Scripture to read today:
Job 41; Job 42; 2 Corinthians 1; 2 Corinthians 2
Scripture that spoke to me:
Job 42:5
My ears had heard of you
but now my eyes have seen you.
Observation:
Job knew all about God. He was as faithful a servant as he could be, but until he saw God’s goodness with his own eyes, he didn’t get the full impact of the awesomeness of the Lord.
Application:
I know a lot about God. I read. I go to Bible study. I go to church. I can have all the knowledge that there is, but if I have not seen God firsthand in my life, it is like knowing all about the Revolutionary War- I may know it but never experience it. And it is a real treat to experience God. He is all around, and it doesn’t take a lot to see Him. Just stop for a minute somewhere and look around. He created everything you see. And when you look at His creation, you see some really amazing things!
Prayer:
Lord, I honor You for who You are. You are truly an amazing God. Thank you for being with us and allowing us to see You through Your creation. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Job 13; Job 14; Acts 17; Acts 18
Scripture that spoke to me:
Acts 17:23
for as I was walking along I saw your many shrines. And one of your altars had this inscription on it: ‘To an Unknown God.’ This God, whom you worship without knowing, is the one I’m telling you about.
Observation:
Paul is in Athens, concerned about the many gods he sees on display around the city. But this one altar catches his attention, and he begins to tell the people about this “unknown God.”
Application:
I’m glad we don’t have an “unknown” God! He has made Himself known to us. There are many things I don’t know, and many I’ll never understand, but God is faithful, merciful, forgiving and full of grace. That is all I really need to know.
Prayer:
Dear Lord, thank You for being close to me, for revealing Yourself to me through the scriptures. Let me know You better, Lord. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Nehemiah 9; Nehemiah 10; Acts 2
Scripture that spoke to me:
Nehemiah 9:16-17
“But our ancestors were proud and stubborn, and they paid no attention to your commands. They refused to obey and did not remember the miracles you had done for them. Instead, they became stubborn and appointed a leader to take them back to their slavery in Egypt! But you are a God of forgiveness, gracious and merciful, slow to become angry, and rich in unfailing love. You did not abandon them.
Observation:
I’m reading this thinking that “our ancestors” could be us now! The Jews messed up so often, turning to other gods, letting their daily lives distract them from worship, and forgetting all the good things that God had done for them. But God was always forgiving- slow to anger and rich in love. He was giving grace then and He still offers us grace now.
Application:
I get so caught up in what has to be done today that I don’t look toward heaven. I’m sure I miss many blessings along the way. Thank goodness God is slow to anger- I’m sure He has been mad at me more than once! And He is forgiving. More than that, He knows me and understands me. He can help me become the Christian He had in mind for me to be!
Prayer:
Dear Lord, keep shaping me into the person You want me to be. Help me see that things in this life are secondary to loving and worshiping You. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Esther 9; Esther 10; Luke 19
Scripture that spoke to me:
Luke 19:40
But He answered and said to them, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.”
Observation:
The Pharisees were not happy that the crowd was praising Jesus on his entry into Jerusalem and would have preferred that the people remain silent. Jesus points out that all creation was made to worship God- and that it will. We see that in tribal areas where they have not been introduced to our idea of Jesus- there is still the idea of a Creator, or Great Spirit inherent in their beliefs.
Application:
I love the imagery of the rocks crying out. I know it is a New Age idea that all matter has energy, but I can believe that. Down to the molecules in a rock that are full of protons and neutrons, all creation is alive and somehow, must have an inherent love for its Creator.
Prayer:
Lord, let us see Your world as alive. You have created such wonderful things for us that we cry out to You our praise. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Zechariah 4; Zechariah 5; Zechariah 6; Luke 12
Scripture that spoke to me:
Luke 12:51-52
Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I have come to divide people against each other! From now on families will be split apart, three in favor of me, and two against—or two in favor and three against.
Observation:
This is so different from most of the teachings of Jesus- acceptance, love, brotherhood…. but what he is saying is that some will believe in Him and others won’t. That’s just the way it is. He came to separate the “wheat from the chaff” and that’s not dividing by family, race, economic status, popularity, but dividing by those who believe and those who don’t. This was a very different method of division for the Jews and it is still for us today.
Application:
We’re taught to bind our families together- the only way to do that is to have a family where everyone believes in Jesus. I still believe that is the basis for the failure of my marriage- I grew in my love for the Lord and he didn’t. Maybe it isn’t as simple as that, but as my walk got closer to God, he got more resentful of the time I put into it, and pulled back even further. My brother, the athiest, doesn’t join us on some family events. We invite him but don’t push him to- by not accepting the Lord he has alienated himself from certain parts of our lives. It is a shame, but that’s where the division comes.
Prayer:
Lord, teach me how to either accept division or correct it. I want to show people Your way and how to get to You. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Ezra 1; Psalm 84; Psalm 85; Luke 7
Scripture that spoke to me:
Psalm 84:10
A single day in your courts
is better than a thousand anywhere else!
I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God
than live the good life in the homes of the wicked.
Observation:
We don’t know what it is going to be like when we get to heaven. There’s no frame of reference here on earth for the splendor.. the happiness.. the light. We are assured that it is a thousand times better than our best day here on earth. That’s pretty darn good!
Application:
Somehow, it still isn’t real, though. Even in concept, I can’t even begin to know how wonderful heaven will be. But to find out I’m going to have to not live with the wicked! I need to focus more on heaven than on earthly things, which is hard to do. I need a God- consciousness (as one of my Bible studies put it,) and awareness at all times of the presence of God in my life.
Prayer:
Lord, please be present with me always. I know you are, but give me that God- consciousness to always be aware that You are the center of my life. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Ezekiel 38; Ezekiel 39; Psalm 145; Revelation 20
Scripture that spoke to me:
Psalm 145:8-9
The Lord is merciful and compassionate,
slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.
The Lord is good to everyone.
He showers compassion on all his creation.
Observation:
The observation for this one should be elementary- God is good! And He loves us all!
Application:
The application is tougher. If He is good, why do bad things happen? Here’s where a lot of people have different ideas. The Calvinists think that it was all predestined. I believe that we have free will. We make choices daily that affect our own lives as well as the lives of others. Some of these are not good choices. We weren’t put here on earth to have rosy, sweet, easy lives, but to learn to worship the Almighty. We aren’t promised a rose garden without the thorns. God is good in that He loves us, He cares for us, and He forgives us time and time again.
Prayer:
Lord, thank you for having unending patience with me. I try to make choices that are pleasing to you and fall short again and again. Forgive my stubbornness, my failings. Grant your compassion to me once again. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Jeremiah 42; Jeremiah 43; Jeremiah 44; Psalm 48; Revelation 13
Scripture that spoke to me:
Jeremiah 42:7
Ten days later the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah.
Observation:
Many times throughout the Bible, the Lord speaks to men (prophets)- sometimes initiated by God, other times in response to a request or prayer by the man. This time, Jeremiah has gone to the Lord on behalf of the people, who want to know whether they should stay in Judah or go to Egypt. God answered his question 10 days later. Jeremiah is obviously someone who is used to conversing with God. God speaks to him often. Yet it takes 10 days to get his answer in this case!
Application:
How many times do we ask God something and expect to hear an immediate answer. We may even cock an ear, listen for 2 seconds, and receive nothing. But God doesn’t answer immediately. Here, we see Jeremiah get an answer in 10 days. We get an answer eventually, too. Trouble is, we don’t recognize it or perhaps we have even forgotten what we prayed for. I keep a prayer journal and it is amazing to look back 6 months and see what I prayed for then and how many of those prayers have been answered.
Prayer:
Lord, help me to be patient when I don’t get an answer right away. I know You hear my prayers and will answer them in Your time. Help me receive that answer with knowledge and understanding. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
2 Kings 25; 2 Chronicles 36; Jeremiah 40; Jeremiah 41; Revelation 12
Scripture that spoke to me:
Revelation 12:17 And the dragon was angry at the woman and declared war against the rest of her children—all who keep God’s commandments and maintain their testimony for Jesus.
Observation:
Paul tells us in Ephesians 6:12 that “weare not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” The devil and his forces are at work trying to win people away from the Lord. And those who have declared their love for Jesus are at the center of the target.
Application:
I’ve noticed that whenever something really good is about to happen, it seems like there is a force working against it. We’re getting ready to begin our children’s worship program again this fall and already there are obstacles to overcome. Mom and I went on a retreat last weekend that we thought may not happen because of some other things going on. But I do know this- the devil may get his little victories here and there, but he will not win. Because God is greater than all the evil forces, and the Lord will not be defeated.
Prayer:
Lord, You are mighty! You will reign over all- the good and the bad- and wipe the wicked from the earth. I believe in Your power, Your might, and Your grace. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Ezekiel 22; Ezekiel 23; Ezekiel 24; Revelation 9
Scripture that spoke to me:
Revelation 9:4
They were told not to harm the grass or plants or trees, but only the people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
Observation:
Revelation is full of imagery and symbols. Here, locusts are let loose on the earth to sting like scorpions. They are to leave the people marked by God alone.
Application:
Are you marked by God? How would anyone know? Take a step back and look at your life. Would someone looking in from the outside know that you follow the Lord? I know that following God means that your life will be different from those around you. It may mean that you don’t participate in some things. It may mean that you are laughed at and left out. But it does mean that you are full of love and compassion for others, not hate and greed and gossip. We are marked by God with a peaceful smile….
Prayer:
Lord, bring me Your peace, Your love, Your grace so that others can see You through me. Amen.
