Author: Phil Rehberg

teamwork harmony people

How To Get Along With Difficult People

Posted on by

If we want to live in full harmony with our brothers and sisters in the Lord, then it is essential that we learn to die to self in every way. If we don’t learn to do this, then we will not be able to love and get along with difficult people. It is not easy to live in oneness with others and to steer away from complaining and grudges. We will be blessed if we learn to live in peace until we die, for Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” Matt. 5:8 (ESV) Even when we have to work through a disagreement we can learn to do it peacefully and “speak the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15). In order to get along with difficult people we should think of ourselves as pilgrims on this earth. We are just traveling through this place so Continue Reading →

weekly words of encouragement

The Spirit In Us Has Overcome The World – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

Posted on by

“You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4, NIV).  This verse is one of our bulwarks against all that would tear us down! God is all-powerful, and his Spirit lives in us, so we can overcome the world. We have his spiritual power that keeps us focused on love and truth, and no spirit, person, institution, or destructive desire inside or outside of us can cause us to stumble when we stay centered on God’s Spirit who has made us his temple and lighthouse for the world. The passage says we have already overcome the world, past tense. God has done it! It is true that we will still suffer from forces in the world. They can inflict great pain, but that does not mean they are superior Continue Reading →

orchestra

What Is Biblical Fellowship? Everyone Contributes!

Posted on by

If we ask ourselves the question “what does scripture say should happen when believers gather together” (i.e. the weekly service) we might be surprised. One thing that dominates the various passages (Rom. 12:6-10; I Cor. 11:17-24;I Cor. 14:26-33; Gal. 6:2; Eph. 5:19-21; Col. 3:16; Heb. 10:24-25; James 5:14-16) is that there should be the mutual exercise of gifts to edify one another. This may not seem radical at first, but it is rare and it is biblical fellowship. How many Sunday services have you been to where many different people exercise gifts to edify others in a mutual way? Usually the preacher does nearly all the ministry. Preaching is important but is this biblical fellowship? It is true that the worship time is a time when people other than the pastor exercise their gifts. But where are the different people exercising the various gifts in Romans 12 (e.g., exhorting, teaching, Continue Reading →

weekly words of encouragement

The World Is Passing Away – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

Posted on by

“The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.” I Jn 2:17 (NIV) Worldliness is always a temptation and it comes in many forms, but we can take comfort in the knowledge that the world is passing away, along with all its ungodly desires. In general, worldliness is whatever harms anything good. Another way of saying this is that anytime we make something in the world a higher priority than what God desires, then we are being worldly. If we embrace something worldly, then we are embracing vapor, because the the world is passing away. It certainly takes inspired willpower to resist the temptation to join with others in their worldliness. We are especially tempted to avoid the pain of being devalued by others. But the promise of God is that the world is passing away, so we can resist it, knowing that Continue Reading →

patience patient

Be Patient With Others

Posted on by

We should be patient with the faults of others as well as our own faults. If we want to learn to be patient with others, we can pray that God will give us strength to be patient and kind. We can remind ourselves that others have to bear with our faults. We can remember that we usually cannot correct our own faults without great effort; why should we be impatient with the habitual faults of others? Besides, human faults are an opportunity for us to allow our character to be refined, especially learning to be patient with others. If it is our place to say something about someone’s fault, and we have mentioned it more than once then we should not nag someone so that we get into a dispute over it. We can just fulfill our proper role without becoming angry or aggressive. We should not take the situation Continue Reading →