Romans 12 part 2

In this episode of the Bible Gal podcast, we jump into Romans chapter 12 and dive into and study verses 11-21 of what Paul has to say to us. 

In this episode we cover: 

1. Romans 12:11-21
2. Galations 6:9
3. Don’t be lazy, but work hard
4. Have hope & patience in troubling times
5. Be ready to help God’s people
6. Pray and bless those who persecute you
7. Be available to be there for people
8. Don’t be too proud to sit at the table with them
9. Be kind and pray for those who hurt you
10. Let God & conquer evil by doing good

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:02

Welcome to the Bumble Gumma Pum Hamps and Mummy Gumble Ember. I'm disciplined for 71 woman, empowering women to step into the one for the Lord mentality. I'm encouraging us to live in their faith, to grow, and to believe in the common that come us for us. My vision is to help women break the chains of their past of inner struggles and fears to create new chapters that only our mother can write for us. I'm on a mission and passion to empower you and all the women out there. This is going to be your new favorite podcast for daily devotionals and Bible study chats.

SPEAKER_01 0:34

Hey guys, welcome back to another episode. Um today we are doing Romans chapter 12, part two, which is verses 11 through 21. Um, but before I get started, I would like to open in prayer. Um dear Father, I just ask that you open our hearts and you open our minds today. Fill us up with your Holy Spirit, fill us up with your daily bread today, Father. And I just pray over this message, Father, that it will be given um through the Holy Spirit, and that you um help give me the words that need to be said today. Father, amen. All right, so we're gonna jump right on in. Um we left off at Romans chapter 12, verse eleven. Um says, Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. Um sorry, that was a pretty serious like verse, so anyway, but um as I start this message, uh this verse really stuck out to me um because I've struggled recently with some really bad anxiety. Um I have chronic severe anxiety, um, and for the most part, God has really healed me from it, but there are still random seasons where um I get like a spike in hormones, and right now I am postpartum. Um, and I just have a lot of newness going on. I go back to work next week, um and my baby is going to daycare, so there's just a lot of things that are gonna be happening soon to surge these anxiety hormones recently. Um, and it's kind of made me feel lazy because I just am feeling super anxious, um, and so it makes me want to like not do anything and just sit and bathe in my anxiousness. Um, but I really knew that the devil was trying to get me to fumble the other day, um, and he was kind of trying to make me anxious to write podcast episodes. He was trying to make me nervous to um just like do any for everything. I was gonna go for a walk and um go door to door and deliver some business cards for my husband's business and just go around and um I like to run into people and just start up conversations and um just kind of be in fellowship and spread the light. And so like I was feeling really anxious not to do that as well. And um, you know, and I knew that it was the devil that was definitely like weighing my anxiety down, putting pressure on it, trying to keep me from serving the Lord enthusiastically. Um, and so when I came back to my notes and read this verse before I um, you know, as I was making up my notes, I was like, dang, like I really felt convicted hard. Um, I was really like, damn, like I gotta get better um with not letting that, you know, get to me and not being victimized by it. And you know, it happens moments like this, you know, they come about in our lives and it's kind of about what we choose to do with it. You know, fighting that worldly urge to be lazy when it comes to serving the Lord. Because, you know, if I'm honest, we do have those moments where, you know, either we're anxious or we're super busy, um, or maybe we're just in a funk, maybe we've got like rainy day emotions, right? Like there's just so many occurrences where we feel like we woke up on the wrong side of the bed and we just feel lazy, um, for whatever reason. And, you know, it's just really important that when it comes to serving the Lord, that we fight the laziness um in our flesh, and we say, you know what? No, I'm gonna serve the Lord anyway, even if I don't feel like it today, I'm gonna serve the Lord because He is worthy and just so praiseworthy, and He is God Almighty, and He deserves that. And um And kind of pushing through that, you know, never saying to yourself, like, Oh, well, I don't feel like spreading the word today, or you might not say that, you know, like word for word, but you know, you're kind of thinking that um along those lines, you know, you're like, Well, I don't feel like reaching out to that person today. Um, you know, I encourage everybody to have a prayer of three. A prayer of three is three people. Um that is like the top three people that you are praying for for their salvation, um, and the top three people that you are uh are always on your mind thinking about reaching out to and you know, trying to bring to God and and you know, doing life with and building a relationship with. Um and so it's kinda, you know, like not not saying to yourself, like, I don't feel like checking on them today and I don't feel like talking to them today, but you know, saying, you know, that I I don't want to speak the gospel into somebody today because I'm just feeling off my game. You know, and it's completely normal for us to feel off our game. I'm not trying to say that, you know, we need to pretend to be perfect and that we're never off our game. It's a hundred percent okay to be off your game, as I just acknowledged mine the other day. But, you know, it's it's about us pushing through that, praying through um those situations and praying in that moment and and and really kind of forcefully saying, I know I'm feeling lazy, and I feel this pull, I feel this, you know, pressure of laziness to just be lazy, and it almost gets makes you anxious to get up off the couch and do anything um because you know you should, but you just don't want to, right? But like pushing through those moments and being honest with the Lord, because he already knows, and asking him for help and saying, Hey, like I want to serve you with passion, Lord, today, and I'm struggling and I'm and I'm feeling lazy and I don't want to be lazy. Help me because I can't do this alone. You know, like we can do all things in Christ who strengthens us, right? So, you know, asking him, going to him in that moment, I promise he will help you. And and for me in that moment the other day, um, I sat in it for a few hours, if I'm being quite honest with you, and then it got to, you know, I don't know, early, late afternoon, if I remember, about two, three o'clock, and I uh finally prayed to the Lord and asked him for help and he helped me. And I finally got off off my butt and I recorded a podcast episode and finally took my walk at 4 30 in the afternoon. Um, but you know, I finally got it done. And um, so if on if anything, it actually worked out great because at 4 30 out in the afternoon, people are getting home from work, kids are getting off the bus, and I just had a lot more interaction with people um uh at that time. So it ended up all working out. Um, but let me get back into the word. Um verse 12 says, Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in troubling times and keep praying. So having confident hope that God will pull through, having hope that when you're feeling lazy, or having hope but when you're in a rut, you know, mentally or emotionally or spiritually, that you're gonna have hope that God will bring you out of it. Have hope that when you're in a uh relationship rut or in a financial rut or you know, in a motivation rut or an anxiety rut that God will help you, God will bring you out, God will be there for you. Um, and have hope that have hope in that um and hope in Him and being patient in troubling times when we're feeling down. How often do we have pity parties and you know we want to talk to somebody and we're kind of like complaining to them and we're having a pity party about what's going on and why we're feeling lazy or why we're upset or why we're in a rut, and you know, and then and then we just want to bask in it, but we need to like own up that we're in this situation that we're feeling down, and it's okay, but it's not okay to just sit in our misery and just continue to bathe in our pity party. You know, it's important that we say, you know what, I'm I have hope in the Lord, and I know that He will pull through and have patience that the Father will provide and be there for us because we know that not all every time that we're in these situations does God just miraculously pull us out right away. Now, sometimes he does, but other times there's like this little waiting season of after we pray and ask him for the you know the help in the rut. There's like this this we're kind of just sitting there and we're we're we get anxious and frustrated and we're like I'm still feeling down, you know, whether it's financially or relationshippy, or you know, you're just feeling lazy or anxious or depressed, right? Like whatever rut you're in, there's that little moment of like, mm, okay, God, hello. But we have to be like, you know what? No, he will provide on his own time. I'm gonna be patient, I'm gonna trust that he will do it, and I'm gonna continue to pray and I'm gonna continue to praise him, even though you know I'm waiting on him, and I'm gonna continue to um spend time with him and talk to him and sing his worship um even though I'm waiting on for him, you know, even though I'm waiting for him and asking him, you know, continue to ask for help during these times, and not just asking once, but you know, while while you're in that little waiting in-between period, you continue to pray, you continue to say, you know what, Lord, I'm gonna wait on you. And you know what? Uh even though I'm feeling down, even though I asked for your help and you know you haven't yet given it to me, I know that you will, and I know that you will on your time, and so I'm gonna just sit with you in your presence because I need that, and I want that. Um and that's kind of what that verse is saying. And then he continues to go on. Uh, Paul's got a really good plot here. If you notice, every verse kind of like rolls into his into the next year. In verse 13, it says, When God's people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality. So when somebody's having a mental breakdown, make sure that you're available and to be there to offer an ear and a shoulder, you know, an ear to listen and a shoulder to cry on. When somebody needs help because they're struggling with finances, how can you be ready to help them? Maybe you don't have um, you know, like money to just give them, but you know, maybe you can get and go get some groceries for them, you know, go buy some groceries for them. Maybe you have groceries in your house that you can offer up to them. Or maybe it's something like, you know, you can offer to pay for that Christmas tree that they don't have money to buy, you know, put in their house. You don't necessarily have the money to like help them pay their bills, but you can look at other ways and say, okay, like yeah, you know, they uh they don't have a Christmas tree this year and they really don't have the money for it, you know. Maybe I can swing and and find a you know a Christmas tree cheaper within my budget that I can help to, you know, help get that in their home. Um, you know, things like that when somebody needs help with getting out of their head and they're in a you know, like I'm not good enough, or you know, any kind of you know, emotional beat up when they're in their head, you know, like you're there to pray for them. You're there to, you know, let them vent to you, and you're there to lift them up and to encourage them. Um and when somebody's like having car issues, maybe you offer a ride, or maybe I don't know, maybe you have an extra car for them to use. Um, maybe you offer to help pay to get their car fixed. Um, maybe you know about cars and you can help them look at the car issue, right? Like, think about ways that you can offer um hospitality to them and you can offer to the people that are in need. When somebody's walking home in the rain, maybe you offer them a dry ride home. It's so common these days that when we see people walking on the side of the road, we got like stranger danger and we're scared that something's gonna happen to us, and that's really sad, you know. And I'll still say I'm a victim of of of that feeling of feeling like I'm scared to like let them in my car. But you know, God's been weighing on me and saying, you know, like you could have been the light, that could have been an opportunity. You could have that could have been an opportunity for you to to connect with them, to bring them to Jesus, to offer the ride home, to show them, you know, that hey, somebody cares about you to show them the light and be the light. Um maybe when somebody's lonely, you offer to host a hangout and you just cook a nice warm meal and offer laughter and conversation, maybe a TV show or a game night. Um, but you just offer, you know, a company. You know, we need to be the light and to help other people. We need to help God's people, and we need to be good disciples and lead by example to the people that we are discipling, that this is how we have hospitality, this is how we be the light by being the light to other people and doing things like this, um, and and being eager to, as it says. And then in verse 14 says, Bless those who persecute you, do not curse them, pray that God will bless them. This is a super heavy hitter and really hard, but it's also very important to be obedient. Um Quick example: I was walking my dog um around the neighborhood. There's three parts to my neighborhood. There is the neighborhood that I live in, which is a single-family home neighborhood. In the front of my neighborhood, it is connected to a senior center, like complex neighborhood, like little I don't know what you call them, like little apartment condo things. Um the back is the apartments. So anyway, I was walking my dog and usually I um I'll walk off, you know, it's all one big neighborhood, but it's like different parts all connected. So I'll usually walk all of it, depending on how cool I'm feeling and how long I want to walk. Anyway, so I was walking the dog and I started getting screamed at by these old people when I was walking up front. Um They were like, You're trespassing, you're not allowed up here. Like they were like cussing at me, and uh like the this old guy got up out of his chair who was sitting on his porch and like came walking after me, and I didn't know how to handle it. Like the old fleshly me kind of wanted to flip out, but I knew that was the wrong answer, and so I didn't really know what else to do. So I just kind of like kept walking and tried to ignore them and keep my head high and you know keep it moving and try not to let that bother me because I wasn't doing anything wrong except for walking my dog on a nice day. Um, and they continued to like, you know, yell at me and you're trespassing and and I'm gonna call the cops if you don't leave right now and all this other stuff. So I started feeling like, oh my gosh, like am I doing something wrong? Like I'm looking around and like all this time I've been walking around this neighborhood, like did I have I really been like oblivious and missing a sign of like I'm not allowed to walk over here or something? No, I there's not a single sign up that says anything about not having a dog or trespassing or anything, and you know, I'm thinking in my head, like I do live in this neighborhood, and like am I allowed to be in this neighborhood? So like I start like the devil started like making me believe that like I'm doing something like terribly wrong. And so I just started feeling like terrible about it. I was really, really upset, and it's just not the first time like I walk through that neighborhood, like up in that front part. I walk it all the time. There's been a handful of times that people, you know, the older people that live in that area, they sit on the front porch and you know, they'll say hi when I walk by or tell me, you know, they have a pretty dog, I have a German shepherd, and um, for whatever reason a lot of older people love uh love that. And so, like, you know, sometimes it's like a little conversation starter and they want to compet him, and some people just like say hi from afar. So it was really weird that that day I got all of a sudden like accused. Like I was being I was mortified. And anyway, so I get home and I was really upset um that they were just like persecuting me for for nothing, for cussing me out for nothing. Um, and I was convicted to uh get off my little offensive, you know, seat and be like, you know what? I'm gonna pray for them, you know, because forgive them, Lord. They don't know what they're doing. These poor old people, they they probably have, you know, like they're in this the senior home for for a reason, right? It's kind of cut, it's like where the nurses come in and offer help. I'm like, so these poor old people probably have mental, you know, disabilities, memory issues, and they probably, you know, just for whatever reason felt scared that I was walking in a neighborhood with a big dog, and maybe they forgot that I had walked in here just two days ago, you know, and they don't know what they're doing. They just they felt scared and you know, they were just acting off of like adrenaline, and I was like, so father, forgive them, you know, forgive them for for doing that, forgive them for acting like that, and forgive me for you know thinking worldly thoughts and fleshly thoughts. And um, you know, I was like, let me let me just pray for them. You know, like I pray that you forgive them, I pray for their salvation. Um, so you know, it's it's it's moments like that. Um, that nobody talks about how hard it is, you know, when you offer, you know, and open up your home to offer warm cooked meals and a listening ear and supportive shoulder. Maybe you're being the light and you're doing God's work, and and maybe God was like, here's somebody you can disciple, and you know, help this person out, and you do, and you obey, but then instead of appreciating you, they cuss you out, they accuse you, they persecute you of you know something you didn't even do, you know. You're just literally loving with God's heart, and you're doing nothing but God's work, and then you get persecuted and accused and yelled at. And that's a hard moment. What do you do? What does your flesh want to do? Obviously, your flesh wants to do mean things and wants to cuss them back and you know, throw that you were being nice to them in their face and be like, Well, I was doing this for you, why are you being mean? Right? Like all these all these fleshly thoughts come in and makes you never want to be nice to them ever again, or you know, help them ever again, and it makes you want to sh close up shop and um be reserved and not talk to them and other things, right? So, but we have to humble ourselves and go to God, and you know, it's okay and it's important to cry to him and tell him that these people hurt our feelings. That's totally normal. We're allowed to feel the feels, you know. God knows we have feelings. That's you know, totally okay. If anything, God wants us to go to him and say, Hey, like I'm really upset, you know, in the situation. Cry to him. I've done it a handful of times. I've been like, God, you have brought me this person, you told me to disciple them, you told me to love them, you told me to mentor them, and here I am obeying you and following you, and you know, going where you want me to go and loving who you want me to love, and yet they're persecuting me. Why, Lord? Why is this happening? And um, there's been plenty of moments that I've been upset and I've been like, What why? Um, but you know, he humbled me and was like, you know what? I'm here with you, I see you, I see your good work, keep going. You know, at the right time, it will harvest fruit, right? And I'm like, all right, Lord. So, you know, and asking him to have self-control to be obedient and not flip out, and self-control to be obedient and to pray for them and to forgive them and to pray for the person who hurt you, and to, you know, move on and to continue to have godly character and pray for that person. That's harsh stuff. Um, but as Paul says, and you know, it's it's what we should be doing, you know, it's what God's will is. It's the kind of loving heart that Jesus has that we should be striving to have as well. And then he goes on in verse 15, he says, Be happy who those are happy, and weep with those who weep. So be there for people, do God's work, be like Jesus, you know, celebrate with somebody who's happy over their new promotion or their new relationship or their new car, regardless of what's going on in your life. Maybe you just went through a breakup and you're just feeling like in a rut. And then, you know, your friend calls you up and you know, they just got this new promotion at their job. That doesn't mean that you're like, oh, sorry, I'm not in the right headspace to like be there for you. No, go be there for them, go be happy with those who are happy, go celebrate with them, go give them your heart and be like, I'm so happy for you. Go celebrate with them, you know, or vice versa, weep and offer a shoulder to cry on, you know. So maybe you're doing really good. Maybe you just got the promotion and you're doing great in life. But then your friend calls you and her boyfriend cheated on her and broke up with him, you know, and they broke up and this whole you know catastrophe happens. And you're like, I don't really want to like go be around that negativity, but do it anyway. Go weep with those who weep. Go buy a carton of ice cream, you know, grab your favorite TV show that you guys would watch. Maybe it's I don't know, Friday Night Lights or Friends, or you know, go grab a comfort show and go sit down with them and just go be there for them and offer and offer that. Um continues to say in verse 16 live in harmony with each other. Don't be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. Do not think you know it all. That's some harsh stuff. Humble yourself, don't be prideful, don't think you're better. Than somebody. I think we talked about this a little bit in one of my previous episodes. I honestly can't remember which one. Um, but don't think that you're better than somebody because we all sin, we all fall short. No sin is one less more than the other. It's all an equal sin. So don't be like, oh well, I didn't cuss them out, so my sin's better than their sin because they're out there, you know, smoking and drinking with the people they were trying to give bring to salvation, and I didn't do that. I was just, you know, I just cussed somebody out for cutting me off. Like, no, the end of the day, your sin is just as equal as theirs. Let's not pretend that we're better than everybody or better than other people. Um, you know, because Jesus did sit with the people at the table. However, it doesn't mean participate in the sins, right? So when we're bringing people to Jesus, often we'll see things of them acting worldly because, well, they haven't come to Jesus yet, so they haven't quite grabbed that godly character. Or maybe they did come to Jesus, but they're still in the early stages. So again, they haven't really had that extreme transformation yet. They're still healing, they're still learning, they're still going through all of that. And yes, we be there for them, yes, we sit at the table with them, but we have to make sure that we don't participate in their sins and get caught up in the temptation of acting fleshly, but that we lead by example um and offer godly character and love. Um, but never think that we're still too good to hang out with them. They need help, they need help. You know, just means don't do it with them. You know, we can be the light and be encouraging, um, just like Jesus did. And then um in verse 17 and 18, this is some harsh stuff, and it kind of goes back up to verse 14. Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everybody can see you as honorable. Do all that you can do to live in peace with everybody. So, like I said, going back up a couple verses, when somebody does you wrong or dirty, don't be rude back. Don't text them another petty, long, cussing paragraph about what you have to say and think about that, you know, putting them in their place. Yes, that's what our flesh wants to do. And, you know, we're women. I I'm a woman here, okay? I'm not gonna sit here and say that my brain doesn't have those petty thoughts, but you know what? I gotta have that self-control. And instead of flipping out on them, I'm gonna stick up for them. I'm gonna pray for them, you know. So when other people start to make fun of that person for the way they acted, you know, I'm gonna be like, you know what? No, let's not make fun of them, let's pray for them. Let's continue to be the light even when they're mistreating you. You know, it's such a common thought is well, you know, that's kind of like being a doormat and letting people take advantage of me. No, it's not. Because we are doing this not because that we're doormats, not because we're letting people take advantage of us, not because we don't have a backbone, no, not because we're being a pushover. No, no, no, no. That's all worldly thoughts. Okay, but we are doing that, we are being the light and forgiving people and you know, helping people and praying for people, even when they mistreat us, because that is God's will. If we do God's will, he will take care of it for us, okay? He says in Galatians 6, verse 9, do not become weary for what is doing good and pleasing, because at the right time it will reap a harvest. Pretty sure I just referenced that a minute ago. Because if we do God's will and we take care of his work, he will take care of us. So by us taking care of that person and by being nice to them, even though they're mistreating us and continuing to pour into them and continuing to do his will, and when they hurt us, we pray for them, we forgive them, and we keep going, you know, no matter how many times they hurt us, or we keep doing that, he will take care of it, and he will take care of you because it's not about letting people take advantage of you, but it's about being the light, being obedient to God, being obedient to the Father, to represent him as a child of God. Is it about being an ambassador for him? It is about showing other people what a child of God looks like by leading by example. Okay, he literally answers this for us in the next few verses. I'm wrapping it up here because I've been talking for a while. Um, 19 through 21. Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For scripture says, this is all in the scripture, what Paul says, I will take revenge, I will pay them back, says the Lord. Instead, if your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. Because in doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads. So don't let evil conquer you, but conquer evil with good. And that's how this chapter ends. So God literally says, Don't worry about it. I got it. I got it. My anger, my wrath will take out on them because he's like a father. He is a father. You know, think about your kid, and when your kid is doing something nice, and maybe they offered out their cupcake at the lunch table, you know, and they were trying to be sweet, and instead that other person just like threw the cupcake in their face and was like, ha ha ha, and being making fun of them, right? You as mama bear, you're gonna take care of that for your kid, right? You you're gonna be like, oh, absolutely not. You was not gonna treat my baby like that. My baby was trying to be nice and offer you a cupcake, and you was not gonna treat them like that, right? That's what God that's what God does for us. So we keep doing good and we keep conquering evil with good because it's literally this is my own words, but the Bible's version of killing them with kindness is God's version of killing them with kindness, right? Continue to pray for them, continue to bless them, continue to be the light, and let God take care of the rest. Alright, guys, I'm gonna stop there because it's been quite a long time that I've been talking now. So, with that being said, I really hope you are encouraged today um by one of the verses, or maybe all of them, um, by this message today. So, with that being said, I'm gonna wrap it up for today. If you guys have any prayer requests, any topic requests, um, or maybe you just want to connect with me and join the Bible study on Wednesday nights, you can email me at your BibleGal at gmail.com. I would love to connect with you. Um, and all right, I will see you guys later. Bye for now.

SPEAKER_00 28:32

Thank you so much for listening to today's episode. If you'd like to hear more, there are new episodes that drop every Monday and Thursday. If you liked what you heard, please help your gal out by leaving a review. You can also give using the link below. I'd love to pray for you. If you have any prayer requests, please send me an email to your biblegal at gmail.com, which is also in the links below, along with all my other social media so you know where to find me. And remember, sisters, if you walk only in faith this week, God is with you every step of the way.