Thursday, February 12, 2015
Jeremiah 12
5 “If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble[a] in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by[b] the Jordan?,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, 17 But if any nation does not listen, I will completely uproot and destroy it,” declares the Lord. ................................................................................................................
My web browser is causing this to post funny so I forces some spacing in. These two verses hit me, some days the rat race has me worn out probably because I try to run it on my own without his help. Countries all over the world are not listening to Him, including the USA, he is clear the end result....................................................................
no great takes today, but the words of 2500 years ago are still so relevent today which is always inspiring to me during my morning read.
knut
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Jeremiah 11
18 Because the Lord revealed their plot to me, I knew it, for at that time he showed me what they were doing.
There wasn't much that struck me in this chapter other than its clear we should obey God or suffer the consequences. I did take note of this versus, because Jeremiah has something I want which is such a tight connection to God that he reveals what is going on around me. Not in the sense that there are plots against me that I want revealed to me, but just that God would reveal for me things going on in and around my life that he wants me to know and take action on.
We are going to begin a study on prayer with our small group, and as a part of that I hope I learn how to talk with God in a way that draws me closer to him and that he would be able to get through my thick skull and share with me the things he wants to reveal to me.
knut
Monday, February 9, 2015
Jeremiah 10
It’s your very nature to be worshiped!
This one caught my eye. Especially as we have been talking lately about how we tend to stray, and its hard for us to stay on point with our mission. While it is a daily decision we make to put God first.....its in his nature to be worshiped. I almost can't wrap my head around that! That's how good he is. AMAZAING!
21 It’s because our leaders are stupid.
They never asked God for counsel,
And so nothing worked right.
This one scares me a LOT! I feel this is happening to our society, little by little. Taking prayer out of school, getting "In God we trust" off of our money. Dad was telling me that they are going to have to take the cross down off the hill beside the river in Grand Haven. The satanists are arguing that the cross can stay, but they want their symbol to sit on the hill right beside the cross. They have decided that rather than that....they will take the cross down.
Its so sad. The more we take God out of our society, the more things will fail. I'm completely convinced of it. This is something I think about with our kids. What will the rules and regulations be in the society for them.....and what struggles will they have because of it?
Monday morning quick one!
This one caught my eye. Especially as we have been talking lately about how we tend to stray, and its hard for us to stay on point with our mission. While it is a daily decision we make to put God first.....its in his nature to be worshiped. I almost can't wrap my head around that! That's how good he is. AMAZAING!
21 It’s because our leaders are stupid.
They never asked God for counsel,
And so nothing worked right.
This one scares me a LOT! I feel this is happening to our society, little by little. Taking prayer out of school, getting "In God we trust" off of our money. Dad was telling me that they are going to have to take the cross down off the hill beside the river in Grand Haven. The satanists are arguing that the cross can stay, but they want their symbol to sit on the hill right beside the cross. They have decided that rather than that....they will take the cross down.
Its so sad. The more we take God out of our society, the more things will fail. I'm completely convinced of it. This is something I think about with our kids. What will the rules and regulations be in the society for them.....and what struggles will they have because of it?
Monday morning quick one!
Thursday, February 5, 2015
Jeremiah 9
23 This is what the Lord says: “Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength or the rich boast of their riches, 24 but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares the Lord.
All the things we have like this nice warm two story home I'm sitting in typing on a laptop computer with my tablet sitting next to me, the Acadia in the garage, next to my 69 Camaro which is carried in a nice enclosed trailer pulled by a motorhome are all fruits of my labor. While maybe I'm not boasting about these posessions, certainly I put a lot of value in having for me and my family. But they are meaningless. Understanding and KNOWING our God and creator is the only thing he wants us to care about. He has given us this book to let us know who he is, he sent us Son to save us from ourselves and with the Holy Spirit in our hearts we will truly know him.
I really want to focus on knowing him so I truly have something worth boasting about.
knut
Wednesday, February 4, 2015
Jeremiah 8
I think the thing that makes these chapter hard for me to gather insights from, is the fact that they are all very similar. The themes are basically the same.
After my post yesterday, I think I could repost the same thing.
this portion did catch my attention
“‘When people fall down, do they not get up?
When someone turns away, do they not return?
5 Why then have these people turned away?
Why does Jerusalem always turn away?
They cling to deceit;
they refuse to return.
6 I have listened attentively,
but they do not say what is right.
None of them repent of their wickedness,
saying, “What have I done?”
Each pursues their own course
like a horse charging into battle.
7 Even the stork in the sky
knows her appointed seasons,
and the dove, the swift and the thrush
observe the time of their migration.
But my people do not know
the requirements of the Lord.
On the outside, I laugh....saying how could these people not see it. And on the inside. This paragraph perfectly describes me. If left to my own devices, without any accountability partners, or people that depend on me.....this is me. At my core.
I laugh at them, and do the exact same thing.
Like Paul says, "I really don't understand myself at all......."
Its a daily decision for me. I've realized more lately than ever, the simple fact that I need to acknowledge this daily, and ask for God's forgiveness and to plead with him to help me with this. "Today again.....Help me to put myself aside and understand that I need you"
sheesh! Why can't this lesson stick?!
After my post yesterday, I think I could repost the same thing.
this portion did catch my attention
“‘When people fall down, do they not get up?
When someone turns away, do they not return?
5 Why then have these people turned away?
Why does Jerusalem always turn away?
They cling to deceit;
they refuse to return.
6 I have listened attentively,
but they do not say what is right.
None of them repent of their wickedness,
saying, “What have I done?”
Each pursues their own course
like a horse charging into battle.
7 Even the stork in the sky
knows her appointed seasons,
and the dove, the swift and the thrush
observe the time of their migration.
But my people do not know
the requirements of the Lord.
On the outside, I laugh....saying how could these people not see it. And on the inside. This paragraph perfectly describes me. If left to my own devices, without any accountability partners, or people that depend on me.....this is me. At my core.
I laugh at them, and do the exact same thing.
Like Paul says, "I really don't understand myself at all......."
Its a daily decision for me. I've realized more lately than ever, the simple fact that I need to acknowledge this daily, and ask for God's forgiveness and to plead with him to help me with this. "Today again.....Help me to put myself aside and understand that I need you"
sheesh! Why can't this lesson stick?!
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
Jeremiah 7
19 “But is it me they’re hurting?” God’s Decree! “Aren’t they just hurting themselves? Exposing themselves shamefully? Making themselves ridiculous?
When we run a-muck, we are only hurting ourselves.
We have a guy that comes and preaches on Sunday mornings when our lead pastor isn't there. His name is Eric Moore. He's probably my favorite pastor that I've ever heard. I really seem to connect with his words. Here is one of his stories, that this story reminded me of.
He starts out the story by saying.......those of you with children, will probably know the ending to this story before I even get close to telling it. Because we've all been there, and we've all seen it. Let's say your toddler is in the other room playing and you can hear the sound of toys crunching and the crazy sounds that kids make.......and all of the sudden you realize there hasn't been a sound in a couple of minutes. So, you walk into the room......where's the kid?.......he's hiding behind the ficus tree. And what is he doing?......yup, you guessed it. He's filling his pants. But the funny part is what happens next. You say, helllooooo......where are you? And the kid hides. He doesn't want to be found out, when in reality the only person in the world that can clean him up, is looking for him. Its just like that with us and God. We try to hide from him, and he's the only one that can clean us up. If we don't, we start to get a bad rash. Just like there verse says above. We are only hurting ourselves by turning away from God.
tp
When we run a-muck, we are only hurting ourselves.
We have a guy that comes and preaches on Sunday mornings when our lead pastor isn't there. His name is Eric Moore. He's probably my favorite pastor that I've ever heard. I really seem to connect with his words. Here is one of his stories, that this story reminded me of.
He starts out the story by saying.......those of you with children, will probably know the ending to this story before I even get close to telling it. Because we've all been there, and we've all seen it. Let's say your toddler is in the other room playing and you can hear the sound of toys crunching and the crazy sounds that kids make.......and all of the sudden you realize there hasn't been a sound in a couple of minutes. So, you walk into the room......where's the kid?.......he's hiding behind the ficus tree. And what is he doing?......yup, you guessed it. He's filling his pants. But the funny part is what happens next. You say, helllooooo......where are you? And the kid hides. He doesn't want to be found out, when in reality the only person in the world that can clean him up, is looking for him. Its just like that with us and God. We try to hide from him, and he's the only one that can clean us up. If we don't, we start to get a bad rash. Just like there verse says above. We are only hurting ourselves by turning away from God.
tp
Monday, February 2, 2015
Jeremiah 6
I came up empty today so I turned to Tom's post and as usual he didn't disappoint. I just took a class with my boss and his staff last week and a big part of the class was about listening and having good conversation. The instructor said "relationship is a series of conversations...think about your last five conversations with the people most important to you then ask yourself what kind of relationship you have?" Well it can be a little humbling and concerning. Then today, I read what Tom wrote and when he said prayer is a dialogue it made me think--what kind of relationship do I have with God? I don't think I do a good job of listening at all which brings into question the quality of my relationship.
knut
Tom's post---
It’s hopeless. Their ears are stuffed with wax — deaf as a post, blind as a bat. It’s hopeless! They’ve tuned out God. Jeremiah 6:10b-11a (MSG)
I have hearing problems. It is not a fun thing to have your hearing diminished. It aggravates life in a myriad of ways. It’s amazing how much you miss, and in converstions you frequently find yourself having to decide if you are going to admit you didn’t hear and inquire about what was just said or of you just let it go. Wendy’s gotten sharp at knowing the blank expression of my face as I try to process what she just said. I feel awful asking people to repeat themselves all the time. Not only is it humbling but it’s an annoyance for all parties involved.
It’s no wonder that these lines from today’s chapter jumped off the page at me. I may struggle with hearing, but I never want to be deaf to God. Like any other conversation in any other relationship, I’ve found that you have to consciously listen for what God is saying. You have to tune your spiritual ears. You have to concentrate and pay attention. Prayer is not just about talking to God, it’s also about listening to God. It’s not a monologue, it’s a dialogue.
Today, I’m trying to remember to do a better job of listening.
knut
Tom's post---
It’s hopeless. Their ears are stuffed with wax — deaf as a post, blind as a bat. It’s hopeless! They’ve tuned out God. Jeremiah 6:10b-11a (MSG)
I have hearing problems. It is not a fun thing to have your hearing diminished. It aggravates life in a myriad of ways. It’s amazing how much you miss, and in converstions you frequently find yourself having to decide if you are going to admit you didn’t hear and inquire about what was just said or of you just let it go. Wendy’s gotten sharp at knowing the blank expression of my face as I try to process what she just said. I feel awful asking people to repeat themselves all the time. Not only is it humbling but it’s an annoyance for all parties involved.
It’s no wonder that these lines from today’s chapter jumped off the page at me. I may struggle with hearing, but I never want to be deaf to God. Like any other conversation in any other relationship, I’ve found that you have to consciously listen for what God is saying. You have to tune your spiritual ears. You have to concentrate and pay attention. Prayer is not just about talking to God, it’s also about listening to God. It’s not a monologue, it’s a dialogue.
Today, I’m trying to remember to do a better job of listening.
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