Sunday, September 11, 2011

Sep 12-18

Mon: Joshua 8
Tue: 2 Chronicles 15
Wed: Psalm 9
Thu: Isaiah 13
Fri: Hosea 13
Sat: Luke 21
Sun: 2 Corinthians 12

12 comments:

Chris said...

The first verse seemed like a word from the Lord just for me this morning- I went to bed and woke up with Jordan so heavy on my heart. "Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged". How reassuring for Joshua to have that direct word from God.

Unknown said...

mmm... I agree. My version says, "Do not be afraid or give up." I loved Connie's prayer yesterday. all the prayers actually. Moments like that tie the body in ways that nothing else really can.

What stood out to me today was " Then Joshua read all the word so the teachings, the blessings andhe curses, exactly as they were written in the Book of the Teachings. All the Israelites were gathered together- men, women, and children- along with the non-Israelites who lived among them. Joshua read every command that Moses had given." Joshua 8:34-35

We've never been the kind to "skip" parts of the bible because they are "too mature" for little ears. We have always believed that conscience is formed young, who knows how young and the sooner God's word is received, processed, discussed and understood, the more opportunity it will have to work it's way into the fabric of that conscience. Doesn't mean the discussion always covers everything in depth, but at least topics are introduced and then re-introduced and re-introduced and built upon over time.

Joan said...

Chris, that was the direct word from God to you this morning. It would be nice to hear from Him in an audible voice but we have his Word.

Lois said...

A thought that came to me this morning was: if only Achan had been patient,and, much more importantly, loved and revered as he should have, he could have had all kinds of nice things. An object lesson for us? I wonder if it's safe to say that God wants to bless us with good things, but our priorities have to be right? We should give to God the firstfruits, showing that He is most important in our lives. When that is proven (not quite the right word, but you know what I mean?) then God sometimes blesses us with all the other things, which, kind of ironically, don't matter all that much anymore.

Unknown said...

2 Chronicles 15. Passion. Zeal.

"The Lord is with you when you are with Him. If you obey him, you will find him, but if you leave him, He will leave you." v2

I used to always have trouble reconciling verses like this with other verses like "even when we are unfaithful He will remain faithful for He cannot deny who He is" 2 Tim 2:13.

Finally I understand the difference between assurance of salvation and walking in fellowship with God.

"They looked for Him and found Him." v4 and 15

He is not up there playing hard to get, but if we are not looking or seeking, if we are fully caught up in other things we are most likely not going to experience the joy of seeing Him and being blessed by the knowledge of His presence and the glory of being united to Him on the good days and the bad.

Lois said...

Good thoughts.

Chris said...

Totally get that, and concur, Nichole. Asa was really diligent in pleasing God- while he didn't take down ALL the high places, he did go out of his way to take down many of them, even choosing to make waves with his own grandmother because of her idolatrous ways.

I love "they sought God EAGERLY, and He was found by them". I feel that eagerness again- and it is such a blessing to find God in all of the places I look and 'do'. May each of us also be filled with that desire to seek out God in all that He is doing around us and join Him in it.

Unknown said...

"I will be happy BECAUSE OF YOU." Psalm 9:2a

Amen!

Chris said...

I don't get such a warm fuzzy feeling from Isaiah 13- I always struggle when it comes to hearing about justice meaning destroying infants & ravishing the women. I do understand what would happen to them if they were not destroyed with the men of a village or nation, but my heart is still heavy for their lost souls, and the violence done to them. Asked God for some applicable truth as I read this morning, and I think it comes as the urgency to tell people about Jesus' love and sacrifice, to make that opportunity available while we still have the time... whether I pray for boldness today is another challenge! And yet, how can we keep that kind of grace under wraps, like a secret?

Unknown said...

I have to admit, my heart was racing the whole time I was reading this chapter. My ladies bible study group started a new study last night, on the book of Daniel. The first session was all about "Babylon" and the "spirit of Babylon" (overindulgence and an attitude of "I am, and there is none besides me" or in other words, a self obsessed approach to life.

This chapter just drove home all the nails that were brought up in our study last night. We can choose who we will serve, self or the ruler of the universe. We can choose to spend our life seeking to establish a name for ourself, or seeing to exalt God's name.

But there is so much more than that here. This chapter does address "the times" that it was written to, but it also addresses the end times. Revelation alludes to so much that is found in this chapter (from the end of chap 16-18).

This reading set me on fire this morning. Jesus is coming! He will reign supreme! Evil will be destroyed completely and every knee will bow. We focus on the debasement of sinful man, and find it hard to swallow, we have trouble focusing on the risen Savior who is HOLY and RIGHTEOUS and WORTHY OF PRAISE! Hallelujah! Maranatha!

Unknown said...

"but they sinned by worshiping Baal, so they must die." Hosea 13:1

Are we seeing a theme in these dispersed passages yet? The wages of sin is death. But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ His son. We can't emphasize one, without accepting the reality of the other. Finally realized this morning that this theme has been hammered home in nearly every passage for a number of weeks now. Sin and death. sin and death. sin and death.

Lois said...

I hear you Chris! The thought of violence to babies and women really bothers me, too. We still see with earthly eyes and feel with earthly hearts, I guess.
In trying to find something positive, I ggogled "ancient Babylon". Here is an excerpt from the Bible-history.com site: "... Babylon... was situated on the Euphrates River about 50 miles south of modern Baghdad, just north of what is now the modern Iraqi town of al-Hillah.

The tremendous wealth and power of this city, along with its monumental size and appearance, were certainly considered a Biblical myth, that is, until its foundations were unearthed and its riches substantiated during the 19th century. Archaeologists stood in awe as their discoveries revealed that certain stories in the Bible were an actual situation that had happened in time.

I thought it was cool to see how prophecy was fulfilled, as in the fact that Babylon never was rebuilt, and how the Bible was verified through archeology.