Sunday Sharing: Song of Victory

I will love thee, O LORD, my strength. The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge.  He is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.--Psalm 18:1-2 (NIV)

Notice how often the words "I" and "My" are used? David had a personal relationship with God and so do I. In the study this week, it was helpful to look back to see how the Lord has been my shield, deliver and refuge. Here are the questions and answers that I came up with:

1. The Lord is MY Shield:

I remember two times when driving through snowstorms in white out conditions. One was when I was when I drove five or six teens home from a Bible quiz and the other was when Gerard and I went to a winter couples retreat at Beulah Beach. The car spun around out of control in traffic on Route 2.  I really thought we were both going to die that night and just called out to God to take the wheel. It was a miracle nothing hit us, we didn't hit anyone and were able to keep going. I was so shook up but also very thankful when we got there. That is the last retreat we are going to in the winter. It wasn't snowing at all when we left and it was only 45 minutes away, in good weather.

When has God shielded you from what appeared to be imminent harm?

2. The Lord is MY deliverer:

A long time ago, when I was a teen, I had a death wish because of a broken friendship. This friend was mad about something but wouldn't tell me what. She refused to talk to me. I remember walking down the street heading home in a thunder storm hoping to be struck by lightening. Then, as the storm continued, I realized I really didn't want to die after all. I realized God had work for me to do yet and I needed to stop letting this person get to me and move on with my life.

When has God been your deliverer?

3. The Lord is My refuge and stronghold:

When my parents died, God was there for me. I felt so alone and overwhelmed and poured my heart out to him, especially when my dad died because he was the last parent I had. When mom died, I missed her terribly (and still do) but I still had dad at least. God really helped me a lot by sending people in my life to help me do the big job of getting his house cleaned out and sold.

When has God been a refuge when you felt like everyone needed more from you than you could give?

When doing the Beth Moore Bible study, David--Seeking a Heart Like His, I saw that Psalm 18 and II Samuel 22 are practically identical. It is a song of victory that David wrote.

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Sunday Sharing: Guard Your Thoughts

David, a man after God's own heart, was at the top of his game so to speak in II Samuel 8:14b-15 which says:

The Lord gave David victory everywhere he went. David was King over all Israel. His decisions were fair and right for all his people.

Then, just three chapters later in II Samuel 11, he totally blows it. First he covets another man's wife, then commits adultery, then he arranges to have her husband killed in battle. He obviously did not seek God's will in any of this and it took him nine months or more to even admit he sinned. The Lord did not like what David did and although he forgave David, there were still consequences. Not only would his descendants die by the sword, and his baby died. but he would also have his wives taken from him.

This is what the Lord says: I am bringing trouble to you from your own family. While you watch, I will take your wives from you. And I will give them to someone who is very close to you. He will have sexual relations with your wives and everyone will know it. (12) You had sexual relations with Bathsheba in secret. But I will do this so all the people of Israel can see it.--II Samuel 12:11-12

Wow, isn't it amazing how much trouble one bad thought can lead to? My key verse of the week was Proverbs 4:23:

Be very careful about what you think. Your thoughts run your life. (ICB)

Keep your heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. (KJV)

Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. (NIV)

Carefully guard your thoughts because they are the source of true life. (Contemporary English version)

David's fall is sad, but it serves as a warning to us all.  A point Beth Moore made that I thought was interesting was to seek forgiveness as soon as we realize we have an bad thought before we act on it.

So, what was your scripture highlight from last week?  Please share it in the comments or feel free to comment on this post.

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Sunday Sharing: Four Highlights From II Samuel 3-5

In continuing my study through David--Seeking a Heart Like His by Beth Moore, I am learning a lot of things.  Here is a list of some of the highlights that jumped out at me this week.

David's Family Grows

I knew Solomon had a weakness for women and had many wives, but I never realized David had so many.  Nor did I know David had so many sons!  II Samuel 3:2-5 lists 7 wives and sons.  Then over in II Samuel 5:13-16 after he became king, he took more concubines and wives out of Jerusalem and had 11 children "born unto him in Jerusalem." 

Recab and Baanah

Do you know what Recab and Baanah did? These are two I didn't know anything about until I read II Samuel 4:5-12.

They came into the middle of the house, Recab and Baanah came as if they were going to get some wheat. Ish-Bosheth [son of Saul] was lying on his bed in his bedroom. Recab and Baanah stabbed him in the stomach. Then they cut off his head and took it with them. They traveled all night through the Jordan valley. (II Samuel 4:6-7)

They took the head to David in Hebron, thinking he would be pleased with them but he wasn't. He had no desire to hurt any of Saul's family and Recab and Baanah were both put to death for doing this.

Ask For Directions First

Something that really stood out to me this week is the fact that David prayed asking God if he should do things before he acted. I thought, what a wonderful habit to get into! In II Samuel 2:1-7 after he became king, he prayed to the Lord asking if he should go up to any cities of Judah. The Lord told him to go and he asked where. Then the Lord answered him and said to go to Hebron.

In II Samuel 5:18, David asked God first if he should attack the Philistines and if God would deliver them to him. Again, God said yes.

This shows that David was not arrogant like Saul, but trusted in God. In Psalm 20:7 he wrote:

Some trust in chariots, others in horses, but we trust the Lord our God.

 

Joab v. Abner

Another section I found interesting was how David made an agreement not to harm Abner (commander of Saul's army) when Abner transferred his loyalty to David.  This did not set well with Joab (commander of David's army) because Abner had killed one of Joab's brothers in battle.  When Joab found out, he got Abner alone and stabbed him to death.  David was very upset about this! (I Samuel 3:22-39)

I highly recommend this study. Remind you, these are just highlights from last week! Share a scripture highlight you came across last week in a comment, or feel free to comment on this post.

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Sunday Sharing: 3 Things I Learned This Week About David

I had a good week in God's Word this week continuing in I Samuel.  Here are some things I learned about David that I didn't know before:

1.  Did you know David had three wives before becoming King?

He had three wives even before he became king!  Do you know who they are?  Michal (Saul's daughter), Ahinoam and Abigail (Nabal's widow).  I knew about Michal and Abigail, but Ahinoam was new to me.  Because O.T. Bible characters had lots of wives, I thought there must have been some point where God decided to limit man to one wife but actually, God intended for man to have just one wife all along as Beth Moore points out based on these verses:

Man will leave his father and mother [not father and mothers] and be united to his wife [not wives], and they will become one flesh. (Genesis 2:24)  You just can't be one flesh with two spouses.

Neither shall he (king) multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away.--Deuteronomy 17:17

2.  Did you know David joined up with the Philistines while running from Saul?

David, his two wives (Ahinoam and Abigail) and his men dwelt with Achish, a Philistine for a year and four months!  He even wanted to help the Philistine army fight, but the Philistine commanders didn't trust him so wouldn't let him go into battle with them.  (See I Samuel 27 & 29)


3.  Did you know that David's own men wanted to stone him at one point when their wives and children were kidnapped by the Amalekites?

While David and his men were trying to join the Philistines in battle, the Amalekites invaded Ziklag where they were staying and took all the women and children off and burned the city.  David's men were so upset that they blamed David and talked about stoning him!  (See I Samuel 30:1-6) 

David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him, each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters.  But David found strength in the Lord his God.--I Samuel 30:6

The good news was that David asked God if they should chase after the Amalekites and go after the women and children and God said yes, and promised him victory.  They fought 24 hours, but came back with all their women and children.

Remember, when things appear hopeless, when circumstances get us down, when people turn against us, find strength in the Lord our God.  I am so glad God is my refuge and strength, a present help in trouble! 

Source:  Beth Moore's study:  David, Seeking a Heart Like His

Share a scripture highlight you came across this week in a comment or feel free to comment on this post.

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Sunday Sharing: Jelousy and Bread of Presence

In doing week two of the Beth Moore, David-Seeking a Heart Like His, here is a couple main points that stood out to me:

JEALOUSY

There is a big difference between being jealous of someone and being jealous for someone.  Jealousy is usually bad; however, there is such a thing as "righteous jealousy" such as is referred to in the following verses:

II Corinthians 11:2:  I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy.  I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him.

Joel 2:18: The LORD will be jealous of his land and take pity on his people.

Zechariah 11:4:  This is what the LORD Almighty says, "I am very jealous for Jerusalem and Zion."

Zechariah 8:2:  This is what the LORD Almighty says, "I am very jealous for Zion, I am burning with jealousy for her."

God is jealous on our behalf.  He is jealous for us to know the one true God.  He is jealous for us to be in posture of blessing.  He is jealous for us to be kept from the evil one.  He is jealous for us to be ready for our Bridegroom.  Jealousy for someone's best is of God.  Jealousy of someone's best is of the enemy. p. 43.

Saul was jealous of David, not for David and his jealousy led to his evil desire to kill David.

BREAD OF PRESENCE (I Samuel 21:1-9)

When David was on the run from Saul, he first went to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest.  David asked for five loaves of bread and a weapon but the only bread there was the holy bread (the bread of presence).

The bread of the Presence was placed before God as a reminder or symbol of the everlasting covenant.  The everlasting covenant symbolized by the bread of the Presence was a reminder of the pledge of God's presence to His people.  As He offered bread to David through Ahimelech the priest, I believe God pledged His presence to David throughout his exile.  pg. 53

Christ is the bread of God's presence to us.  He calls himself the "bread of life" in John 6:48.

I am enjoying this study but just chose a couple of the highlights to share here with you.  I highly recommend this one.

I thought it was cool that the only weapon there was Goliath's sword that the priest gave to David.  I'm sure it was a reminder how God had helped him kill Goliath.

Feel free to share a scripture highlight you came across last week in a comment or comment on this post.

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Sunday Sharing: Highlights from "David, Seeking a Heart Like His" by Beth Moore

I started the Beth Moore Bible study on David and thought I'd share some things that stood out to me from week 1:

1. Jonathan was a good warrior and Trusted God. In I Samuel 14;:6 He said, "Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few." I also never realized what a good leader he was. His armor bearer trusted Jonathan completely so Jonathan was also a very good leader. (I Samuel 14) pp. 14-15


2. Saul was the King of the people, not the king God chose. Saul's position exceeded his passion. "A position that exceeds passion often settles with appeasements." pp. 9, 12


3. When Saul forced his men to fast, he put his army in jeopardy (I Samuel 14:24-52). "God, not man, must call "fasts. Fasting called by God will result in strength, not weakness. Fasting for any other reason works against us rather than for us." p. 15 


4. "God reminded Samuel that the human mind has an overwhelming tendency to make assumptions based on appearances. God's choices don't always make sense to us." p. 21 (see I Samuel 16:7)


5. "Before Calvary, the Holy Spirit worked to empower specific types of service rather than to bring a new relationship with God through salvation. Fewer than 100 people in the Old Testament were ever characterized by the Holy Spirit being on or in them. The Holy Spirit came on only those who were being empowered for specific tasks or positions." p. 25


6. "Although David's anointing did not end Saul's reign as king, it marked the end of the power and favor of God on him." David wasn't crowned king until 15 years after being anointed. p. 35


7. "We tend to measure our obstacles against our own strength. Thus we often feel overwhelmed and defeated before the battle begins." We need to measure the size of our obstacles against the size of our God. p. 30

This is just a small sample of the nuggets in this Bible study. I am excited to study each chapter and learn more. I highly recommend it!  Please share your scripture highlight of the week in a comment.  I'd love to hear what you discovered.

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4 Friday Fragments (blogging, vacation, Bible Study, Sports)

Friday Fragments is hosted by Half Past Kissin' Time for bloggers to post a list of short things on their minds that aren't really enough for a whole post to give Mrs. 4444 a break for the summer. Here we go:

Most Frustrating

The most frustrating thing this week was when I went to change my blog color. It showed the changes in the preview but would not save it! GRRRR! I tried saving it four times and it never worked! What's up with that?

Vacation

Last week we were on vacation so I didn't do as much blogging as usual and missed doing Friday Fragments for the first time in ages. In spite of Gerard's hernia operation on Thursday and four other doctor appointments between us, we still had a good time together enjoying our club seats at the Indians game on Monday, walking Abby at West Creek Reservation, going to both the Akron zoo and the Cleveland zoo, and watching TV together (OSU football, Indians, Red Sox, Browns and Patriots).

New Bible Study

I started a new Beth Moore Bible study last week, "David, Seeking a Heart Like His" and am really enjoying it! In my Sunday Sharing post this week, I'll share some things that I learned from it so far.

Sports

We are happy! The Patriots and Browns are both in first place! The Patriots won 2 so far (the only team who has) and the Browns are tie for first in their division even though they lost to Miami last week.

We are still hoping the Indians make the playoffs and are pretty sure the Red Sox will be in it.

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7 Friday Fragments - Feline Friday (cats, church, news, blogging, sports)

Friday Fragments is hosted by Half Past Kissin' Time for bloggers to post a list of short things on their minds that aren't really enough for a whole post to give Mrs. 4444 a break for the summer. Here we go:

Cute Screen Saver

My cousin sent me an email with lots of cute animal pictures so I saved some I especially liked. This is one of them that I am now using as my screen saver picture on my computer:

The big cat looks like my Manny Boy

Vet Visit With Manny Boy

Last Saturday Manny went in for his routine checkup and although he has the beginnings of Gingervitis, we did not have to have him get his teeth cleaned. The new vet said we could give him an antibiotic (Clindacure) just once a day for 3 days--just had to put it on his food. She said it will kill the bacteria that is making his gums red (they looked dark pink to me). Other than that, all is good, even his weight! Wish we had a third person who could have videotaped us getting him into the carrier--that's always fun!

Horrible News

Three teens in Oklahoma shot a college student from Australia because they were bored? Said they did it just for fun! These teens are despicable! Here is the link to the news story I saw on Yahoo News this week: Police Say Teen Shot Australian Student in Oklahoma For Fun. What a sick world we live in!

Good News

I always get a bit nervous when I see mail from the hospital after I had a mammogram, but was relieved to see my latest results are normal! It will be four years now the first week of September since my lumpectomy to remove the cancer.

Bible Study

I signed up for another Beth Moore Bible study at our church starting September--A Heart Like David. I really enjoy her studies so am looking forward to it. Also, our Women of Wonder monthly meetings will start up again. This year they will have a morning one as well as the Thursday night one to hopefully get more ladies involved. It is primarily a fellowship time with good food, short devotional, a craft or other fun type activity and prayer. Are you starting any new Bible Study at your church?

New Blogs To Me

This week I found two new wonderful blogs: Through following up on a commenter I discovered: Mary-andering Creatively and through the Note Card Party blog hop, I found Sue at To Live, Love and Journal Our Days. I am now a new follower of both and have added them to my blogroll. Hope you will pay them a visit too!

Question of the Day

Hope to get to 1 more game this year!

My husband asked me which I am more excited about: the Indians chase to get into the playoffs or the beginning of the Browns season. My answer is, the Indians. I look forward to the Browns starting again, but as long as the Indians are in the race, my focus will be on them.
GO TRIBE! GO TRIBE! GO TRIBE! CATCH THOSE TIGERS! GO TRIBE! GO TRIBE! GO TRIBE! CATCH THOSE TIGERS!

New Design

I like that I can choose from lots of different designs at discover.com for my credit cards. Can you guess what I picked? If you read my blog regularly, I bet you can. One is a tuxedo cat and the other is a tabby. Just got the tabby one this week!

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Sunday Sharing--Highlights From Ecclesiastes

There's a lot of good stuff in this book!

One of the most fun, encouraging and motivating things I've experienced in a small group Bible study was when we shared a verse that we found especially interesting, encouraging, or that just stood out to us that we read in our quiet time during the week--our highlights. I know many of our readers also read the Bible so I thought it might be fun to share my highlights with you and you could all leave your highlight of the week in a comment for me. I just finished reading the book of Ecclesiastes (only 12 chapters) and found it to be funny, a bit depressing and challenging so want to share some of the verses I marked with you here. In my future "Share Your Highlights" posts, I'll just pick one verse from the week, but I was so impressed with Ecclesiastes, written by the wisest man who ever lived, King Solomon and inspired by God that I just want to tell others about it! Here is a list of the verses that stood out most to me (all are from the International Children's Bible):

Ecclesiastes 1:18 says:

With much wisdom comes disappointment. The person who gains more knowledge also gains more sorrow.

(Doesn't this sound like "ignorance is bliss" to you?)


Ecclesiastes 2:24-25 says: 

The best a person can do is eat, drink and enjoy his work.  No one can eat or enjoy life without God.  

This got me questioning why people couldn't eat or enjoy life without God.  Perhaps it is because it is only because of God that we have food or anything since He created it.  Without God, we have nothing.


Ecclesiastes 3:13 says:

God wants everyone to eat and drink and be happy in his work.  These are gifts from God.

There it is again, talking about enjoying or being happy in our work.  I was surprised to see the work is a gift from God.


Ecclesiastes 4:9 says:

Two are better than one.  They get more done by working together.

I find this to be true in marriage.  It would apply to other things as well.  Being active in a church enables me to have a part in reaching more people with the gospel and encouraging people to follow Christ than I could do just on my own.  I think the key phrase here is "working together."  The two have to be on the same page with a common goal to work towards.


Ecclesiastes 5:5 says:

It is better not to promise anything than to promise something and not do it.

This was just a good reminder to be careful what I promise.
 

Ecclesiastes 6:6 & 9 says:

(6) Even if a person lives 2,000 years, it is sad if a person can't enjoy the good things God gives him.  (9) So it is better to be happy with what you have than always to be wanting more.  Always wanting more is useless like chasing the wind.

I think this is why people living in poverty in other countries seem to be happy, because they are content with what they have.  When our short-term mission teams from church visit foreign countries where the people are very poor compared to what we have, they always report back how happy the people were.


Ecclesiastes 7:1 says:

It is better to have respect than good perfume.  The day a person dies is better than the day he was born.

Wow, this one got me thinking.  I couldn't help but ask why?  Is life such a hassle that we're better off dead?  All I could come up with is that if a person dies and goes to heaven, then yes--they are definitely better off.


Ecclesiastes 8:5b says:

A wise man knows how to do the right thing at the right time.

We all need wisdom!  There have been times in my life when I didn't know what the right thing to do was.  How about you?  I need to remember to ask God daily for wisdom.


Ecclesiastes 9:4 says:

 But anyone still alive has hope.  Even a live dog is better than a dead lion.

 I laughed when I read this one and had to share it in my Circle of Friends study last week. 


Ecclesiastes 9:9 says:

Enjoy life with the wife you love.  Enjoy all the days of this short life God has given you here on earth.  It is all you have, so enjoy the work you have to do here on earth.

I liked that "Enjoy life with the wife" phrase.  Solomon had lots of wives though so I wonder if he had just one special one that he loved most since he wrote "wife you love."  And there's that theme again about enjoying the work we have on earth.


Ecclesiastes 10:2 says:

A wise man's heart leads him on the right way.  But the heart of a foolish person leads him in the wrong way.

Better make sure if you tell someone to "follow your heart"  that the someone is a wise person!


Ecclesiastes 11:1 says:

Do good things wherever you go.  And after awhile the good you do will return to help you.

This reminded me of the saying, "What goes around comes around."  See, it's not all depressing!


Ecclesiastes 11:8 says:

A person ought to enjoy every day of his life.  This is true no matter how long he lives.  But he should also remember this:  you will be dead much longer than you live.  After you are dead, you accomplish nothing.

Does "Seize the day" and The Dead Poet's Society come to mind?  Life truly is a gift from God and each day is a second chance.  Life really is short so we need to make the most of every day we have!  Also, keeping in mind that our life is so short compared to eternity and what we do with Jesus during this short time we have on earth determines where we will spend eternity.


Ecclesiastes 12:13 says:

Now, everything has been heard.  Here is my final advice:  Honor God and obey His commands.  This is the most important thing people can do.

 This is how I want to live my life.  I love Jesus so want to honor and obey Him.  It is the least that I can do in light of all God has done for me.  Also though, God knows way more than I do so I want Him to lead me in the way He wants me to live. 

It's the first five verses of chapter 12 that describe old age, not chapter 11 that I mentioned in my Friday Fragments.  The point is, serve the Lord while you're still young, before your body starts falling apart! 


Sorry this is such a long post but hope you took the time to read my highlights.  Future posts will be shorter since I'll only choose one (or maybe two) verses that stood out to me during the week.  I read Ecclesiastes over a period of 3 weeks.

So, please share one of your highlights from the week with me in the comments or feel free to comment on anything in this post.  Have a great day and enjoy life while you can!

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7 Friday Fragments

Friday Fragments is hosted my Half-Past Kissin' Time for bloggers to post a list of short things on their minds that aren't really enough for a whole post. Here we go:

☻Last Saturday when we visited The Pleasant Care Center at Legacy Place, one of the residents told me how much she enjoyed reading My Funny Dad, Harry (the book I wrote in his memory). She isn't a reader and usually doesn't finish books, but she had a hard time putting this one down and loved it. She even enjoyed reading about his cats and she isn't a cat lover. It makes me so happy when I hear people enjoyed the book and feel as though they knew my dad too. He was a wonderful man! The book is available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Click the link to read customer reviews (21). It comes in paperback or available on Kindle.

☻ Work was crazy hectic this week so I feel very productive.

☻ The sun has been shining most of this week AND temperatures are back on the rise! I feel so much better when the sun is out!

☻Our dog, Abby, is getting ten laser therapy treatments to help rebuild cells in her hips and knees to lessen the pain of her arthritis. The sessions are short and painless. We have a short video I'll get posted one of these days.

☻ Our church is doing the NOT A FAN DVD study. Some of the questions in the journal we are supposed to do every day are very pointed and really helps me reflect on my relationship with Jesus; on the other hand, some things like imagining him sitting next to me and sing a song to him are pretty ridiculous. I'm trying to do everything they suggest to give it a fair shot and try to get as much from it as I can. Are you familiar with this study? If so, we would like to hear your thoughts about it.

☻

I go for blood work tomorrow in preparation for my bone and CT scan--the insurance will cover it. Oh, and I got a new prescription from my doctor that is supposed to help strengthen my bones: Actonel. The good news is that I only have to take it once a month! I'll take it the same day I give my pets their revolution so I'll remember it.

☻ The audio book Gerard is listening to and loving this week is "The Fifth Witness" by Michael Connelly.

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I Feel Like a Kid Again!

I remember how I used to like getting new school supplies right before school started every year: brand new notebooks, assorted colored folders, pens and even new clothes.

Well, our "Circle of Friends" Bible study group at Parma Heights Baptist Church is starting a new study on the Book of Job and I'm excited! It's the kind where each person digs in through the week and outlines the chapter, thinks of a title, studies the key words, lists truths about God, Job, Satan and then discuss questions and share our insights on Sunday. I really hope everyone takes the time to do the study on their own so we can have a great time of sharing what we learned. The book we are using that has daily assignments for study is Trusting God in Times of Adversity--Job by Kay Arthur and Pete DeLacy. There is a whole list of books in this New Inductive Study Series!

Last week was the introduction when we were told what supplies we would need: The Bible, a 3-ring binder notebook, and colored pens or pencils for marking in the Bible. I am so excited that I found the perfect 3-ring binder with dividers AND pockets for handouts too! I was just going to go with crayons, but then I found colored pens on sale at Rite-Aid, buy one pack and get one free!  I even found one of those plastic pencil cases that has the 3-hole strip for it to go into the binder--I love color coding and I am ready!

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Wow, I Didn't Know That!

Last week I finished the Bible study by Beth Moore called James--Mercy Triumphs.  I really enjoyed this study and learned several things about James that I did not know.  I also enjoyed some insights that Beth and her daughter pointed out in the workbook.  Although this is a workbook, there wasn't a whole lot of blanks to fill in.  Most of it was Beth and her daughter, Melissa sharing the meaning of the words, putting it into context, sharing examples of how to put the teachings into practice in our lives.

Before this study, all I knew about James was the he was a half brother of Jesus.  This study challenged me to think about what it might have been like for James living with the Messiah and having Jesus for an older brother.  He would have been a tough act to follow!  I also learned that James became a pillar in the Christian community and was the leader of the church in Jerusalem where the followers of Christ were Jewish and many poverty stricken.   

All of the brothers came to believe in Jesus as the Christ by the time they met in the upper room in Acts 1:14.  Yet only one emerged as a leader and, far more impressively, one of three "pillars." p.31

It was very interesting that over and over in the book of James, he reiterates many of the things Jesus talked about but in his own words.

Some of the teachings in James that really stood out to me when going through this study are:

But ask in faith, nothing wavering.  For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.  For let not that man think he shall receive anything of the Lord.  (Js. 1:6-7)

This is the verse that kept going through my mind when I was praying for our dog, Abby, when she was attacked and in critical shape.  I kept telling my husband he HAS to believe she will be okay. 

We who have are to open our hands in complete humility to those who don't.  p. 54

I didn't realize the command to Love your neighbor as yourself is mentioned so often.  (Lev. 19:18, Matthew 22:40, Romans 13:8-10, Galatians 5:13-14; James 2:8)  Loving God and loving others does not equal hating ourselves after all. p. 92

The wisdom from above is first pure, then peace-loving, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, without favortism and hypocrisy.  James 3:17

Harsh people are never wise.  Gentleness goes along with wisdom and understanding. pg. 123


Beth Moore challenged us to memorize all five chapters of James and I decided, that with God's help, I would do it.  I have memorized the first two chapters and am working on chapter three right now.  I have to think really hard though about what comes next so it takes me twenty minutes to quote just the first to chapters.  I am going to work on increasing my speed.

Here's some of my favorite lines:

The Word of God, however, is meant to do more than penetrate.  It's meant to activate. p. 78

Because we know Jesus Christ as Savior, our practices manifest our devotion to Him.  p. 83

Faith and favortism don't mix.  p. 97


God will never call you to sacrifice your intimacy with Him on the altar of ministry.  p. 111  (This was confirmation for me that I did the right thing giving up my Sunday School class in order to participate in a Bible study with other women that I am learning so much from.)

The Devil is trying to steal from you and destroy you and make it look like it was all your idea.  So, Girlfriend, submit to God.  She listed 8 great reasons to submit to God on p. 143.  My favorite reason is his unconditional love for me and that I can trust Him for my future because he knows it already and will get me there.

People who walk in the Spirit judge "things."  Not people.  p. 147

There is so much more I gained from this study, but I think this is long enough so I just encourage you to study the book of James and recommend James--Mercy Triumphs by Beth Moore. 

(50 cents per legitimate comment during March goes to The American Cancer Society by sponsoring Mrs 4444 and Lucky Lady in The Race For Life.)

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6 Things We Learned This Week 9 of 2012 (food, news, books, birds, comments)

 

Friday Fragments is hosted my Half-Past Kissin' Time for bloggers to post a list of short things on their minds that aren't really enough for a whole post. We like to share what we've learned each week.

1. Prunes

   Prunes can make you gassy. You shouldn't eat a lot at a time. You can find out more Side Effects of Prunes and the Medical Benefits of Prunes at Livestrong.com.



2. Fire, HELP!

   From Sparkle's post, Sebastian's Friends Need Help Too, I learned about Kathi and her cats who were in a terrible fire and really need help. Her oldest cat died in the fire, she escaped with just the clothes on her back and lost everything else except for her cat, CJ, who got out but was very badly burned so has some big vet bills on top of everything else. I felt so sorry for this lady that I put up her "Chip In" widget. There's a problem with it updating the total donated so far, but the PayPal process completed okay.





image source:  Wikipedia

3. Peregrine

   By reading Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs, I learned that a Peregrine is a bird. Miss Peregrine could change into a Peregrine Falcon.

4. February Comments

   We received 210 comments in February so are donating $105 to Caroline's Kids Pet Rescue. For March, we will donate 50 cents per legitimate comment to the American Cancer Society.  Two bloggers I visit regularly, Mrs 4444 at Half-Past Kissin' Time and Lucky Lady at Country Pictures are both participating in Relay for Life so we'll split our donation between them if it is still going on at the end of this month..

5. Bible Study

   
   I finished Beth Moore's Bible study on the book of James called James--Mercy Triumphs and will post my review of it Sunday on Grab A Book From Our Stack. I learned so much about James that I didn't know before and have memorized the Chapters 1 and 2. Some of the teachings really sunk in too. It was a very thought-provoking study that I enjoyed very much.

6. Postage

   When buying stamps this week, I learned that postage went up a penny to 45 cents for one stamp.

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Accepting a Challenge

I am so excited about starting a new Bible Study at church with other women, going through James Mercy Triumphs by Beth Moore.  This study gives 5 different level options so you can choose how much you want to put into it without feeling guilty. When I first got the book and looked through it, one of the first things I noticed was that part of this study involves memorizing the entire book of James (only five chapters, but still).  I have never memorized an entire book in my life!

My first reaction was "Yeah, right, no way.--you got to be kidding me!"  We have a very motivational, upbeat leader in Elena, our Pastor's wife, who gave us a little pep talk. She read my mind! She actually said out loud what I was thinking which got my attention. By the next morning, I found myself eager to take on this challenge.  Yes, folks, eager!  We are looking at a 5-month time frame with short term goals of memorizing one chapter a month.

Here are the reasons I decided to do it:

1. It's included in the study and I want to get the most out of my $15 investment.
2. It's something I've never done before.
3. I read a lot of books so by memorizing God's Word, it will be in my mind more which is a good thing.
4. The book of James is one of my favorites.
5. I will have others doing it with me so we can nag encourage one another.
6. As Elena pointed out, God can help me do it!
7. I've got nothing to lose by trying so I'm going to give it a shot and have updated my New Year's Resolutions to include memorizing the book of James.

Just to help me keep on track, I'm posting my verse that I am memorizing each day on this blog at the top. Perhaps you would like to join me in this? Yeah, right?

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Spruce Up Your Bible

There are many Bibles around, but none like mine!; That is because I have made mine very personal to me and therefore precious. Some people do not want to mark in their Bibles, but I am glad I am not one of them!

HOW TO HIGHLIGHT VERSES:

Some people use highlighters or ink to mark their Bibles but I found colored pencils or crayons work much better. When marking with highlighters, always use a light color such as yellow.; If I do underline something with ink, I found that using a straight edge makes it look much neater. (I have one Bible that I use ink to underline.)

I learned long ago that the flair pens bleed through the page and tend to look sort of messy. (That’s what I used as a kid.) Colored pencils work very well and there is a wide variety of colors that you could use to underline verses. Crayons are my favorite though because they cover quickly and provide lots of color choices.

THINGS TO MARK:

1. Memorized verses. Every verse I memorized I mark because if I made the effort to memorize it, I think it’s worth reviewing.  By marking it, I review it again when I see it and it also helps me to find it if I forget the reference, not that you would ever forget the reference, but you may.  If I forget the reference, I can usually remember the book and if it’s marked, it makes it easy to find it.
2. Salvation verses. I like color coding so colored the salvation verses with red. Starting with John 3:16, next to it I list the reference of the next salvation verse (Romans 3:23) and so on. By doing this, I am always ready to share the plan of salvation using scripture if the opportunity should arise. It has been useful in teaching Sunday School and counseling situations.
3. Commands. Things to do or not to do that stand out to me are marked with blue (blue rhymes with do).
4. Promises. For God’s promises that “pop” out at me, I color with orange.
5. Truths about God. These I mark in yellow (reminds me of God’s glory).

MAKING NOTES:

Now, this is when I use a pen for making notes in the margin. I jot down sermon/class notes such as what some words mean, perhaps an object lesson or story illustration for a particular passage that I thought was especially good, the month/year that I marked the verse, or sometimes a situation I am going through when the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart through a particular verse or passage.

I realize I am a bit more organized and into color coding more than most people, but even if you don’t use my color coding suggestion, I encourage you to start marking your Bible your way and make it special to you. I immediately felt a connection with my "Circle of Friends" Adult Bible Fellowship (ABF) group leader who also encouraged the class to use colored pencils to mark our Bibles. The best part about taking time to do this is that you spend time in God’s Word.

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Self-Control (Living Beyond Yourself by Beth Moore)

Self-Control stops--say "That's Enough For Now." This last characteristic of the fruit of the Spirit is about mastery, authority and boundaries. It's not a question of what? but of how much?

In I Corinthians 6:19-20, our bodies are referred to as the temple of the Holy Ghost in us. Therefore, we need to take good care of our bodies to glorify God. We must not be mastered by anything according to I Corinthians 6:12 which says: Everything is permissible for me--but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible for me, but I will not be mastered [controlled] by anything.

This could be a variety of things that control us. Some people struggle with all kinds of addictions such as smoking, drugs, alcohol, food, TV, the Internet, gambling. My struggle is the last two I mentioned. According to I Corinthians 6:12, a little bit is okay (although not necessarily beneficial--the implication being we should choose things that are beneficial). I must keep my guard up and exercise self-control in the amount of time I spend on the computer that takes me away from more beneficial things and keep a set limit for playing that football pool! Moderation is the key here. Instead of eating a whole pizza at once, which I easily could do, especially while watching TV, I limit myself to just two slices and save the rest for another day.

Beth used the example of Samson and Daniel to contrast a person who did not have self-control and one who did. Although Samson finally brought glory to God in his death, Daniel did it in his life as we are told to do in I Corinthians 10:31: Whether therefore ye eat, or drink or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

Each morning we choose who we will serve--God or ourselves. "All sin boils down to an issue of authority. His will, or my will?" One point Beth made I felt was really good is that "any day not surrendered to the Spirit is virtually surrendered to the flesh by simple default!" That is why it is so important for us to seek God at the beginning of each day, confessing our sin, pouring out our concerns and asking God to fill us with His Holy Spirit so we can live beyond ourselves, letting Christ live through us! (see Galatians 2:20). Then through the day we should pray and praise God. At night, reflect on our day and see how God has worked.

What a marvelous and practical study this was! I highly recommend it!! God has so much for us when we completely surrender ourselves to Him!

Gentleness (Living Beyond Yourself by Beth Moore)

I always viewed gentleness like a gentle giant or a powerful horse under control. After this week of in-depth study, I discovered it is much, much more!

According to Beth Moore's "Living Beyond Yourself" study, Gentleness (NIV)/Meekness (KJV) can be summed up to mean "cease fighting God." The Greek word translated as gentleness is praotes meaning: an acceptance of God's dealings with us, calmness toward God in particular, complete surrender to God's will and way in your life, responsibility with power.

To summarize what I learned through this study, there are four key aspects to Gentleness which is the 8th characteristic in the fruit of the Spirit. These areas are as follow:

1) Submission-Gentleness is completely submitting to God. Jeremiah 26:14 puts it this way: As for me, I am in your hands; do with me whatever you think is good and right. (NIV)

2) Humility-This results from being rightly related to God and aggressive confession of sin. The Hebrew word translated as "humble" is Kana meaning "to bend the knee." The physical posture of bowing down before God can have a great impact on our spiritual stature.

3) Teachability-The gentle person is willing to receive instruction. She gave Paul, Aquilla and Priscilla and Apollos as examples of this using Acts 18. David accepted tragedy and failure as a challenge to search God's Word (see Psalm 119). Also, we teach others with a servant attitude. I liked the line about using the Sword of the Spirit to fight Satan, not the believers! God's teachers are bound to God's opinion, the only one which truly matters because God's word is absolute truth and only God's word can sanctify believers (see John 17:17).

We are to teach others with humility, an attitude of submission, an awareness of our own sins and a forgetfulness toward the sins of our "flock" leaving condemnation to God and conviction to the Holy Spirit. (see Proverbs 16:21)

Faith (Living Beyond Yourself by Beth Moore)

This was a tremendous study on faith this week that really spoke to my heart and helped me to see that God is faithful and believable which encouraged me in my faith.

Faithfulness is believing the reality of a sovereign God. Hebrews 11:6 says And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

1) Our faith hinges on our belief in God's faithfulness. Realizing that God is believable is the key to faith. Since it is by grace we are saved through FAITH, and not of ourselves, it is the gift of God according to Ephesians 2:8, it's no wonder we can't prove there is a God. God planned it this way. If we could reason everything out and science could prove there was a God and creation, where would faith come in?

Hebrews 11:3 says, By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

This whole concept was an eye opener for me, to realize that God purposely doesn't answer all our questions or provide concrete evidence for everything so that it's only by faith that we can believe. Faith is really quite simple, it's just believing what God says is true. We come to God only by having a child-like faith in Him. In Matthew 18:3, Jesus is quoted as saying, I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

The Old Testament prophecies that are fulfilled in the New Testament makes God believable.

2) Our faith needs to be based on Who God Is and not on What God Does. A faith based on what God does will fluctuate based on whether or not God does or acts like we think He should. If he answers our prayer the way we want, then our faith increases, but if not, our faith is shaken. If something bad happens that we think God should have prevented and didn't, our faith is shaken.

That's why, if we base our faith on who God is, his character and trust Him that He is love and good all the time and sovereign and in control, then our faith will be strong and help us through those tough situations that come along. Isaiah 55:8-9 says:

8 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. 9 "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

To me, I am glad our God is greater than us and wiser than us!

3) True faith takes action. To see this, all we need to do to see this is read through Hebrews 11 which is called the "Hall of Faith."

4) Fight the good fight of faith. Satan uses two weapons to destroy our faith: fear and familiarity. Satan uses our fear to believe God, fear of disappointment, fear that God might not "prove" His love to us, and our fear of humiliation to destroy our faith. Sometimes those who have known God the longest put limits on Him by only asking for "safe" things that don't take much faith.

When we are filled with the Holy Spirit, he gives us the characteristic of faith to believe God completely and use the "shield of faith" to quench all the fiery darts that Satan throws at us.

Kindness & Goodness (Living Beyond Yourself by Beth Moore)

These two characteristics are closely related so were taken together in the Beth Moore study. Kindness is described as being nurturing and tenderhearted. Goodness is actively doing good works. Ephesians 2:10 says For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (NIV)

God is kind, compassionate, tenderhearted. Sometimes we don't think of Him this way but in this study, some examples used that show his kindness were his dealings with Hagar and Ishmael as a loving Father, his compassion for Mary as she mourned and for Israel. (The book I just recently read, "The Shack" shows this side of God in a very unusual way.)

Kindness works together with goodness. The good works that God has prepared for us to do should result out of kindness towards others. Sometimes what is good may be painful, but it is always beneficial. The illustration used was when parents correct their child, it's for the child's benefit but not necessarily pleasurable. The tenderheartedness towards their child balances the correction.

Basically, when we are filled with the Holy Spirit, the kindness will motivate us to do good works. Goodness is actively doing good!

My good work the day before writing this was preparing for my Sunday School lesson, praying for some of my blogging friends who are going through difficult times and bringing a cookie home for my husband from my Bible Study.

What good work will you and I do today?

Patience (Living Beyond Yourself by Beth Moore)

Patience is from two Greek words: (1) "hupomone": meaning patience in circumstances meaning to persevere, bear up under, endure and is inspired by hope such as Job had; and (2) "Makrothumia" meaning long suffering, forbearance, self-restraint related to people and inspired by mercy. The fruit of the Spirit quality of patience is from the second word, relating to people. When we are filled with God's Spirit, he enables us to forgive others, show mercy to them as God as shown to us and thus be patient with them as God is patient.

I thought it was very interesting how forgiveness actually plays such a big part in showing patience to others. I never realized before either that patience was broken down into two separate categories in the Greek. I found that to be very interesting once I got into it and saw the difference.

God is patient with us and forgives us so it shouldn't be all that hard for us to forgive others. (Matthew 18:21-35 is the parable Jesus told about the unmerciful servant that this truth is based.)

To recap the fruits discussed so far, love never fails, joy cometh, peace rules and patience waits.