Thursday, March 11, 2010
A Little About Our Relationship
God, the summer is beautiful in its life, in its heat.
But it is not you.
The summer is beautiful and strong in its influence over the lives of so many plants and animals.
But it is still nothing when compared to you.
You know me, far more intimately than any season.
You love me, far vastlier than any other lover, far deeper than any other love.
I have known the proud love of fathers, the giving love of mothers, the selfless love of sisters, the fickle love of men.
None compares to the height or depth of your love.
It is you, not the seasons, that shifts the cycles of weather, controls the growth in spring, the harvest in autumn, the dormant death in winter. And it is you who loves me, more than you love any season, any animal on earth.
It is you who gave his life for me.
It is you who wishes to live with me and through me all the days of my miniscule life.
It is you who comforts me, you who are my foundation and my strength and my salvation.
You, who have subdued the greatest leviathans in their depths; you, who formed the skies and hung the clouds in place; you, who crafted the smallest ant, and gave it a place in your creation.
You are my willing strength, my mighty shield, my heavy fortress against the enemy. I will trust in you, above all things, and I choose to praise you alone above all.
Labels: bible study
2:19:00 PM -
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
Briefly, Now
Lord God, I humbly bow down before you, submitting myself to your will. You are God my King, and I make you Ruler and Light of my life. Please rescue me from the world, and from myself. Teach me to obey your word, and show me the path of righteousness the paves the way for your presence in my life.
Righteousness goes as a herald before him, preparing the way for his steps.
Psalm 85:13 (NLT)
I worship you, Lord. You are such a mighty God! Your name is praised above all names, and your power is that above all rulers and kings of this earth. How awesome you are! Your love intimidates me in its scope, and soothes me in my fear. I will call upon You as my Rock and the source of my salvation.
Labels: bible study
10:06:00 AM -
Thursday, March 04, 2010
How Awesome Our God
11Teach me your ways, oh Lord, that I may live according to your truth! Grant me purity of heart, so I may honor you. 12With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God. I will give glory to your name forever, 13for your love for me is very great. You have rescued me from the depths of death (Sheol).
Psalm 86 (NLT)
Righteousness goes as a herald before him, preparing the way for his steps.
Psalm 85:13
The mighty look upon your great works, O Lord, and despair; for there is none like you. None will ever be as great as you, O God. You open the eyes of the blind, and you unplug the ears of the deaf. You make the lame to leap, and the mute to sing your praises! [Rephrasing Isaiah 35:5-6.] How awesome are your deeds among men, O God! And how deep the love you hold! We are ashamed in your presence, God. And yet I ask... please let me learn to walk in your presence. Teach me to humble myself in your ways. Instruct me how to hear your voice.
Labels: bible study
10:13:00 PM -
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
Our Strength and Our Song
15Happy are those who hear the joyful call to worship, for they will walk in the light of your presence, Lord. 16They rejoice all day long in your wonderful reputation. They exult in your righteousness. 17You are their glorious strength, AND IT PLEASES YOU TO MAKE US STRONG. 18Yes, our protection comes from the Lord, and he, the Holy One of Israel, has given us our king.
Psalm 89 (NLT) [emphasis added]
Remember yesterday? 1 John 5?
14And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. 15And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for.
The Lord your God wants you to be strong in Him! It
pleases him to make you so. So request it of him! He will give you strength! And it will be
his strength, eternal and unrelenting and righteous. And his protection will be upon you, because he has given us Christ, our King.
And we are all called to worship the Lord. So we walk in the light of his presence. We exult - celebrate - in the wonder of his righteousness, all day long. We are strong as he is strong, and we celebrate!
Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord, is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. (NIV)
See, God has come to save me. I will trust in him and not be afraid. The Lord God is my strength and my song; he has given me victory! (NLT)
Yes, indeed - God is my salvation. I trust, and I won't be afraid. God - yes God! - is my strength and song, best of all, my salvation! (MSG)
Isaiah 12:2
(Just read all of Isaiah 12. It's beautiful.)
Labels: bible study
11:57:00 PM -
Monday, March 01, 2010
Do Not Fear, For He Has Promised
So never be ashamed to tell others about our Lord. And don't be ashamed of me, either, even though I'm in prison for him. With the strength God gives you, be ready to suffer with me for the sake of the Good News.
2 Timothy 1:8 (NLT)
God will release me from my fear, and through his Spirit will cause love to live in me and through me, and overflow out of me.
7Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God.
11Dear friends, since God loved us that much, surely we ought to love each other. 12No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and His love is brought to full expression in us.
18Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows what we have not fully experienced his perfect love. 19We love each other because he loved us first.
1 John 4 (NLT)
We are called to love! Not just our husbands, our wives, our children or our parents -
every one! Love as Christ did: completely free of fear, or shame, or immorality.
Perfect love expels all fear.Do not disbelieve it - it is the Word of God.
Do not be afraid of love! The Lord will lead you and guide you! He will protect you if your foot should slip, he will hold you up! You will never be tempted beyond what you can bear!
For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of POWER and LOVE and SELF-DISCIPLINE.
2 Timothy 1:7 (NLT) [emphasis added]
He has made us strong, strong beyond ourselves! We must walk bravely into his arms and trust his love to carry us!
The Lord's Spirit, his life and his blessing, lives in you.
14And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. 15And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for.
1 John 5 (NLT)
He has given you gifts. He has sheltered and provided for you all the days of your life. And he has promised to do that until the end of eternity. But look! He wants to give you more! Our God is such a
generous God! His love abounds, and it gives freely!
Do not fear to stumble or fall.Rely on the eternal strength, the amazing love of God.
He will never falter, never leave or abandon you.
He will not test you unless he knows you are ready.
Trust in him!
Trust in his love!
It has saved you from death. Now let it bring you new life!
Labels: bible study
4:02:00 PM -