1 Timothy 1:12-17

12 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord for the power and strength He has given me. He trusted me and gave me His work to do. 13 Before He chose me, I talked bad about Christ. I made His followers suffer. I hurt them every way I could. But God had loving-kindness for me. I did not understand what I was doing for I was not a Christian then. 14 Then our Lord gave me much of His loving-favor and faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. 15 What I say is true and all the world should receive it. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners from their sin and I am the worst sinner. 16 And yet God had loving-kindness for me. Jesus Christ used me to show how long He will wait for even the worst sinners. In that way, others will know they can have life that lasts forever also. 17 We give honor and thanks to the King Who lives forever. He is the One Who never dies and Who is never seen. He is the One Who knows all things. He is the only God. Let it be so.

Matthew 5:19-20

19 Anyone who breaks even the least of the Law of Moses and teaches people not to do what it says, will be called the least in the holy nation of heaven. He who obeys and teaches others to obey what the Law of Moses says, will be called great in the holy nation of heaven. 20 I tell you, unless you are more right with God than the teachers of the Law and the proud religious law-keepers, you will never get into the holy nation of heaven.

Luke 7:24-28

24 As John’s followers were going away, Jesus began to tell the people about John the Baptist. He said, “Why did you go out to the desert? Did you go out to see a small tree moving in the wind? 25 What did you go out to see? A man dressed in good clothes? Those who are dressed in good clothes are in the houses of kings. 26 But what did you go to see? One who speaks for God? Yes, I tell you, he is more than one who speaks for God. 27 This is the man the Holy Writings spoke of when they said, ‘See! I will send My helper to carry news ahead of You. He will make Your way ready for You!’ 28 “I tell you, of those born of women, there is no one greater than John the Baptist. The least in the holy nation of God is greater than he.”

Luke 9:46-48

46 The followers argued among themselves about which of them would be the greatest. 47 Jesus knew what they were thinking. He put a child beside Him. 48 He said to the followers, “Whoever receives this child in My name, receives Me. Whoever receives Me, receives Him Who sent Me. The one who is least among you is the one who is great.”

Ephesians 3:8-13

8 Of all those who belong to Christ, I am the least important. But this loving-favor was given to me to preach to the people who are not Jews. I was to tell them of the great riches in Christ which do not come to an end. 9 I was to make all men understand the meaning of this secret. God kept this secret to Himself from the beginning of the world. And He is the One Who made all things. 10 This was done so the great wisdom of God might be shown now to the leaders and powers in the heavenly places. It is being done through the church. 11 This was the plan God had for all time. He did this through Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 We can come to God without fear because we have put our trust in Christ. 13 So I ask you not to lose heart because of my suffering for you. It is to help you.

1 Corinthians 15:9-10

9 For I am the least important of all the missionaries. I should not be called a missionary because I made it so hard for God’s church. 10 I am different now. It is all because of what God did for me by His loving-favor. His loving-favor was not wasted. I worked harder than all the other missionaries. But it was not I who worked. It was God’s loving-favor working through me.

John 13:16-17

16 For sure, I tell you, a workman who is owned by someone is not greater than his owner. One who is sent is not greater than the one who sent him. 17 If you know these things, you will be happy if you do them.

1 Timothy 4:12

12 Let no one show little respect for you because you are young. Show other Christians how to live by your life. They should be able to follow you in the way you talk and in what you do. Show them how to live in faith and in love and in holy living.

Matthew 5:3-4

3 “Those who know there is nothing good in themselves are happy, because the holy nation of heaven is theirs. 4 Those who have sorrow are happy, because they will be comforted.

Psalm 74:21

21 Do not let those who suffer under a bad power return without honor. Let those who suffer and those who are in need praise Your name.

Nehemiah 6:1-9

It was told to Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, and to the rest of those who hated us that I had built the wall again. They were told that the wall had no more open places, but I had not yet set up the doors in the gates. 2 So Sanballat and Geshem sent word to me, saying, “Come, let us meet together in one of the villages in the plain of Ono.” But they were planning to hurt or kill me. 3 So I sent men with word to them, saying, “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?” 4 They sent word to me four times in this way, and I gave them the same answer. 5 Then Sanballat sent his servant to me in the same way for a fifth time, with an open letter in his hand. 6 In it was written, “It is said among the nations, and Gashmu says that you and the Jews are planning to turn against the king. This is why you are building the wall again. It is said that you wish to be their king. 7 You have also chosen men who tell what will happen to speak to the people in Jerusalem about you, saying, ‘A king is in Judah!’ Now this will be told to the king. So come now, let us meet to speak with each other.” 8 Then I sent word to him, saying, “No such things as you say have been done. You are making them up in your own mind.” 9 For they all wanted to make us afraid, thinking, “Their hands will become weak and the work will not be done.” But now, O God, strengthen my hands.

Judges 6:7-16

7 The people of Israel cried to the Lord because of Midian. 8 And the Lord sent a man to speak for Him to the people of Israel. The man said to them, “The Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘I brought you here from Egypt. I brought you out of the house where you were made to work. 9 I set you free from the power of the Egyptians and from the hands of all who made it hard for you. I drove them away from in front of you and gave you their land. 10 I said to you, “I am the Lord your God. Do not be afraid of the gods of the Amorites in whose land you live.” But you have not obeyed Me.’” 11 Then the angel of the Lord came and sat under the oak tree in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite. The angel came as Joash’s son Gideon was beating out grain where grapes are crushed, to save it from the Midianites. 12 The angel of the Lord showed himself to Gideon and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O powerful soldier.” 13 Gideon said to him, “O sir, if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all His powerful works which our fathers told us about? They said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has left us alone. He has put us under the power of Midian.” 14 The Lord looked at him and said, “Go in this strength of yours. And save Israel from the power of Midian. Have I not sent you?” 15 Gideon said to Him, “O Lord, how can I save Israel? See, my family is the least in Manasseh. And I am the youngest in my father’s house.” 16 But the Lord said to him, “For sure I will be with you. You will destroy Midian as one man.”

Nehemiah 4:1-6

When Sanballat heard that we were building the wall again, he became very angry. He was filled with anger and he made fun of the Jews. 2 He said to his brothers and the rich men of Samaria, “What are these weak Jews doing? Are they going to build things again for themselves? Will they give gifts on the altar in worship? Will they finish in a day? Will they get good stones for building from the dust, seeing they are burned?” 3 Tobiah the Ammonite was near him and said, “If a fox would jump on what they build, he would break their stone wall down!” 4 Hear, O our God, how we are hated! Return their shame on their own heads. Let them be taken as servants to a strange land. 5 Do not forgive their sin. Do not let their sin be covered from Your eyes. For they have made much fun of the builders. 6 But we built the wall, and the whole wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.

Roldan Ortiz Molinares