Scripture to read today:
Job 26; Job 27; Mark 15; Mark 16
Scripture that spoke to me:
Mark 16:15
And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone.
Observation:
This is the Great Commission. Go and make disciples. This is what we are called to do even today. Spread the Good News!
Application:
I get complacent at times. I pray to God and wait for an answer. What am I to do with my life? Where does He want me? I forget that He has already told us to GO! I may need to wait on going to a new place, but that shouldn’t mean that I can’t go right here. Speak about Him- spread the Good News.
Prayer:
Lord, forgive me when I forget that You already gave me my orders- to go. Help me to know when, where, and how, but never let me forget that I am to go. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Job 3; Job 4; Acts 8; Acts 9
Scripture that spoke to me:
Acts 9: 21
All who heard him were amazed. “Isn’t this the same man who caused such devastation among Jesus’ followers in Jerusalem?” they asked. “And didn’t he come here to arrest them and take them in chains to the leading priests?”
Observation:
Saul has just had a visit from Jesus, been blinded, and is healed by a believer named Ananias. Saul is now preaching the Good News about Jesus. Of course, people are paying attention, because just a week or so ago he was persecuting anyone who spoke the name of Jesus. What irony that God would use the biggest Christian persecutor to be one of its biggest proponents!
Application:
I have several friends who have spent time as athiests and now believe in the Lord. I think their message is more powerful than mine. Don’t get me wrong, I think I have a message, but to be able to look at a sinner and say “I was once where you were- I understand” is meaningful. There are things I can only imagine about how you feel and what you think when you don’t believe in God. These people lived it. They also understand what made them turn around and make a different decision.
Prayer:
Lord, today my prayer is that You would open the hearts of more athiests to You. Give them a powerful message to take Your name to the nations. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Jeremiah 21; Jeremiah 24; Jeremiah 27; Psalm 118; 1 John 2
Scripture that spoke to me:
Jeremiah 21:14
I will punish you as your deeds deserve,
declares the LORD.
I will kindle a fire in your forests
that will consume everything around you.’
Observation:
The Lord has had it with the children of Israel- running to Him when things are bad, pushing Him away when things are better- serving other gods and making idols. Now they have to see how serious things are by being punished- much like a father who has let his son get away with way too much and now has to tighten the reigns.
Application:
Can I just say I’m so glad that we live under the new covenant? Jesus forgives our sins, and doesn’t give us what we deserve. I’m not saying that He doesn’t punish us, but we don’t have to earn our salvation, either. Prevenient grace is an amazing thing indeed! Nothing we do, or don’t do, can take away the love that God has for us. I’m also not saying that we don’t need to do good deeds- because if you love someone you want to do things for them- I’m just saying that we aren’t judged by our deeds- only our love. That is sanctifying grace- the sustaining grace that propels us to serve out our beliefs.
Prayer:
Lord, thank You for loving us and for sending Your Son to die for us, no deeds required. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Jeremiah 45; Jeremiah 46; Jeremiah 47; Psalm 105; John 21
Scripture that spoke to me:
John 21:16
Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?”
He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”
Observation:
Peter loved Jesus. No matter if he denied Him three times, Peter was a devoted disciple. Jesus asks Peter three times if Peter loves Him (maybe as a way for Peter to make up for the denial) and commands Peter to take care of His sheep. If Peter loves Jesus, he will care for those around him, not as proof that he loves, but because he loves.
Application:
Love is a verb- it cannot sit still. Love requires action. If you love someone, you want to do things for them. You want to make their life easier. So because we love Jesus, we should want to care for those around us, too. Sometimes that is hard- I know I want to pick and choose who I think is worthy of help- but Jesus asked that we take care of His sheep. Feed my lambs- take care of my sheep.
Prayer:
Lord, let me do a better job at taking care of Your sheep. Help my love have action. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Isaiah 65; Isaiah 66; Psalm 62; John 3
Scripture that spoke to me:
Isaiah 66:1
This is what the LORD says:
“Heaven is my throne,
and the earth is my footstool.
Where is the house you will build for me?
Where will my resting place be?
Observation:
The heavens and the earth belong to the Creator. God made everything we see; He gave us everything that we have. What can we do for Him? The Lord can have anything the way He wants it. He could move a mountain, change a sea. So what can we really do for Him? All our work is useless to Him unless it glorifies Him. If it allows more people to see who He is and what He does, then it is good work for Him.
Application:
This is a hard thing to reconcile sometimes. Steve is leaving for Mexico to build houses; Jaki is leaving for Africa next Saturday on a medical mission; I went to Cherokee and Savannah went to Gatlinburg; a host of church members have been places like Nicaragua, Honduras, Peru, Israel… for what? To help people, of course, but why? Is it for us, to make us feel like we’re helping, or for God? I believe it is for God. Yes, we were helping, but doing it in His name passes on the love and caring that Jesus showed. And Jesus said to feed the hungry, clothe the poor. And that’s what we’re doing.
Prayer:
Lord, forgive us if our work isn’t the best- or our motives totally pure. We do want to work for You and we realize that there isn’t really anything we can do FOR You- only to help Your people live a little easier, and hopefully come to see Your love through our actions. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Isaiah 43; Isaiah 44; Isaiah 45; 1 Peter 4
Scripture that spoke to me:
1 Peter 4: 10-11
God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.
Observation:
God has given each of us a gift, maybe more. What we do with them is what is important. Do we use our gifts for good? Do we use them at all? If we don’t use them, they go away. If we use them well, it won’t even feel like we’re having to work very hard.
Application:
I haven’t played my saxophone in almost a year, and I’m sure I am not as good at it as I was when I was playing 30 hours a week. Talents fade if we don’t use them. I am musically talented, and good with kids, so the fact that I’m our children’s worship music leader is perfect for me. It doesn’t even feel like work! Using the talents that God gives us for Him will just make you happy! Now if you asked me to serve in the kitchen for a meal, I’d do it but it would be work and it wouldn’t be as rewarding. It isn’t my talent. That doesn’t mean I shouldn’t do it from time to time, but there are people who are so comfortable in that kitchen that it is like home to them. So if everyone can match their gifts up with their work, we’d truly be Paul’s ideal of a body of Christ, where each part works together to make a whole.
Prayer:
Lord, thank you for giving me the gift of music and putting me in a place that I can use it well. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Hosea 10; Hosea 11; Hosea 12; Psalm 73; Hebrews 4
Scripture that spoke to me:
Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
Observation:
We have a living Word- it applies just as much today as it did 2000 or more years ago. It gets down to the business of living in this world- and it gives us a way to tell if our hearts are right.
Application:
I’ve been doing this Bible study for over a year now. It has let me see just how living the Word truly is. Most days I find a verse that just speaks something to my heart about what I need to be doing, or be aware of. It is relevant to my life just as it was to the early Christians.
Prayer:
Lord, you are so good. You are able to speak to us through ancient texts and yet, speak to us as individuals today. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
Hosea 2; Hosea 3; Hosea 4; Hosea 5; Hebrews 2
Scripture that spoke to me:
Hebrews 2:17-18
For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.
Observation:
Jesus, having lived in a human body, has a good understanding of just how the world pulls at us. He suffered through temptation, through pain, and thus understands better than if he had remained above it all.
Application:
I don’t really know how this applies to my life, except for making me aware that whatever I feel I suffer, Jesus understands. And probably suffered a lot worse. I think that Jesus came to earth to show us how to live- that we can overcome our earthly desires.
Prayer:
Jesus, thank you for understanding me. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
2 Kings 6; 2 Kings 7; 2 Chronicles 20; 1 Timothy 3
Scripture that spoke to me:
1 Timothy 3:2-7
Now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect.(If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?) He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil. He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap.
Observation:
This is Paul’s description of what a preacher should be. Someone who has managed his own life well, so that the church may be managed well, too.
Application:
I work with two preachers and also know the three at my church very well. I think they all fit this description. Not that they never make a mistake, or have flaws, but that their inner being, their character, is that of someone that people can look up to. I think of Scott, who is on track to be a minister, and see how he fits this description. I also see how God uses these fallible people to teach others about Him.
Prayer:
Lord, I pray for our ministers- that their lives are not only an example, but their hearts are, too. Be with them and their families as they set about to do Your work. Amen.
Scripture to read today:
1 Kings 15; 2 Chronicles 13; 2 Chronicles 14; Philippians 4
Scripture that spoke to me:
Philippians 4: 12
I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
Observation:
Paul went through a lot in his life. He was rich, a Pharisee who condemned Christians until he met Christ himself; then he gave everything up to further the kingdom. He lost it all to gain it all. In prison, his possessions were meager. He knew hunger, he knew bounty, and he learned the secret to being happy in everything- Christ.
Application:
I’d make a horrible divorce counselor. I have had the opportunity on occasion to talk to newly separated women about their situation. But I can’t get to the places they are, in many cases, because I was never there. I was never in that pit of despair. Oh, I was plenty sad and scared and worried, but Christ was there beside me telling me that everything was ok. I want to give that to these women, who look at me like I have two heads or something. I don’t think you can just tell others about Christ, you have to show Him to them. And most often, they see Him in you.
Prayer:
Lord, let me be a reflection of Christ to others. Amen.
