Give Thanks

1 Samuel 22:1-2

1 David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and his father’s household heard about it, they went down to him there. 2 All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their leader. About four hundred men were with him.

Psalm 57

For the director of music. To the tune of “Do Not Destroy.” Of David. A miktam . When he had fled from Saul into the cave. [a]
1 Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me,
for in you my soul takes refuge.
I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings
until the disaster has passed.

2 I cry out to God Most High,
to God, who fulfills {his purpose} for me.

3 He sends from heaven and saves me,
rebuking those who hotly pursue me;
Selah
God sends his love and his faithfulness.

4 I am in the midst of lions;
I lie among ravenous beasts—
men whose teeth are spears and arrows,
whose tongues are sharp swords.

5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
let your glory be over all the earth.

6 They spread a net for my feet—
I was bowed down in distress.
They dug a pit in my path—
but they have fallen into it themselves.
Selah

7 My heart is steadfast, O God,
my heart is steadfast;
I will sing and make music.

8 Awake, my soul!
Awake, harp and lyre!
I will awaken the dawn.

9 I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations;
I will sing of you among the peoples.

10 For great is your love, reaching to the heavens;
your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

11 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
let your glory be over all the earth.

—

1. In 1 Samuel 22:1-2, David is facing a situation where he’s surrounded by people whose hearts have been heart, have been mistreated, misunderstood or slandered. I have faced this situation when I visit certain “mission churches” whose congregation has faced many trials and suffer seemingly more than the average person given their financial, legal (etc.) circumstances.
2. When David experienced suffering, fruits of the Spirit were evident, such as peace, patience, faithfulness, gentleness, and even love and joy in the Lord!
He gave thanks despite the adversities in life. I want to be the same way. Lord, please help me to give thanks at all times. I want to sing of Your great love and mercy always! In Jesus’ name I pray, AMEN.

God’s Promises for the Trials I Face

Isaiah 43:2-3,
2 When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.

3 For I am the LORD, your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;
I give Egypt for your ransom,
Cush [a] and Seba in your stead.

Hebrews 13:5-8
5Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,
“Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you.”[a] 6So we say with confidence,
“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.
What can man do to me?”[b]

7Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. 8Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

–

1. From the verses above, God’s promises to those who are facing crisis/trials problems are that He will always be with us, and will give another as a ransom for our freedom. Wow! That means He must really love us…and that makes me want to build a relationship with the Lord more. hehe.
2. Yes, when I look back and see some of the advice and lifestyle examples from some of my spiritual leaders, I see how important it is to have a strong foundation in Christ. We should always be building upon the rock of our salvation which is Christ, Jesus. We need to read the Bible, pray, praise and worship Him more in our everyday lives. In fact, in every part of our lives and days!

Always Courageous Even in Affliction (1)

Proverbs 18:14,
14 A man’s spirit sustains him in sickness,
but a crushed spirit who can bear?

Proverbs 15:13,
13 A happy heart makes the face cheerful,
but heartache crushes the spirit.

Proverbs 17:22,
22 A cheerful heart is good medicine,
but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

Isaiah 40:29,
29 He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.

Isaiah 50:4,
4 The Sovereign LORD has given me an instructed tongue,
to know the word that sustains the weary.
He wakens me morning by morning,
wakens my ear to listen like one being taught.

Romans 12:11
11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.

–

1. Blessing/benefits obtained by people with enthusiasm is that they will have a happy face and strength. For them, working hard is fun, so they will be productive and enjoy life.
2. As a child of God, I need to have enthusiasm/passion/optimism so I can be a light to others, and because God is in me–it’s only natural! He saved me!
3. The characteristics of those who have enthusiasm (according to the verses above), are they are hard working, happy, and healthy. And wise.

Suffering Makes Me More Pure and True

Malachi 3:1-3
1 “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty.

2 But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness,

Malachi 4:1-3,
The Day of the LORD
1 “Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the LORD Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them. 2 But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall. 3 Then you will trample down the wicked; they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I do these things,” says the LORD Almighty.

Psalm 24:3-5

3 Who may ascend the hill of the LORD ?
Who may stand in his holy place?

4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to an idol
or swear by what is false. [a]

5 He will receive blessing from the LORD
and vindication from God his Savior.
—-

1 &2. What can make a person’s heart and life to be pure are clean hands and not lifting up their soul to an idol. I think by also just wanting to obey the Lord and loving Him and doing His Word we will be made more and more pure by Him.
3. Some blessings that will be received from one who has a pure heart is that they will receiving vindication and healing from the Lord, and they will trample down the wicked. Also, during the purification process, we will also become more spiritually mature and I believe closer to God .

Suffering Makes Me Learn to Rely on God

Jeremiah 17:5-10

5 This is what the LORD says:
“Cursed is the one who trusts in man,
who depends on flesh for his strength
and whose heart turns away from the LORD.

6 He will be like a bush in the wastelands;
he will not see prosperity when it comes.
He will dwell in the parched places of the desert,
in a salt land where no one lives.

7 “But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
whose confidence is in him.

8 He will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
and never fails to bear fruit.”

9 The heart is deceitful above all things
and beyond cure.
Who can understand it?

10 “I the LORD search the heart
and examine the mind,
to reward a man according to his conduct,
according to what his deeds deserve.”
–

1. The difference between people who rely on God and those who rely on man when they have crisis is that the one who relies on man is cursed because our flesh and strength fail, and that means this man’s heart is turned away from the Lord. He will not see prosperity when it comes. However, those who trust in God and whose confidence is in God is blessed. They do not fear when heat comes, they do not worry and they bear fruit.
2. Words and actions that come from a sly and hardened heart are deceitful and produce unrighteous deeds and acts. An example is if I sinned, not confessed and yet become hurt, in the past I’ve tried to play it off and be mean to other people. I want to guard my heart so that it won’t become sly or hardened and so this doesn’t happen. When my heart is hardened, God’s light cannot shine through and I won’t have that!

Suffering Makes Me More Humble

Psalm 131:1-2,

Psalm 131

A song of ascents. Of David.

1 My heart is not proud, O LORD,
my eyes are not haughty;
I do not concern myself with great matters
or things too wonderful for me.

2 But I have stilled and quieted my soul;
like a weaned child with its mother,
like a weaned child is my soul within me.

Psalm 123:2-4,

2 As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maid look to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the LORD our God,
till he shows us his mercy.

3 Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy on us,
for we have endured much contempt.

4 We have endured much ridicule from the proud,
much contempt from the arrogant.

James 4:8-10

8Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

—

1. Suffering gives someone a more humble heart because it makes us see our own limitations and turn to the Lord and see His greatness.
2. James 3:8 also says that when we do draw near to Him, He will draw near to us
3. Someone who is humble is not proud, their eyes are not haughty, they do not concern themselves with matters too great or wonderful for them. They stilled and quieted their soul. And they look to God and ask for His mercy.

Understanding New Love in Christ

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Romans 8:35-39

35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”^[a] 37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,^[b] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

—

1. Something that has made my love to Christ fade away before was my lack of building a relationship with Christ, or me just doing things out of tradition’s sake and not out of my first love for Christ.
2. Yet those who maintain their love to Christ, even in suffering, will have the victory. Nothing can separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus, actually–that’s what verse 38 says!!! “…neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow–not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.” AMEN!

New Identity in Christ

Friday, September 19, 2008

1 Peter 2:9-17
9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

11Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. 12Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
Submission to Rulers and Masters
13Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, 14or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. 15For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men. 16Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. 17Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king.

Romans 13:14
14Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.

—

1. The characteristics of a person who’s identity in Christ is new is that we know and act like God’s chosen people, royal priests and holy nation. We are confident, unified and holy, and love because we have received His love. And also as a result of knowing that we are chosen, priests and holy, we can show others the goodness of God. We have received His mercy so we should be grateful and are able and should share that mercy with others as well.
2. To sustain/liven this new identity, we should keep away from worldly desires that wage war “against (our) very souls.” We should focus on Him, and live properly. We should also meet up with fellow Christians–believers and followers of Christ– so that we can strengthen and encourage one another–and pray for one another!
3. How do I live my life when I’m around unbelievers? Hopefully the same as when I’m around believers. I want to tighten up aspects of my life so that I can say with a clean consience that what I do in the back is the same as I do in the front. I desire to live a life of integrity and I pray that God mold me to do so so I can bring glory to His name. I think for the most part I use my freedom not as an excuse to do evil. I praise God for this. I want to make a new commitment to sustain Christ’s identity in my life.

Consequences of Running Away from God’s Calling (2)

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Jonah 1:8-17
8 So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?”

9 He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.”

10 This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the LORD, because he had already told them so.)

11 The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”

12 “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.”

13 Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. 14 Then they cried to the LORD, “O LORD, please do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, O LORD, have done as you pleased.” 15 Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. 16 At this the men greatly feared the LORD, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows to him.

17 But the LORD provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights.

Psalm 40:12
12 For troubles without number surround me;
my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see.
They are more than the hairs of my head,
and my heart fails within me.

—
1. When Jonah fled from God and the tasks he has entrusted in him, it impacted the people around him because his disobedience caused them to suffer too. Although in the end, when he admitted his mistake, praise the Lord, God saved the others and He was glorified-Hallelujah!
2. The consequences of Jonah’s disobedience was that his journey was not under the blessing of God. And he was thrown overboard and got swallowed by a big fish for 3 days and 3 nights–what suffering!!! X__X That must have been uncomfortable. But God was in control and had mercy; He led Jonah to have a heart that surrenders and obeys. Though the storms seemed bad, they were in the end good, to lead Jonah to obedience again, although God could have used anyone…for some reason, He still wanted Jonah despite his being naughty, lol.

Consequences of Running Away from God’s Calling (1)

Wednesday, Sept 17, 2008
Jonah 1:1-7, Psalm 139:7

1. God’s calling in Jonah’s life was to go to Ninevah and announce God’s great judgement against it because He’s seen how wicked they are. God’s called me to intercede for my family before, and I did.
2. Jonah’s response was to run in the other direction and the result was that God “hurled a powerful wind over the sea that caused a violent storm that threatened to break the ship apart.” God was not blessing the journey.
3. I think I have run away and avoided God’s commands. What caused it was my own selfishness and not wanting to hurt other’s feelings. I want to change though so this is avoided and hopefully I don’t do this anymore in the future.