Scripture for Thursday, July 28 (7/28)

The scripture for today, July 28, is 2nd Samuel 7:28 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

Oldoldstory-COVER-KINDLE“O Sovereign Lord, you are God! Your words are trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant.”

What a beautiful praise. Praising God is different from thanking him. It is acknowledging him for His traits ~ not for what He does, but what He is.

He is trustworthy!
He is able to hear all our prayers at once!
He is everywhere and all knowing!
He is perfect love!
He is anxious to forgive!
He considers us his children!

Today, let us praise Him.

DISCUSSION QUESTION: THANKING GOD CENTERS ON WHAT HE HAS DONE. PRAISING GOD CENTERS ON WHAT HE IS. NAME AN ATTRIBUTE OF GOD NOT LISTED ABOVE.

Scripture for Thursday, July 7 (7/7)

The scripture for today, July 7, is Matthew 7:7 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

Acts of the Apostles-Cover-Kindle“Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”

How beautiful. The Creator of the universe pays attention to each and every one of us. How does he do it? How does he even sort us all out when thousands of us are praying to him at the same time?

Sometimes we may not think he is listening to our prayers. But it takes time to answer some of them. If I am praying to meet my future husband or wife, God may have to move him or her from the other side of the country, get a new job for him or her, and arrange for us to “accidentally” bump into each other. This is just one example.

Also, when Jesus said whatever we seek will be given to us, he had already explained that we must “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” (Matthew 6:33). So only within that context, God will give us our heart’s desire.

Maybe today you can do a little bit of extra seeking and extra knocking.

Scripture for Saturday, June 25 (6/25)

The scripture for today. June 25, is Matthew 6:25 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-Mefiboset-KINDLE Medium“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?”

Do you sometimes wonder how God can allow people to starve with such a promise as this? Try to remember the Big Picture.
Remember the Jews being in slavery in Egypt for 400 years? They must have prayed thousands of times to be freed, but most died still in slavery, believing their prayers never had been answered. God had a greater plan for them ~ a plan to give them time to multiply from the original 70 people who went to Egypt to the over 3 million who left Egypt.

So, too, God has a Master Plan for each person and each nation. It is our assignment to hang on and keep believing in Him and that which we do not understand. We may not understand, but God always does.

Scripture for Saturday, June 18 (6/18)

The scripture for today, June 18, is 2nd Chronicles 6:18a as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

00-Heroes-Alone-COVER-KINDLE“But will God really dwell on earth with men? The heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain you.”

Did you ever want to see God, to talk to him face to face? Perhaps something bad had just happened in your life and you had this urge to bawl him out, then let him explain why. Or did you ever want to touch God? Perhaps you were so very lonely that you desperately needed his arms around you, and feel his touch as he brushed away your tears.

But, if we could see him and touch him, it would mean that he could not be with others in the world at that time, and could not hear anyone else’s prayers at that time except yours.

Let us be grateful that we cannot see and touch him for now. He is always available to all of us, regardless of where we are in this vast world and regardless of how many others are praying to him at that moment.

How he can sort out all our prayers at once is mind-boggling. How he can be everywhere at once is amazing.

Scripture for Wednesday, June 15 (6/15)

The scripture for today, June 15, is 1st Timothy 6:15 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

PAUL COVER-KINDLE-“…which God will bring about in his own time ~ God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords!”

But it’s hard to know just when God’s time is. You may think it is when an opportunity arises, but something happens and it doesn’t turn out. So later another opportunity arises, but something happens there too and it still doesn’t turn out.

This verse can carry you from hope to hope. Your life is like a line drawn across a piece of paper, and you have to stay on that line. But God looks down and can see the entire line at once, and he can also see everything going on around you.

Rather than give up on God and decide he doesn’t really love you like he claims, amidst your tears of disappointment, stretch your spirit and praise him anyway. Acknowledge him. Then rest until his own time.

Scripture for Sunday, June 12 (6/12)

The scripture for today, June 12, is Luke 6:12 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

00-Heroes-Alone-COVER-KINDLE“One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.”

How in the world did Jesus think of enough things to say that he could pray all night?
Most of us on a good day only manage a 5-minute prayer.

The next verse says that the next morning he selected his twelve apostles. He had probably spent at least half an hour each praying for them by name, as well as for others he was considering.

Who do you pray for by name? Do you have a prayer list? How about opening the newspaper and praying for all those people in the news ~ perpetrators, victims, causes, governments, situations? Or everyone you work with? Or everyone your children go to school with? Or all their teachers and administrators? Or the clerks in the stores you go to regularly? Or members of an organization you belong to?

There are always people in need of prayer. And one of the joys of such a prayer life is now and then telling people whom you know that they are in your prayers; or writing a note to someone who was a stranger to you that you pray for them.

Some people have never heard their name in prayer. Some people have never even been told that someone prays for them.

God loves to answer prayer. Do you love prayer?

Scripture for Friday, May 13 (5/13)

The scripture for today, May 13, is 1st John 5:13f as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

FunWithBibleNumbers-Cover-Kindle“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: That if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.”

What a wonderful and comforting promise: The God of the universe, the Creator, the King of all kings hears you!

Of course, it must be “according to his will.” Well, how are you supposed to know God’s will? By a feeling deep in your heart? Feelings are fickle. But can there be another way? Of course. It’s simple. Just read his very words to you in the Bible.

The Bible is full of examples of people who did right and who did wrong, to help you see the consequences of good and bad decisions. The Bible is also full of God’s advice to you. Proverbs is one of the books that is full of such advice. Read the Bible.
You do not have to guess what God’s will is.

What about asking God’s will whether you should move to this place or that, whether you marry this person or that, whether you take this job or that? Perhaps all your choices are good. God has also given you free will. Always remember, “ALL things work together for good to those who love the Lord and called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).

Scripture for Wednesday, May 11 (5/11)

The scripture for today, May 11, is 1st Peter 5:11 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-Luke-Slave&Physician KINDLE Cover“To him be the power forever and ever. Amen.”

God has the power to do more for you than you ever dreamed. He can take you in new directions in your life; arrange for you to meet wonderful people; provide the ability to overcome not-so-good things in your life.

All you have to do is ask. Perhaps more than once. Perhaps many times. But he wants you to ask. Why?

Parents sometimes tell their children “no” the first time they ask for something. Maybe it’s because the child needs to find out for him/herself how badly s/he wants it. It’s in the asking that they find out. So God waits for the request. Sometimes the request never comes. And so the blessing never comes.

Remember, God has the power. He may have something special in mind for you. So ask.

The scripture for today, April 12, is Colossians 4:12 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

00-COVER-KINDLE“He is always wrestling in prayer for you.”

Do you have fast-food prayers? Drive in, ask for something for yourself, and drive out two minutes later?

How about trying gourmet prayers ~ where you gather many ingredients, not just one? They take longer, but are very special and rewarding.

Your menu is your prayer list. People on your list don’t even have to be people who know personally. They can be from the newspaper, teachers at a local school, government officials, your neighbors, your congregation. List people by name. Pray for them by name.

Then tell these people you are praying for them. You may think you’ll get some strange looks, but mostly, even from the unreligious, you will get a smile and a whispered thank you. Some will actually reply, “No one before has ever told me they were praying for me.” After awhile, you will begin receiving word from some of them, “I am praying for you too.”

Prayer is wonderful. It is most wonderful when it centers, not on yourself, but on struggling in prayer for others.

One by one you will begin seeing amazing answers in the lives of those you pray for. And that’s a promise!

The scripture for today, January 4, is Philippians 1:4 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

00-Heroes-Alone-COVER-KINDLE“In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy.”

Do our prayers consist mostly of give me this, help me with that? Let us begin today to keep an on-going list of our prayer requests for the year, and another one of thanksgiving for when those prayers are answered. Let us begin today to tell God “Thank you.”

Let us also begin today to look around at our circumstances ~ whatever they may be ~ with joy. There can be some kind of joy in every circumstance if we look at it through eyes of joy.

A majority of the people in Philippi in northern Greece on the border of today’s Bulgaria (called Thrace in the first century) were barbarian-looking warrior Thracians. But these rough warriors also brought joy with their beautiful sculptures.

Philippians is a book about peace and joy. This is the book that says, “And the peace of God which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (4:7)

This is also the book that says, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength” (4:13).

Let us say ”thank you,” and in the process recognize our joy.