What Is Helpful for Them

Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. (Rom. 15:2)

“I want,” “I need,” “I desire,” “I deserve.” These are very different expressions than “He needs,” not only in the pronoun but also in the verb. We think in terms of the other person’s needs if they are negative. “He needs a spanking,” or “He deserves to go to Hell.” Both of these may be true, but the text is speaking about what pleases and builds up the other person, rather than what pleases us.

Ephesians 4:29: “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” What we do and what we speak should be only for the other person’s benefit.

Because of the immediacy and sometimes the importance of things in front of me, I have not attended to other responsibilities: completing several books - on prayer, on the Great Commission, my autobiography, and a sequel to How to Be Free from Bitterness. Before, there was no deadline; but now I am 89 years old. If they are to be published, God has a deadline. Please pray for me for wisdom and time.

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Roots by the River

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