DAILY TEXT, From today Thursday, August 22, 2024, You have made Pharaoh and his servants hate us (Ex. 5:21).

Let us examine the scriptures every day 2022

Thursday August 22, 2024

You have made Pharaoh and his servants hate us and put a sword in their hands to kill us (Ex. 5:21).

Sometimes we may have to face opposition from family members or loss of employment. When a problem lasts a long time, we may think that our situation is hopeless and we may become discouraged. Satan takes advantage of this to make us doubt Jehovah's love. He wants us to start asking ourselves if Jehovah or his organization is to blame for what we are going through. Something similar happened to some of the Israelites who were in Egypt. At first they believed that Jehovah had chosen Moses and Aaron to free them from slavery (Ex. 4:29-31). But when Pharaoh made their lives more difficult, they blamed Moses and Aaron (Ex. 5:19, 20). How unfortunate that they blamed God's loyal servants! If you have been enduring difficulties for a long time, open your heart wide to Jehovah and lean on him. w22.11 15 paras. 5, 6.

What did a family member try to convince Shirley of, and what helped her to continue trusting in Jehovah?

Do not neglect your spiritual activities. That's what helped a sister from Papua New Guinea named Shirley when she was in trouble.b Her family was poor, and sometimes they had a hard time getting enough food. A family member attempted to weaken his trust in Jehovah by telling him: “You say that God's holy spirit is helping you. But where is that help? You are still poor. “You waste your time preaching.” Shirley admits that at one point she wondered if Jehovah really remembered her and her family. She says: “I immediately prayed to Jehovah and vented to him. I continued reading the Bible and our publications, and I did not stop preaching and attending meetings.” Shirley soon realized that Jehovah was taking care of her family, because they were not hungry and were happy. She says, “I saw the Lord answer my prayers” (1 Tim. 6:6-8). If you maintain your spiritual activities, neither problems nor doubts will keep you from Jehovah.

What could happen to brothers with responsibilities in the organization?

Through the media and social networks, our enemies spread lies or inaccurate information about brothers with responsibilities in Jehovah's organization (Ps. 31:13). Some brothers have been arrested and accused of being criminals. Something similar happened in the first century. The apostle Paul was unjustly accused and arrested. What did the Christians of that time do?

How did some Christians react when the apostle Paul was arrested?

When the apostle Paul was arrested in Rome, some Christians abandoned him (2 Tim. 1:8, 15). Could it be that they felt ashamed because Pablo was considered a criminal? (2 Tim. 2:8, 9). Or were they afraid that they too would be persecuted? Be that as it may, Pablo must have felt very bad. He had endured so much and had even risked his life for them (Acts 20:18-21; 2 Cor. 1:8). Let us never be like these Christians who abandoned Paul when he needed support. What should we remember when persecuting responsible brothers?

What should we remember when persecuting responsible brothers, and why?

Remember why we are being persecuted and who is behind it. In 2 Timothy 3:12 we read, “All who desire to live devotedly to God in union with Christ Jesus will also be persecuted.” So we should not be surprised that responsible brothers are targets of Satan's attacks. Their goal is to cause them to stop being loyal to Jehovah and to make us cower (1 Pet. 5:8).

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