“Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith” ( Hebrews 13:7 )

Growing up, there was a lady in our church who took the time to disciple me. She invited several of the youth age girls into her home on a weekly basis where she spent time with us in the Word and in prayer. It was a special time as her love for Jesus was unmistakable. The impact that this dear lady made on me has affected my entire life because I learned how, from an early age to spend time with the Lord.

Since then, the Lord has sent a few others to come beside and mentor me in the Word. Showing, teaching and explaining His truths until they’ve taken hold. These precious people have spoken truth into my life in a way that cannot be measured. As such, this pattern has propagated as I, in turn have also discipled young friends, teaching them from the Word and showing them who the Lord is as they start to grow in their faith.

The people who teach the Word of God to us are very dear so we should honor them and imitate their faith. We should consider their lives, how they live and do our best to emulate them. Paul also gave similar instruction about this, “Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you” ( Philippians 3:17 ). The Word of God is life-changing so it makes sense that those who spend a lot of time in it will think and act differently. We are to live according to that pattern.

Amazingly, the Lord will always send people to us to encourage and build us up in our faith as we grow in the grace and knowledge of God. We are never left to our own; He will surround us by a fellowship of believers. We can use their example of faith and obedience to pattern our lives after. The result will be unity just as Paul encouraged the Philippians, “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel” ( Philippians 1: 27 ). Not only will we imitate the faith of those who went before us, our lives will be worthy of the gospel that saved and redeemed us!

“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?” ( Hebrews 13:5-6 )

I went through a period in life where I was obsessed with material possession. I worked a lot and spent everything I had on clothes, shoes and purses. While it is not wrong to own nice things, trouble arises when our focus switches from heavenly things to materialism. After a while I realized that this was not the path for me, so I wrote this verse on a notecard and put it in my wallet. Every time I opened it to purchase something I had to come face to face with this truth, “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” ( Hebrews 13:5 ).

This worked for me. Sometimes I would re-evaluate whether I really needed it or just wanted it. Sometimes, I would remember that there were more important things to spend my time and money on. But mostly, it would make me angry because I wanted to continue shopping and buying things. However, through this process I always had to acknowledge this simple truth, and it continued to make an impact.

God has promised to never leave us. The Amplified Bible records it this way, “Let your character or moral disposition be free from love of money [including greed, avarice, lust, and craving for earthly possessions] and be satisfied with your present [circumstances and with what you have]; for He [God]  Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!]” ( Hebrews 13:5 Amp) . Pay special attention to the the fact that He says three times, “I will not, I will not, I will not!” In the passage, three negatives precede the verb, this is added so that we can understand God’s resolve in this matter. He will not in any circumstance leave us helpless or let us down.

So what should our response be? The writer of Hebrews gives us the answer in the next verse, “So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently and boldly say, The Lord is my Helper; I will not be seized with alarm [I will not fear or dread or be terrified]. What can man do to me?” ( Hebrews 13:6 Amp ).  We use the truth of God’s unfailing love and grace to combat the desires for worldly possessions.

Wealth is not a bad thing as long as we have a healthy godly perspective of it. We are to keep our lives free from the love of money, always realizing that it is God who takes care of us and provides for our needs. Knowing this will gives us the right perspective concerning money. We are to use it not to love it. We are God’s stewards of it and through us He can use it to bless and care for others which is greater by far than any worldly possession.