Monday, August 29, 2011

Aug 29 - Sep 4



Monday: Joshua 6
Tuesday: 2 Chronicles 13
Wednesday: Psalm 7
Thursday: Isaiah 11
Friday: Hosea 11
Saturday: Luke 19
Sunday: 2 Corinthians 10

16 comments:

Chris said...

Lord, may I trust you so steadfastly as Joshua did... That when I ask each day to be used by You, I will not question your tactics or methods, just rest in the knowledge of Your sovreignty and good purposes, and obey swiftly.

Unknown said...

>> I will not question your tactics or methods, just rest in the knowledge of Your sovreignty and good purposes, and obey swiftly.<<

AMEN!

Thanks for getting the weekly post up for me this week, loved coming here this morning and seeing it up and being put to good use already :)

Unknown said...

mmmm... thoroughly enjoyed this chapter this morning. "But as for us, the Lord is our God; we have not left Him." v10 "God Himself is with us as our ruler." v12

I love how they outlined their faithfulness to God and how God proved His faithfulness to them in the face of a powerful but corrupt enemy.

Abijah outlined how they had not forsaken the letter of the law, or the spirit of the law, devoting themselves to God and His Lordship in the morning, in the evening and at all occasions that He had ordained. That is faithfulness. Give me a faithful heart, Lord. That seeks you at dawn, and turns to you at dusk, and keeps tabs with you every turn of the way. Give me victory over the enemy who taunts and seeks to trap me, and let me re-route Him through the power of your Spirit so that I can walk triumphantly.

Chris said...

It seems like maybe Abijah was all just talk- resting on the good that his ancestors had done, letting his people honor the Lord and not giving his own heart and purposes to the Lord. He appears to be trusting that God will keep His promises to Judah, despite the fact that He did not take down the high places and asherah poles, and he followed the ways of his father Rehoboam.

God did indeed protect the people of Judah and prove His faithfulness. It was mighty gutsy (read: stupid?!) of Jeroboam to march around lugging golden shrines with them, and appointing their own priests despite the rigid instructions God gave for selecting priests.

Prayer today: Psalm 139:23-24

Unknown said...

Your comment made me look into other passages that reference Abijah because I totally didn't get that impression of him from this chapter. 1 Kings 15 definitely shines more light on this aspect of his character, you are spot on! Impressions can be deceiving, no? :)

Unknown said...

"Lord my God, what have I done? Have my hands done something wrong? Have I done wrong to my friend...?" psalm 7:3

God... you know our thoughts and feelings." v9

"God protects me like a shield; He saves those who do what is right." v10

These words were retrospectively comforting to me today. Reminding me that in the storm, when we cry out to God, He knows, He hears, He cares and He intervenes.

Lois said...

This isn't really a devotional thought, but verse 14 struck me as being great writing from a literary point of view:
Whoever is pregnant with evil
conceives trouble and gives birth to disillusionment.

Doesn't that just say so much in a few words?

Unknown said...

that is a really great sentence from a literary and a spiritual viewpoint!

Unknown said...

Isaiah 11:9b "Because the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the sea is full of water."

Goosebumps and sigh. I can't wait to know Him like that.

"v13 Israel will not be jealous of Judah and Judah will not hate Israel."

So nice to read after the passage on Tuesday.

Lois said...

I agree -- the earth... full of the knowledge of the Lord... Then everything will be the way He wanted it in the first place. I liked vs. 6:The wolf will live with the lamb,
and the leopard will lie down
with the young goat;
the calf and the young lion
will feed[c] together,
and a little child will lead them.
Again, great literature. What a beautiful word picture of real peace.
And yet,in verse 14, they are still fighting and plundering. I thought that was all supposed to be over and the whole earth was to be at peace.

Unknown said...

would it make sense that verse 14 is actually taking place prior to the verses on fulfilled peace earlier in the chapter? That it's a "means" to get to that peace? So in order for all this to be fulfilled Israel has to be gathered from the nations, the nations that have opposed them will be put down and peace will "then" reign? So it's not really chronological the way it is written?

Chris said...

I get goosebumps too... the first part of the chapter seems to be talking about Jesus' initial 'visit' to earth, then jumps to the final time? Sounds fabulous and scary all at the same time. Imagining Him gathering the remnant (I remember talking with you about this, Nic)is an amazing visual.

Chris said...

I'm caught up with God's differentiation between Himself and man- holy vs. unholy- and also the thoughts of God changing his heart, His compassion being aroused due to His great love for His people. At first I was thinking that it was the people who had swayed Him, maybe that they had done something that inspired God to changed His mind. After a bit of thought though, it seems that it may have been God strengthening His commitment, maybe reminding Himself of His own purposes and deep love for those He had created, despite their ignorance and sinful hearts.

Unknown said...

Hosea 11, what a beautiful, beautiful chapter. I agree with your conclusions, Chris. "If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny who he is." 2 Tim 2:13

I can't read the book of Hosea without images from Francine Rivers book "Redeeming Love" flooding through my head. A love that never gives up, despite our harlotry and idolatry. A love that never fails. What a loving God we serve.

Chris said...

yes- Redeeming Love is a story that sticks with me when I read Hosea- an unrelenting, un-understandable, desperate-pursuing of love.

Unknown said...

Think of a rich, classy businessman you know, climbing a tree to get a glimpse of the Savior. What trees am I willing to climb in my life. Am I willing to go out on a limb and risk humiliation out of desire to "catch a better glimpse" of my Lord?

"we don't want this man to be our king"... but He became King."

One day, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess, that He is Lord. Whether they accepted that in their daily choices/life or not.

v 41, 42 As Jesus came near Jerusalem, he saw the city and cried for it, saying, "I wish you knew today what would bring you peace."

Heartbreaking.