21 Friday Jun 2013
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I found this video by Andy Stanley for our reflection day this week. He talks about how we can have peace in all of our circumstances. When life in uncertain, God is not. Romans 8:28, “28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” I hope you enjoy today’s video.
If you ever come across anything you’d like me to post on this blog, please feel free to contact me at dino.evangelista@gmail.com.
20 Thursday Jun 2013
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It is sometimes surprising how violent the Bible can be. Jezebel’s death at the end of 2 Kings 9 is fairly brutal. One of the things you have to respect the about the Bible is that it is real and it holds back nothing. God is loving and He is just. Jezebel was evil and God judged her for her evil acts and He did not hold back in painting the picture of judgement on her. We must look to God for His love, but anyone who mistakes His ability to love for His ability to judge misses the whole picture of the nature of God. Let us not short-change God for who He is and what His expectations are of us.
19 Wednesday Jun 2013
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In today’s reading the story of the floating axe head made me wonder why it was in there. When I checked the notes in my Bible it said it showed God’s care and provision for those who trust Him, even in seemingly insignificant events of everyday life. We tend to look to God only when we have big issues. Especially as Americans because we feel very self sufficient. We are pretty spoiled when most of the world has a hard time with supplying basic needs. At a minimum, we should thank God for giving us so much when we really deserve so little.
18 Tuesday Jun 2013
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In 2 Kings chapter 2 we see the end of Elijah’s ministry and the beginning of Elisha. I love Elisha’s boldness in verse 7 when he asked Elijah, “Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit.” Without a measure boldness we limit God’s ability to perform miracles in our lives. We should all look to God to bless us beyond what we think is possible. The creator of the universe is so much more capable than our simple existence. If we allow God to work through us with His capabilities we will be surprised by what He can do through us.
17 Monday Jun 2013
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Today we read about Philemon. Philemon was probably a wealthy man and a supporter of Paul’s ministry. He was also a member of the Colossian church. This letter was written by Paul as an appeal to Philemon to forgive his runaway slave, Onesimus. This book is about showing grace to others as God has shown grace to us. The words of Paul can be as applicable to us in our lives today as it was to Philemon back then.
16 Sunday Jun 2013
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Forgiveness, Grace, Mercy, Obedience, Relationship, Repentance
Today we read the story of Jonah. Jonah is very much like most of us. God has a plan and wants to use us to fulfill His plan, but many times we fight Him on it. We make excuses and find ways to avoid doing what we know He wants us to do. In the end, Jonah was finally obedient to God and when God blessed Jonah’s effort by turning the people of Nineveh from their evil way, Jonah became resentful of God for allowing the people of Nineveh to be forgiven. We can sometimes be like this too. There are people in our pasts who have hurt us or caused pain in our lives and God has blessed them. This is sometimes a hard pill to swallow, but it is God’s prerogative to forgive who he chooses to forgive. It helps to remember that God forgave us too. None of us is exempt from a sinful life and all of us need His mercy and grace to come into His presence.
We also read Psalm 84 today. The beginning of verse 10 is one of the most beautiful passages I have ever read, Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere. We are nothing without God’s presence in our lives. If we could only be in God’s presence for a single moment, it would be enough. Thankfully God desires for us to be in His presence on a constant basis. It is up to us to take advantage of that desire and choose to be with Him.
15 Saturday Jun 2013
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There is a common theme with many of the kings of Israel, even with the kings who do the right thing in the eyes of The Lord that allows evil back into Israel. While some of the kings do the right thing, most of them fail to fully remove all the things that are against God’s law. This allows an easy return of evil. The same thing applies to us and our lives. When we repent of our sin we need to fully remove it from our lives. We all are capable of stopping sin, but are we capable to never returning to the same sin? That is a question we all must answer for ourselves.
14 Friday Jun 2013
Posted in Reflection
For today’s reflection post I thought I would share this simple Skit Guys preview video (I don’t think they will really mind…). This Sunday I hope all you dads remember the importance of your role in your families. May God lead you and bless you in all you do!
If you ever come across anything you’d like me to post on this blog, please feel free to contact me at dino.evangelista@gmail.com.
13 Thursday Jun 2013
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I love the story of Elijah versus the prophets of Baal. It always makes me laugh to watch Elijah mocking them in 1 Kings 18:27, At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Shout louder!” he said. “Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.” Some people may not appreciate what Elijah did, but it shows the confidence he had in The Lord. We should always show the love of God to others, but we can also have confidence and be bold knowing God is always with us.
12 Wednesday Jun 2013
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This part of the story of the kings of Israel is always sad to me. It seems like the leaders are confused about how to lead God’s people. Instead of working in the basics and following God’s laws, they choose to mix what they know is truth with what they hope to be true. The lesson for us is to know that following God and having a relationship with Him is not that complicated. It is simply a matter of obedience and trusting God to be all we need.
Daily Devotion 