A daily, Bible-based message of hope and encouragement.
 A daily, Bible-based message of hope, encouragement and exhortation. Click here to support our ministry.The online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber. <Previous Message · Archive edition Wednesday, February 13, 2013 Glacier National Park Photo by our friend Nelson Longenecker Click on photo for larger size  Listen to this message on your audio player.Marriage series: We celebrate Valentine's Day on Thursday and this week we are sharing a series of messages with the main points based on Gary Chapman's book, "The Five Love Languages". We using the outline of the five languages, featuring a different one each day. We want to provide messages that will strengthen marriages. However most of these points will apply to all relationships. "Thoughtful Gifts" "He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. Great is our Lord and mighty in power; His understanding has no limit" (Psalm 147:4,5). Advertisers are working hard this Valentine season, "suggesting" good ideas for gifts, especially for us men to get for our wives.  Of course we have the traditional gifts of chocolate, flowers, or perfume. We see lots of ads for these. Or we can spend far more money and get some nice jewelry, if you really care you go to Jared's. The Jared's where you spend a lot for their exquisite jewelry. Or take her out to dinner and go to Subway and spend a lot less where Jared is their spokesperson! Or how about a giant Teddy Bear from the Vermont Teddy Bear company? (which, by the way, offers a very interesting factory tour!) Brooksyne told me "Please don't even think of the life size teddy bear they advertise on TV. That's just one more life size body taking up space in our home." So, I'm definitely off the hook for that one!One of the love languages is "Give thoughtful gifts". I am a very poor shopper and for nearly 40 years now I have struggled getting just the right gift for Brooksyne. One possibility for a gift is going to the International Star Registry which allows you to name a star after someone and they will send that person an official certificate of authenticity. Whoever came up with this has a pretty good business potential since based on current estimates, there are between 200 - 400 billion stars in our galaxy (The Milky Way). There are possibly 100 billion galaxies in the Universe. So taking the average of our galaxy that's about 3 septillion. This has been equated to the same number of grains of sand that are on Earth! I wonder if naming a star "Brooksyne" would endear her to me! It appears that "Brooksyne" is available as a star name not yet taken (surprise, surprise). But my study of the Scriptures indicates there's just one problem. Though we can commend the enterprising business entrepreneur who devised this star-naming scheme the Scriptures inform us that the stars are already named!  The mighty God we serve who sent His only Son to this little planet earth has already taken care of that. Our daily text states, "He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name." God made each star and hung it into space (Genesis 1:16). He also has them all accounted for. In fact the Creation Narrative includes this fact, "He made the stars also."The prophet Isaiah in proclaiming the mighty greatness of God declares, "Lift your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing" (Isaiah 40:26). This is the great God we serve today!  OK, let's get back to gifts (as I warned you this is a weak area for me). We live in a very materialistic world that tells us it's the gift that counts; the more expensive the better. But the key word in this love language is "thoughtful".At the heart of love is the spirit of giving. A gift is a tangible expression of your love, something you can hold in your hand and say, "Look, he was thinking of me," or, "She remembered me." A gift is a symbol of that thought. Gifts come in all sizes, colors and shapes. Some are expensive and others are free. To the individual whose primary love language is receiving gifts, the cost will matter little. There is also an intangible gift that can speak more loudly than something held in one's hand. Physical presence in the time of crisis is the most powerful gift you can give. Your personal attention becomes the symbol of your love. If giving or receiving gifts is your partner's love language keep a "gift idea" notebook. Every time you hear your spouse say, "I really like that," write it down. Select gifts you feel comfortable purchasing, making or finding, and don't wait for a special occasion. Becoming a proficient gift giver can be learned if one is willing to do so. Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber  Daily prayer: Father, help us to be people who are thoughtful to those special to us, most especially our spouse. Impress upon our hearts the need to take notice of the big and small things that bring them pleasure, whether it's going to a special place, enjoying a particular activity, or collecting a favorite item. May the gifts we give to those we love express our thoughtfulfulness and show them how much we value them. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.Here are "The Five Love Languages" we will deal with this week: 1) Affirming Words Monday's message 2) Quality Time Tuesday's message 3) Thoughtful Gifts Today's message 4) Cooperative Service 5) Physical Intimacy Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources "I Will Be Here" Video Steven Curtis Chapman "When God Made You" Video Newsong and Natalie Grant "The Five Love Languages" can be ordered at Amazon or many other sources. Some ideas for the latter part of this message come from here. If you really want to name a star after someone you love here is the International Star Registry! However read this first. Vermont Teddy Bear factory tour info. Early this week a short article was written about us titled "Married Couple Serve As Internet Chaplains"  These are articles we come across in the course of studying for these messages or just poking around the vast Internet. In most cases they are not necessarily related to the daily message but may be of interest to our readers. These articles will only be posted once and there will be new ones each post, assuming we come across material that we feel may be of interest. (To see previous links use the archive version.)Free speech is so 20th century |
 Stephen and Brooksyne Weber (Click on photo to enlarge) "We want to encourage you daily in your walk with Christ!" Personal Ministry Update (Revised 12/31/12)  Are our daily encouragement messages a blessing to you? Each weekday morning Brooksyne and I prepare these messages and distribute them at no cost to you and many others all over the world. We ask you to consider an offering to Daily Encouragement Net so that we can continue to prepare and provide this daily resource which is accessed by believers and seekers all over the world. Daily Encouragement Net relies solely on the generosity and financial support of its readers and podcast listeners. See here for more information on supporting this ministry. Gifts are tax deductible. Click here to donate online.2013 YTD financial offerings to Daily Encouragement Net as of 2/12/13: $2,497.00. We express thanks to all who support our ministry! SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION  Were you forwarded this edition of Daily Encouragement Net? If you desire you can receive your own free! To receive these "Daily Encouragement" devotionals each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe to our email list. These messages are never sent by us unsolicited. It was sent to you because you either signed up to receive it OR it was forwarded it to you. You can also subscribe to the Wordpress rss feed or as an email subscription through Wordpress email subscription. (See the email subscription on the right side after opening this page.)Cancel: We respect and value your time and privacy. If you no longer desire to receive these messages you can remove your address from the list by merely using the link automatically inserted by the mailing list software at the very bottom of each email message. (To change addresses cancel your old address and then join again using your new address.) Weekly Version: The weekly version is intended for those who may not check their email regularly or who may desire less frequent mailings. It is Friday's message with a link to previous messages. To receive the free weekly version, send a blank email to this address. Daily Encouragement on Facebook and Twitter:  The daily message and prayer on Facebook. The daily message and prayer on Twitter.Reader Survey: Please take a few minutes to assist us in improving our ministry effectiveness by filling out this online reader survey. To take the survey click here. Please feel free to pass these messages on! Our other blogs: "A Daily Prayer" - A blog simply posting the daily prayer. We keep this up each day since it's merely the prayer from the Daily Encouragement Net message! "A Little Foolishness" - Humor/satire blog (a great outlet for non-serious writing but at times with a subtle message!) (Note: This material is satire!) "Clear Minded" - Longer, periodic articles on specific issues impacting the faithful believer and church. (Actually this is my intent but I haven't done much with it!) "Hymns of Hope" - Brooksyne along with two friends made a CD using classic hymns. Brooksyne tells the background story of the 11 hymns. All of these songs are also available for download on the site. Personal Mission Statement "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."  How to become a child of God Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. Other versions are also occasionally used. © Copyright 2013 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 Contact us  Endorsed chaplain "Living securely today anchored in God's solid foundation" www.dailyencouragement.net |
Daily Encouragement is issued Monday-Friday. To make sure you continue to receive these e-mails in your Inbox (so they're not sent to a junk folder), please add scweber@dailyencouragement.net to your address book or safe sender list. You are receiving these recurring messages as a subscriber to Daily Encouragement Net because you signed up on our website or otherwise requested it unless someone forwarded the message to you. If you desire to unsubscribe use the link below. However, please do not use this link unless your address is the subscribed address below as you will otherwise unsubscribe the person who forwarded it to you!
| You are currently subscribed to dailyencouragement as: stephencweber.dailyencouragement@blogger.com Add scweber@dailyencouragement.net to your email address book to ensure delivery. Forward to a Friend | Manage Subscription | Subscribe | Unsubscribe |  |
