In Touch Daily Devotions 8 February 2022 Message By Dr. Charles Stanley
In Touch Daily Devotions 8 February 2022, Tuesday Message
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TOPIC:Â Spiritual Shortsightedness
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE: Genesis 25:19-34
In Touch Daily Devotions 8 February 2022 MESSAGE
The problem with being nearsighted is the inability to see what’s far away. Though we usually think of this as strictly a physical problem, it’s also possible to be spiritually short-sighted (2 Pet. 1:8-9). That is exactly what happened with Esau in today’s passage. He traded his birthright and all its long-term blessings for the immediate physical gratification of a bowl of soup.
That sounds very foolish to us, yet we too can give up something excellent for temporary satisfaction. This happens when we give higher priority to our desires, appetites, or emotions than to the Lord. If our focus is on the temporal rather than the eternal, we’ll make decisions based on today’s needs and desires without considering tomorrow’s consequences. In doing so, we sacrifice lasting treasure for fleeting satisfaction.
To guard against what happened to Esau, avoid making important decisions in times of physical, emotional, or spiritual weakness. Take time to ask the Lord for guidance, and let biblical principles guide your thinking. Remember, self-control is a virtue God highly values (Gal. 5:22-23; 2 Pet. 1:5-8). So view every temptation to satisfy desires quickly as an opportunity to practice self-restraint and trust God.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:Â Numbers 1-2
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: When we seek the Lord’s counsel in our decision-making, we’ll prioritize eternal concerns over temporal ones.
In Touch Daily Devotions 8 February 2022 By Dr. Charles Stanley. He is the senior pastor of First Baptist Church Atlanta and founder of In Touch Ministries, both located in Atlanta, Georgia. Dr. Stanley’s heart’s desire is to get the gospel to “as many people as possible, as quickly as possible, as clearly as possible, as irresistibly as possible, through the power of the Holy Spirit to the glory of God.