'Dear brothers and sisters, honour those who are your leaders in the Lord’s work. They work hard among you and give you spiritual guidance. Show them great respect and wholehearted love because of their work.' Leaders were appointed from the ...
1 Thessalonians 5.5-6 NLT 'You are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night. So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded.' When I was in my teens, I did a fascinating s...
1 Thessalonians 4.15 and 18 NLT 'We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died... So encourage each other with these words.' The Thessalonian church l...
1 Thessalonians 4.11-12 NLT 'Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before. Then people who are not believers will respect the way you live, and you will not ne...
1 Thessalonians 4.3-5 NLT 'God’s will is for you to be holy, so stay away from all sexual sin. Then each of you will control his own body and live in holiness and honour— not in lustful passion like the pagans who do not know God and his ways...
1 Thessalonians 3.7-8 NLT 'We have been greatly encouraged in the midst of our troubles and suffering, dear brothers and sisters, because you have remained strong in your faith. It gives us new life to know that you are standing firm in the L...
1 Thessalonians 2.4-5 NLT 'For we speak as messengers approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts. Never once did we try to win you with flattery, a...
1 Thessalonians 2.1 NLT 'You yourselves know, dear brothers and sisters, that our visit to you was not a failure.' The church in Thessalonica certainly knew that Paul’s visit to their city had not been a failure. But on the face of it, it had...
1 Thessalonians 1.9-10 NLT 'And they speak of how you are looking forward to the coming of God’s Son from heaven—Jesus, whom God raised from the dead. He is the one who has rescued us from the terrors of the coming judgment.' When I was prepa...
1 Thessalonians 1.8 NLT 'And now the word of the Lord is ringing out from you to people everywhere, even beyond Macedonia and Achaia, for wherever we go we find people telling us about your faith in God.' Paul’s first visit to Thessalonica be...
'We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. As we pray to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and the enduring hope you have because of our Lord Jesus Christ.' Paul has great affec...
Psalm 77.5-7 NLT 'I think of the good old days, long since ended, when my nights were filled with joyful songs. I search my soul and ponder the difference now. Has the Lord rejected me forever? Will he never again be kind to me?' These are pa...
Psalm 73.21-24 NLT 'Then I realised that my heart was bitter, and I was all torn up inside. I was so foolish and ignorant— I must have seemed like a senseless animal to you. Yet I still belong to you; you hold my right hand. You guide me with...
Psalm 71.17-18 NLT 'O God, you have taught me from my earliest childhood, and I constantly tell others about the wonderful things you do. Now that I am old and grey, do not abandon me, O God. Let me proclaim your power to this new generation,...
Psalm 69.16-17 NLT 'Answer my prayers, O Lord, for your unfailing love is wonderful. Take care of me, for your mercy is so plentiful. Don’t hide from your servant; answer me quickly, for I am in deep trouble!' Waiting is never easy. Whether y...
