind and gentle 84 00:04:38,360 --> 00:04:41,279 Speaker 3: to are those who seem opposed to us politically. We 85 00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:44,440 Speaker 3: don't understand them, or we see the harm their policies 86 00:04:44,440 --> 00:04:46,640 Speaker 3: have caused in the past, and we think they're wrong 87 00:04:46,720 --> 00:04:50,160 Speaker 3: and we're right. We want to see change, but we 88 00:04:50,240 --> 00:04:53,120 Speaker 3: can't solve every problem on our own, and we need 89 00:04:53,320 --> 00:04:56,960 Speaker 3: to rely on God's strength and wisdom to help effect 90 00:04:57,120 --> 00:05:02,200 Speaker 3: lasting change. Let's pray together God, I confess that I've 91 00:05:02,240 --> 00:05:04,640 Speaker 3: fallen far short of the way You've asked me to live. 92 00:05:05,279 --> 00:05:07,919 Speaker 3: Help me to submit to the rulers and authorities around me, 93 00:05:08,080 --> 00:05:11,200 Speaker 3: to obey with humility, to be ready for every good work, 94 00:05:11,680 --> 00:05:14,560 Speaker 3: to avoid slander and fighting, and to be kind and gentle. 95 00:05:15,640 --> 00:05:18,040 Speaker 3: May I strive to do this through your strength, which 96 00:05:18,120 --> 00:05:21,240 Speaker 3: so powerfully works in me. In Jesus name, Amen. 97 00:05:21,600 --> 00:05:23,480 Speaker 2: As part of our book called This Month, we are 98 00:05:23,520 --> 00:05:26,479 Speaker 2: making all of the wonderful perks of our paid Patreon 99 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:30,520 Speaker 2: members available at the free tier. That's right, the daily 100 00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:35,000 Speaker 2: devotionals in written form, bonus materials, special previews and more 101 00:05:35,640 --> 00:05:38,600 Speaker 2: free to you this month only. See the link in 102 00:05:38,640 --> 00:05:40,760 Speaker 2: our show notes are on our website to get connected. 103 00:05:41,279 --> 00:05:44,200 Speaker 2: Until next time, friends, the Lord bless you and keep you. 104 00:05:44,560 --> 00:05:46,279 Speaker 1: Make his face shine upon you. 105 00:05:46,320 --> 00:05:49,120 Speaker 2: And be gracious to you. May the Lord look with 106 00:05:49,200 --> 00:05:51,560 Speaker 2: favor upon you and give you peace.