Tag Archives: Faith

2013 Day 79 – Deuteronomy 1-4, Psalm 40

20 Wednesday Mar 2013

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Today we begin the book of Deuteronomy. Much of this book is a summary of where the Israelites have been. God uses Moses to remind the Israelites of all the blessings He has provided and to encourage them to rededicate their lives to Him. God also uses this book to give assurances to the people that He will be with them as they take possession of the promised land. This is a good reminder to us and we should review all the things God has done in our past to lead us to where we are today. Whether it is good or bad our experiences, blessings, and trials are what have shaped us into who we are today. Be thankful for your past and use it as a reminder of God’s provision for the future.

2013 Day 77 – Galatians 1-3, Psalm 38

18 Monday Mar 2013

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Today we begin the book of Galatians. Paul, as the author of this book, was clear in his purpose for writing it, which was to refute the teachings of the Judaizers (who taught that Gentile believers should obey the Jewish law in order to be saved). Paul explains his position in Christ very clearly in Galatians 2:20-21, 20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!” No matter how hard we may try to fix ourselves by following a bunch of rules, we cannot attain salvation without accepting God’s grace through Christ’s sacrifice. When we try to make ourselves better for God’s acceptance of us, we throw God’s gift back at Him. While we should always strive for righteousness, it is not righteousness that saves us. Righteousness is a product of salvation, not the other way around.

2013 Day 70 – Numbers 18-21, Psalm 33

11 Monday Mar 2013

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In Numbers 20 we see an example of how much obedience God requires of us. Even Moses, who God earlier described as someone He spoke with directly, was required to obey God fully. And even Moses, a man who exemplified a faithful servant of God, was not perfect. When Moses struck the rock, it showed how much we need God’s grace because no one is perfect. The point is not for us to reach perfection in the way we act, the point is we realize how much we depend on God for everything, especially salvation through the forgiveness of our sins. Let us be reminded that God requires a relationship with Him through trust, obedience, and faith that He is the provider of grace and, in turn, forgiveness of our sins.

2013 Day 63 – Hebrews 11-13, Psalm 27

04 Monday Mar 2013

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Hebrews 12:2 says it all for me today, Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Our attention should not be on anything other than Jesus. He deserves our attention and honor through everything we do. We will never be outside His will and His perfect plan if we seek Him before we ever do anything else.

The other verse that stood out to me was Hebrews 13:8, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. When we talk about the changing of our relationship with Jesus, it is us who changes, not Him. He loves us the same and it is up to us to allow Him into our lives to experience everything He wants to do for us.

2013 Day 62 – Hebrews 7-10, Proverbs 26

03 Sunday Mar 2013

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It’s amazing to have just gone through Leviticus where the Laws were established and to now go through the book of Hebrews. We better understand how Christ became the ultimate sacrifice. In Hebrews 9:14 it says, How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! We must pay special attention to the last part of that verse where it says “so that we may serve the living God!” It does not say “so we can do whatever we want”. The purpose of our salvation is to give us the freedom to serve God without the baggage of a sinful life. As a side not, I also see too many people who become believers only to dwell on their past and how far they have come. While it is important to recognize how much the Lord has blessed us, our salvation should free us to move forward and serve a loving God who freely gave us mercy and grace. Our sinful past should no longer be the focal point of our lives.

2013 Day 45 – Lent For Everyone

14 Thursday Feb 2013

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For our reflection day this week, I came across a friend of mine’s Facebook post about lent. It originated out of YouVersion as far as I can tell (hopefully no one will sue me for posting this). It was very thought provoking to me so I thought I would share it here. I hope you enjoy it.

Lent for everyone

We know very, very little about Joseph. Some legends make him an old man who died while Jesus was growing up, but we don’t know that for sure. We know he worked in the building trade, including what we call carpentry. We know he could trace his ancestry back to the ancient royal house of David and Solomon (many first-century Jews knew their family history as well as many today know the story of their favorite soap opera, or the fortunes of their football team). And we know that Joseph faced a unique personal and moral challenge, and came through it with integrity and humility. Joseph, in this passage, provides a sharply personal angle for us to approach Matthew’s gospel.

Think how it was for him. Marriage beckons, quite likely arranged by the two families but none the less an exciting prospect. A home. Children. A new status in the community — in a small town where everyone knows everyone else and where, without television, everybody else’s life is part of a complex daily soap opera.

And then the shock. Mary has news for him, news to send a chill down the spine of any prospective husband. How can he possibly believe her strange story? What will people say? So he plans, with a heavy heart, to call the whole thing off.

Then, the dream. Mary’s story is true. What’s more, she and her child are caught up, not just in a personal challenge, but in a much older, stranger purpose. God’s purpose. God’s rescue operation, long expected and at last coming true. The child to be born will be ‘Emmanuel’, God-with-us. God with us to save us: hence the name ‘Jesus’, the same word as ‘Joshua’, the great leader who brought the people of Israel across the Jordan into the promised land. The name means ‘Yahweh saves’. God with us; God to the rescue.

Whenever God does something new, he involves people — often unlikely people, frequently surprised and alarmed people. He asks them to trust him in a new way, to put aside their natural reactions, to listen humbly for a fresh word and to act on it without knowing exactly how it’s going to work out. That’s what he’s asking all of us to do this Lent. Reading the Bible without knowing in advance what God is going to say takes humility. Like Joseph, we may have to put our initial reactions on hold and be prepared to hear new words, to think new thoughts, and to live them out. We all come with our own questions, our own sorrows and frustrations, our own longings. God will deal with them in his own way, but he will do so as part of his own much larger and deeper purposes. Who knows what might happen, this year, if even a few of us were prepared to listen to God’s word in scripture in a new way, to share the humility of Joseph, and to find ourselves caught up in God’s rescue operation?

TODAY: Speak to us, Father, in a new way as we read your word. Help us to hear your voice and follow where you lead.

2013 Day 24 – Mark 13-16, Psalm 20

24 Thursday Jan 2013

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As we finish the book of Mark today, I can’t help but feel like I just ran a marathon. There is so much information in those last four chapters and its hard to summarize everything. The thing I will point out, if it isn’t already obvious, is chapter 13 is prophesy straight from the mouth of Jesus’. Everything He talks about in reference to His return is exactly what we should be looking for in relation to His return. The reality is there are no guarantees Jesus will come in our lifetime or in the lifetime of the next 20 generations, but we are still supposed to be on the lookout for Him and live our life’s as though time really is limited.

2013 Day 20 – Mark 4-6, Psalm 18:1-24

20 Sunday Jan 2013

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I know reading the Bible should be taken serious and for real life application, but the scene in Mark 18:47-50a was pretty humorous to me as I read it. 47 When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land. 48 He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. About the fourth watch of the night he went out to them, walking on the lake. He was about to pass by them, 49 but when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost. They cried out, 50 because they all saw him and were terrified. Immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” I almost picture Jesus pulling a prank on the disciples, trying to scare the heck out of them. I literally laugh every time I read “He was about to pass by them…” I have to believe Jesus had a sense of humor through many of his encounters with the disciples and many of people around Him.

2013 Day 18 – Genesis 47-50, Psalm 16

18 Friday Jan 2013

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There is a lot going on in the last few chapters of Genesis. I think the main thing to remember is that in the end the faithfulness of one man saved God’s people. While everyone else in the region was becoming slaves or integrated into the Egyptian population, the Israelites were set apart and allowed to stay separate from the Egyptians, thus preserving the Israelite as a separate people. Looking ahead, this does cause problems for the Israelites, but once again, this is all part of God’s plan for them. It’s hard to trust God and see that he has a plan for us, but we must trust and have faith He will pull us through.

2013 Day 17 – Genesis 43-46, Psalm 15

17 Thursday Jan 2013

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Joseph’s life is amazing for many reason. But the biggest reason, in my opinion, was because he had the ability to see the big picture. In Genesis chapter 45, when he reveals his true identity to his brothers, he explains in verse 5, And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. Joseph saw the ultimate purpose for his life was to save lives even through all the suffering he endured to this point. Joseph’s life is an example of living to fulfill God’s purpose. I hope I am able to live my life to see that much of the big picture. At a minimum, I hope I accept the fact that my life was created to fulfill God’s purpose even if I am unable to see why.