READING: 1 Thessalonians 5:12-18, 2 Thessalonians 1:1-3:18, Acts 18:4-23
Apparently, some to whom Paul wrote 1 and 2 Thessalonians were not working. Perhaps because they believed the second coming of Jesus was upon them, or perhaps because some were simply lazy, they were idle, unwilling to work, failing to follow the hard-working example of the apostle among them.
A primary issue, though, was that these idle folks weren’t entirely idle; rather, they were “busybodies” in everybody else’s business. They were indeed “working,” but they were working to create disorder in the local body more than to feed their families. Needless to say, Paul’s words about them were necessarily strong.
Here’s a simple lesson from today’s reading: the more we work hard to provide for our families and to lead them by example to serve the Lord faithfully through His church, the less time we will have to meddle in everybody else’s stuff. After all, it’s not usually the faithful, humble church workers who are the busybodies in a church.
PERSONAL REFLECTION: On a spectrum between “busybody” and “faithful worker,” where do you find yourself today?
DAILY PRAYER: “Lord, thank You for the opportunity to work for You and for others.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Acts 18:24-19:20, 1 Corinthians 1:1-3:23