service

Out of Service and LOVE

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I saw a red “OOS” notice tag, a new one sitting on the bench in case a machine went “Out of Service”, and it struck me differently this time – it was but a glimpse of not glory but truth, hard truth, in gluing oneself to Jesus’s message of SERVICE of SERVING. “Out of service” could be not NOT working but instead working for the Lord from an aspect of service – “out of” is being of “service” – YES!!!

Maybe “OOS” is like saying: don’t let the humans use me, but surely God can and is.

Because even if (especially if) we are not working in a human ‘take charge’ way, like ‘take charge of my time’ or ‘I’m going to be a bull in a china shop’ or even ‘I’m going to be sneaky’, we should always and instead BE HUMBLE to listen to God, to be OF SERVICE with the Lord, to the Lord’s leading, for the Lord’s purpose which is much bigger in scope than our small task of the moment. 

Being OF service is loving God out of our service to Him. Letting Him use our devotion as an example. 

Being OF SERVICE, working “out of service” to Him to His mission, is exactly what I was thinking about then viewing the tag, and that by our service to others, we are serving not ourselves but the Lord’s bigger plan and His momentum can carry us. We do need to serve Him, out of a service mindset, to take directions… and service for the Lord’s cause, even if sometimes we are set up as an example by Him to show not our success but our humility and humbleness to listen and love, still accomplishes His Will.

We can function out of service and LOVE, working with God. 

Amazingly, a devotion today from the “Daily Dose”, that I read occasionally, was in this same mindset, a revelation of God’s will in our lives means to let Him be strong through our weaknesses. 

The author states: “Our God is so amazing, as everything is almost the opposite of what the world teaches in order to be a success! For instance, God tells us that He who is last and serves others will be first! Mark 9:35″

YES! WOW: reading below: “He does not allow us to fully accomplish His perfect will without relying on His guidance and His power.” YES – He is the vine, we are the branches and without Him we can accomplish nothing… “He does not allow us to fully accomplish His perfect will without relying on His guidance and His power.”

Yes humbly we must be of service and listen. Humbly yes…

Here is a short poem:

Humbly Lord, we say Yes.

Our efforts should not be a guess,

Listening to You is never an excess.

Being obedient to You brings success. 

Success in showing Love despite every trespass.

Humbly yes Lord, yes.

Yes. 

Amen 

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And please read the Daily Dose devotion from Bob Bennett- https://us3.campaign-archive.com/?u=5a7bbf443189708255b21f430&id=a5ef685dfd

The Daily Dose

God is Strong 9/16/2025

Good Morning – does the thought of being weak anger you? 

2 Corinthians 13:19 “For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. Your restoration is what we pray for.”

“God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;” 1 Corinthians 1:27 Our God is so amazing, as everything is almost the opposite of what the world teaches in order to be a success! For instance, God tells us that He who is last and serves others will be first! Mark 9:35 This was certainly not anything I was taught in any coaching or business training courses I participated in during younger years. Actually, just the opposite until I began to correlate the teaching with the Word of God. I began to understand that while God has individually gifted us all with the certain talents for whatever He has purposed us to accomplish in this world, He does not allow us to fully accomplish His perfect will without relying on His guidance and His power.

God also tells us that He is the vine and we are the branches and that whoever abides in Him, will bear much fruit. But He also tells us that apart from Him, we can do nothing! John 15:5 So if being successful in this life is so dependent on God, then what is our part? God has made our part actually very simple. We are to simply seek after Him each day, “as a deer pants for the water.” Psalm 42:1 We are to humble ourselves, pray, hear from heaven, repent and turn from our sin. 2 Chronicles 7:14 Then “deny yourself, take up our cross and follow Jesus”. Mark 8:34 Once we have heard from God, we are to simply be obedient and ready for every good work Titus 3:1 , while trusting in God’s faithfulness and that He will go before us and never leave or forsake us!

Lord, thank you for loving us so much and making us strong in You. In Jesus name we pray, Amen!

Have another powerful and prosperous day of trusting the Lord’s strength and power as you sacrificially serve and love others in the workplace and at home. “Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us!” Hebrews 12:1

Bob Bennett

Real Men Ministries

“Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.” — Philippians 2:3

The Writing on the Wall. And Interpreting it All, Daniel 5

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The cat wanted me AWAKE, “GET UP” her paw touched my arm, and wanted me in the daily routine, but she doesn’t have a calendar, it is the WEEKEND and I wanted to sleep… I won this round but not before that cat reached for my ankles to bite.  She knows when I’m not going her way. Of course we have a very smart cat. I spend half the time wondering why the cat can’t cut me a break and the other half aching from the bite. I did get up half an hour later and treat her with wet cat food… spoiled but she’s worth it. I often think angels are guiding her to get me up to write, but why the disgruntled bite? Hmmm…

We can’t understand cat, let alone understand half the stuff going on in the world. We can’t understand what brokenness brings to crime, poverty, drug addiction, sadness. We can’t understand illness or early death. We can’t figure out all science even if studying it for years. We just are clueless and maybe gratefully so, for we can’t fix everything either. 

One true Bible story is the originator of the phrase: “read the writing on the wall” and oh so many were trying to interpret it. In this story, Daniel was remembered as a dream interpretor and man filled with God’s Holy Spirit. Daniel was called upon by king Belshazzar, son of king Nebuchadnezzar who had that fall of his sanity and dignity last chapter because he didn’t respect God, Nebuchadnezzar repented but son Belshazzar totally disregarded God as well as God’s temple in Jerusalem, even using the holy cups for their party. Well, quite the unusual sighting, even one might say the most bizarre Bible stories, the FINGERS of a HAND appeared! They wrote words on a wall.

The king and the people got so obsessed with “what do the words say?”, needless to say that it’s strange for a hand to appear… how many times do we see the writing on the wall, but doubt it is for us let alone understand it… Well, for king Belshazzar it was NOT good news. Daniel was able to call out Belshazzar’s disobedience to God, even knowing and seeing his father’s experience, and Daniel told Belshazzar that his kingdom was in trouble and so was he. Belshazzar died that evening, was slain, had no respect, hit the end of his line.

It’s a story full of real advice: listen to God, know God is in charge (before we have to see the writing on the wall), be truthfully wanting to understand God’s Will, worship and revere the Lord, do what is respectful…

Yeah… (and get up to read and write when the cat (via angels) tell you to!)

And FYI – this passage again shows Daniel wasn’t in the service of the Lord for gain, only because he (we) all should serve God and God’s plans… Let us not wait for the writing on the wall, when the Word, now, is written down, we have it all… Thanks for the reminders Lord!!!

Amen 

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Daniel 5

New King James Version

Belshazzar’s Feast

Belshazzar the king made a great feast for a thousand of his lords, and drank wine in the presence of the thousand. While he tasted the wine, Belshazzar gave the command to bring the gold and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple which had been in Jerusalem, that the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines might drink from them. Then they brought the gold vessels that had been taken from the temple of the house of God which had been in Jerusalem; and the king and his lords, his wives, and his concubines drank from them. They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold and silver, bronze and iron, wood and stone.

In the same hour the fingers of a man’s hand appeared and wrote opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace; and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. Then the king’s countenance changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his hips were loosened and his knees knocked against each other. The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. The king spoke, saying to the wise men of Babylon, “Whoever reads this writing, and tells me its interpretation, shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around his neck; and he shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.” Now all the king’s wise men came, but they could not read the writing, or make known to the king its interpretation. Then King Belshazzar was greatly troubled, his countenance was changed, and his lords were astonished.

The queen, because of the words of the king and his lords, came to the banquet hall. The queen spoke, saying, “O king, live forever! Do not let your thoughts trouble you, nor let your countenance change. There is a man in your kingdom in whom is the Spirit of the Holy God. And in the days of your father, light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, were found in him; and King Nebuchadnezzar your father—your father the king—made him chief of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers. Inasmuch as an excellent spirit, knowledge, understanding, interpreting dreams, solving riddles, and explaining enigmas were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar, now let Daniel be called, and he will give the interpretation.”

The Writing on the Wall Explained

Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king spoke, and said to Daniel, “Are you that Daniel who is one of the captives from Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah? I have heard of you, that the Spirit of God is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you. Now the wise men, the astrologers, have been brought in before me, that they should read this writing and make known to me its interpretation, but they could not give the interpretation of the thing. And I have heard of you, that you can give interpretations and explain enigmas. Now if you can read the writing and make known to me its interpretation, you shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around your neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.”

Then Daniel answered, and said before the king, “Let your gifts be for yourself, and give your rewards to another; yet I will read the writing to the king, and make known to him the interpretation. O king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father a kingdom and majesty, glory and honor. And because of the majesty that He gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him. Whomever he wished, he executed; whomever he wished, he kept alive; whomever he wished, he set up; and whomever he wished, he put down. But when his heart was lifted up, and his spirit was hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him. Then he was driven from the sons of men, his heart was made like the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys. They fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till he knew that the Most High God rules in the kingdom of men, and appoints over it whomever He chooses.

“But you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, although you knew all this. And you have lifted yourself up against the Lord of heaven. They have brought the vessels of His house before you, and you and your lords, your wives and your concubines, have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone, which do not see or hear or know; and the God who holds your breath in His hand and owns all your ways, you have not glorified. Then the fingers of the hand were sent from Him, and this writing was written.

“And this is the inscription that was written: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.

This is the interpretation of each word. 

MENE: God has numbered your kingdom, and finished it; 

TEKEL: You have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting; 

PERES: Your kingdom has been divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.”

Then Belshazzar gave the command, and they clothed Daniel with purple and put a chain of gold around his neck, and made a proclamation concerning him that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.

Belshazzar’s Fall

That very night Belshazzar, king of the Chaldeans, was slain. And Darius the Mede received the kingdom, being about sixty-two years old.