Hidden Heroes in the Christmas Story: Simeon, The Devout Priest
Release Date: 12/19/2024
8 Great Ways to Honor Your Wife: Encourage Her Gifts
A Moment of Hope
by David Chadwick I want to see biblical manhood reflected in the church. I want husbands to know how to honor their wives, creating strong marriages. I want to see strong, healthy families who love the Lord with all their hearts, souls, minds, and strength. I believe a strong family starts with a strong marriage. And a strong marriage starts with humble men who know how to honor their wives. We are looking at 8 great ways for husbands to develop a culture of honor with their wives. Here is the next tool: encourage her gifts! Your wife has a call from God that he has given her to accomplish...
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8 Great Ways to Honor Your Wife: Be a Man of God
A Moment of Hope
by David Chadwick A toolbox packed full of different tools gives someone the confidence to step into a variety of situations and bring a solution. If you only have a “hammer” and you find a situation that needs a “screwdriver,” you will not get very far. Over the next two weeks, we are exploring 8 Great Ways to Honor Your Wife. I want to give you, husbands, tools to strengthen your marriage. My prayer is that God strengthens your marriage as you put these “8 Greats” into practice in your home. Today’s tool: be a man of God! This is an absolute must for all husbands. You are to be...
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8 Great Ways to Honor Your Wife: Trust Her Gut
A Moment of Hope
by David Chadwick I want to teach you principles for developing biblical love and honor within a marriage. I love pithy statements that help to easily remember things. Marilynn and I have found the term “8 Great” to be a very easy way to remember Godly principles for different areas of life. Over the next two weeks, I want to share 8 Great Ways to Honor Your Wife. Each day, I am going to give you, husbands, a new tool that you can put in your tool belt. Different situations require different tools and my prayer is that you will become more equipped to lead and love your wife with HONOR....
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8 Great Ways to Honor Your Wife: What is Honor?
A Moment of Hope
Honor. Such a powerful word. To honor is defined as this: “to regard with great respect, to prize, to admire, to give special recognition, to demonstrate high respect or great esteem for someone." In historical biblical culture, the word “honor” carried tremendous weight. Even today, there are cultures around the world that place a high value on honor. In God’s original intent, honor is a tool to bestow on one another, to bless, to prefer someone else over ourselves. Unfortunately, in the modern American Christian culture, people seem to gravitate to one of two extremes regarding...
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Descriptions of a Faithful Friend: “Your Minister to My Needs”
A Moment of Hope
Faithful friends are hard to come by and the ones you find are worth keeping. Paul had a faithful friend named Epaphroditus who he describes in detail in Philippians 2:25. I pray that Paul’s description helps to show you what characteristics to look for in your friendships. Epaphroditus was a brother, a fellow worker, a fellow soldier, and a messenger. And today we will look at the fifth and final characteristic where Paul calls Epaphroditus “your minister to my needs” (verse 25). Epaphroditus was a minister of the church at Philippi, sent to Paul in a Roman prison to meet his needs....
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Descriptions of a Faithful Friend: “Your Messenger”
A Moment of Hope
Faithful. This word is defined as “steadfast in affection or allegiance, loyal, constant, devoted.” Paul describes his faithful friend Epaphroditus in Philippians 2:25. He uses five terms to describe him. A brother. A fellow worker. A fellow soldier. And today’s description: your messenger! Paul calls Epaphroditus in these verses “your messenger” (verse 25). The Philippian church sent him to encourage Paul with a gift. We don’t know what the gift actually was but their message must have helped Paul feel encouraged in his prison trial. How do you strengthen a friendship? Become a...
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Descriptions of a Faithful Friend: "My Fellow Soldier"
A Moment of Hope
Proverbs 18:24 says, “A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” Do you know what I have found to create the deepest of bonds between faithful friends? Even more than being a brother or a fellow worker? Someone who is a fellow soldier! It is the third term Paul uses to describe Epaphroditus in Philippians 2:25. A faithful friend who is a fellow soldier understands that we are at war. There is a battle raging for souls until Jesus returns. A fellow soldier counts the cost of what is happening and sees the eternal victory. A fellow...
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Descriptions of a Faithful Friend: "My Fellow Worker"
A Moment of Hope
Faithful friends are hard to come by! They are the rare ones who weep when you weep and rejoice when you rejoice (Romans 12:15). They bear your burdens (Galatians 6:2). They challenge you to grow out of your sin and move into righteousness (Proverbs 27:6). Paul had a faithful friend named Epaphroditus. He described him very intentionally in Philippians 2:25. First, as a brother. And secondly as “my fellow worker.” What does this mean? As a fellow worker, both Paul and Ephaphroditus both shared in the common labor of loving and serving Christ. They worked together first in Philippi and then...
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Descriptions of a Faithful Friend: “My Brother”
A Moment of Hope
How many of you have a faithful friend? Someone who loves you, champions you, and desires God’s best for your life. Or maybe you are blessed enough to have two, three, or even more! Faithful friends are hard to come by and can only be proven through seasons of both trials and victories. The apostle Paul had a friend like this. His name was Epaphroditus and you’ll find their story in Philippians 2:25-30. Paul described him in verse 25 as his “brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need.” Epaphroditus came from Philippi to bring Paul a gift of...
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Bad Guys of the Bible: Zimri and Cozbi
A Moment of Hope
This week we are sharing some of your favorite Moments of Hope from 2024. Thank you for taking a moment of your day to grow in your discipleship journey with us. To explore additional resources from Moments of Hope Church, please by David Chadwick We have looked at some hidden heroes from the Bible this week. People who are probably not as known, but had a significant impact on the storyline of the Bible. But I want to wrap up this week with another couple of bad guys. These are two individuals who tried to thwart all of the good in God’s story. Yet, in spite of...
info_outlineby David Chadwick
Proverbs 25:2 says, “It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out.” God loves for his children to search out the hidden treasures of his story. This week, I am sharing five of my hidden heroes from the Christmas story with you.
Simeon is today’s hidden hero. He was a righteous and devout man and the Bible says, “the Holy Spirit was upon him.” His story is found in Luke 2:22-38.
Simeon was told by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he met Jesus. He was earnestly “waiting for the consolation of Israel” and for the coming of the Messiah. Can you imagine the anticipation Simeon must have carried every day as he aged knowing that he would one day see the King of Kings and Lord of Lords face to face?
When Mary and Joseph presented Jesus on the 8th day after his birth for circumcision, Simeon was the one who blessed Jesus. “In the Spirit,” Simeon knew that Jesus was the one for whom he had long been waiting.
In Luke 2:29-32, after meeting the Christ child, Simeon said, “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, accordinging to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”
Simeon knew that he could now depart in peace and be with his Lord. The light to the Gentiles had finally come!
Have you noticed that, like Simeon, all of the hidden heroes in the Christmas story are described as people of great devotion? Sovereignly chosen by God, I think, because of their Godly character and deep devotion to the heart of God.
May we all long for Jesus’s second advent, second coming, as Simeon did for his first! He will be the consolation of Israel…and ours as well!