Friday, September 28, 2012 - God's beauty

Friday, September 28, 2012
Zechariah 8 and 9 and Ezra 6:14-22

It is 516 BC and the Temple of the Lord has finally been restored.
This is exactly seventy years after the Temple Solomon built was
destroyed (in 586 BC). God kept his promise. In His Sovereignty and
Faithfulness, God restored the Temple unerringly at the time He
appointed beforehand. Of course, the Israelites rejoiced. Not only
were the Israelites restored physically (as they 1. were now home from
Babylonian captivity; 2. had rebuilt their lands and homes; 3. and
above all, had rebuilt the Temple), but they were restored spiritually
as well.

On Wednesday, Nikkie Coetzee spoke about our lives and bodies being
"Holy Temples" of the Lord. In today's reading, God's physical
restoration of the Temple also symbolized spiritual restoration of the
people back to being "Holy Temples" of God. As "Holy Temples," God
commanded the following:

1. Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another.
Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor.
Do not plot evil against each other. (Zechariah 7:9-10)

2. Speak the truth to each other, and render true and sound judgment
in your courts; do not plot evil against each other, and do not love
to swear falsely. (Zechariah 8:16-17)

In my short time walking with the Lord, I've found that the closer I
draw to God, the more I desire His Holiness. The most serene joyful
moments in my life thus far are when my thoughts, speech, and actions
align with God's Perfect Will; that is when my heart is in the right
place. In these moments, I realize that there's no one, nothing more
beautiful than Jesus.

I encourage you to seek the Lord our God today; to strive for His
image and His likeness. In doing so, you will be overwhelmed by the
beauty of Jesus in a magnificent way. Then, you will have cause for
celebration like the Israelites in today's reading. Before you know
it, nonbelievers will be running to God because of the God inside of
you, just as it was emphasized in Zechariah 8:23:

"In those days ten people from all languages and nations will take
firm hold of one Jew by the hem of his robe and say, 'Let us go with
you, because we have heard that God is with you.'"

God Bless,
Anthony

September 27: Zechariah 1:7-6:15

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2012

Zechariah 1:7–6:15

 

 

In today’s passage, we read about Zechariah’s visions for the restored people of Israel.  Chiefly, we notice major assurances that God reveals through these visions:

 

1.  That the people will be restored in prosperity;

2.  That Israel’s oppressors will indeed be punished;

3.  That God will be among His returning people;

4.  That the One Who is called the Branch will remove the sins of the people;

5.  That God will complete the temple through His two anointed ones;

6.  That God will always punish wickedness;

7.  That God will bring wicked nations to their knees; and

8.  That there will be rest at last.

 

 

Due to their corporate rebelliousness over many generations, God had removed the people from His promised land.  Yet, at this time, God indicates that “I will return to Jerusalem with mercy, and there my house will be rebuilt....  My towns will again overflow with prosperity, and the LORD will again comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem.”  God would bring them back to the land and offer His protection, explaining that “I myself will be a wall of fire around [Jerusalem],... and I will be its glory within.”  The people would have God’s presence among them.  In their efforts to rebuild the temple and Jerusalem, the people would find that God had anointed His chosen laborers.  In the end, God wished to show the people that His work would move forward “not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit.”  As Leroy Eims explained about ministry and living out the Gospel, if anything of spiritual value comes about in this world, it will be because God did it.

 

In addition to these near-term promises, God also refers to the coming of a righteous Branch who would remove the people’s sin in a single day.  Here again, we have testimony to the coming Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth.  We learn that this coming Branch will bring the offices of Priest and King under a single Head, whose fulfillment would partially come under the authority of the High Priests in the restored Israel:  “Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and he will brank out from his place and build the temple of the Lord.  It is he who will build the temple of the Lord, and he will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on his throne.  And he will be a priest on his throne.  And there will be harmony between the two.”   As the Book of Hebrews later illustrates, Jesus clearly fulfilled this role of High Priest (in the order of Melchizedek) and became, through His sacrifice of Himself, the Author of salvation.

 

By comparing these words to Colossians 1:15–20, we can see how Jesus has authority as Creator and Ruler over all!:  “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.  For by him all things were created:  things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.  He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.  And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.  For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”

 

 

QUESTIONS

 

1.  Why might these assurances have calmed the people’s fears?  How do they indicate God’s concern for His people?

 

2.  What assurances spoke most powerfully to you right now?  What other passages offer you assurances for today’s challenges?

________________________________________
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2) Facebook:  http://on.fb.me/tc6jkS

Haggai

Not gonna lie, but I have been struggling with a few things the last couple weeks. My heart has not been in a place where I want it to be an it has take a toll on me spiritually. I have been kinda dragging my feet with my Bible reading, but someone must be praying for me out there cause after reading Haggai this morning, I'm feeling pretty pumped! Never thought I'd say that about Haggai, a minor, minor prophet and I'm sure for many of you this is your first introduction to him. As always when I do my reading I look for the character of God, His Promises, and how it applies to me.

We see the Jews back in their Promise Land with the purpose of rebuilding the Temple - God's dwelling place. The foundation has been laid bringing joy and mourning for temple that was destroyed, but there is hope for the future of this nation. We see God not very pleased with His people (again) cause they are not focusing on God (again). God is hurt, offended, and upset that His house has been neglected while the Jews build their own homes, lives, and communities. They are a self-focused society, perhaps just trying to keep with the Jones. Sound familiar? How about today? We are the temple. At this moment in Israel the foundation has been laid, now the walls, the roof, the decorations need to be complete in order for God to dwell there again. In our own lives the foundation has been laid with Christ. What are we doing to build and keep the structure intact? I'm convicted in my own life. God commands the people to collect timber in the mountains (not the easiest task I'm sure) to build. What is God's timber command in our lives? How are we building? Maintaining? The Word, memorization, fellowship, ministry in the church and outreach to the community...sounds like building material to me. Remember you are the dwelling place.

The biggest letter I get about God is G. Glorious. God does everything for His own Glory and to show that glory to the world. Everything God shakes, destroys, lifts up and chooses to do is all for His glory and to get our attention. Thank goodness the Israeli people finally recognized that and obeyed!! He is Zealous. He continually reminds us that He is with us and not to be afraid. This has been one of his mottos from the beginning when he told Joshua as he first lead Israel. It's God's command to be strong (like a firmly built house?) but to also work. Being strong, maintaining out temple, and going forward is not easy. It takes work and discipline. But hallelujah that He promises, "For I am with you."

I continue to smile knowing the exciting promise in Haggai 2:7-9 ish. In a little while (so, soon) the temple will be not just for the Jews, but God will "shake all the nations, and the desired of all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,". I don't know about you, but that make heart swell up and fill me with hopeful joy. God is talking about me! All nations will know Him one day! Joy joy joy. I find this so appropriate right now especially since so many of the worlds leaders ate meeting not too far from us at the UN. Pray for these leaders. Pray for our nation. Pray for our President and leaders. All these nations need God. Pray that in these poor, war centered nations, in our self serving country that the nations will know Christ.

Tuesday September 25: Ezra 4-6

Ezra 5:9-11

We questioned the elders and asked them, "Who authorized you to rebuild this temple and restore this structure?" We also asked them their names, so that we could write down the names of their leaders for your information.

This is the answer they gave us:

"We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago, one that a great king of Israel built and finished."

The Israelites were trying to rebuild the temple, which was an enormous task. It took King Solomon years to build the first temple, and that was during times of peace. Now, they were facing opposition every step of the way, making a difficult task nearly impossible. 

Despite the obstacles in their way, they pressed on and did not lose sight of who they were or what their mission was. They clearly stated who they were ("servants of God") and what they were doing ("rebuilding the temple"). They were God's people doing God's work which meant that no one could stop them, try as they may!

Travis and I recently went to worship seminar at Walnut Hill Community Church which was lead by Robin Mark (he wrote the song "Days of Elijah"). He pointed out how Ezra 5:11 is so applicable to our lives today. Whenever we should face trials or opposition, remind yourself who you are and what your suppose to be doing. Just like the Israelites, we are servants of the God of heaven and earth. And even though none of us are literally building a temple, there are good works that God has prepared for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). Remembering your identity and mission will help keep you on track when things get difficult!

Here is another blog entry that I found on this same subject. I like how he related "rebuilding the temple" to our lives today. It's definitely worth checking out:

http://www.ellechorpublishinghouse.com/blog/index.php/2011/01/january-19-2011-rebuilding-the-temple/

For Ruth Goulart

For Ruth Goulart 

Daniel Chapters 10-12 I hope below will help you as you read. Try and match the topics with the verses as you read. 

Daniel's Vision of Israel's Future (Chapter,10-12)

1. Revelation of the things to come (10:1-3)

2. Revelation from an angelic messenger (10:4;11:1)

3. Prophecies concerning the countries of Persia and Greece (11:2-4)

4. Prophecies concerning the lands of Egypt and Syria (11:5-35)

5. Prophecies concerning the one and only antichrist (11:36-45)

6. Distress and deliverance they go hand and hand (12:1)

7. Two complete resurrections (12:2-3)

8. Instructions to Daniel a warning (12:4)

9. Conclusion of this rollercoaster ride (12:5-13)

--
Chuck Goulart
President
Anytime Appliance
203-943-0961

"Effective leadership is not about making speeches or being liked; leadership is defined by results not attributes."

EZRA

Before you read this blog watch this http://youtu.be/Ow0lr63y4Mw

 

HOW ARE YOU DOING? Are you the blog writer who really has not read each day and has missed a lot of days, but instead just reads your day and then writes the blog? (I know I have done that). Are you the blog writer who doesn't think anyone besides other blog writers are reading them so why bother, (I can feel that way) If you have missed a few days, weeks or months, or have fallen way behind I have two words for you ("STOP IT") If you were in church last week and saw the fun video clip. I put the link at the beginning for you to watch.

 

We get busy and overwhelmed. We feel we need to write a huge blogs because we don't want to miss anything, or we see everyone else writing these incredible blogs and feel we have to follow suit! "STOP IT!" Everyone is different that's why Pastor asks different people to write so there will be so many different styles to read. I'm a simple guy like to get crazy, bring in media, use pictures, music lyrics etc..

 

Today I'm writing my blog in Twitter format just to be different. The toughest thing I find about twitter is you must summarize everything. A challenge for me since not only do I talk a lot, but I type a lot too. I know "STOP IT!"  

 

 

EZRA1: Cyrus said, "Let the LORD's people go up to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple." He gave the articles from the temple to Sheshbazzar.

 

EZRA2: The exiles returned to Judah with Zerubbabel. A total of 42,360 people returned. The heads of families gave offerings for the temple.

 

EZRA3: The Israelites made regular offerings. When the builders laid the foundation of the temple, the Levites sang praise to the LORD.

 

EZRA4: Enemies hindered the work in Judah. Rehum wrote to Artaxerxes: "Jerusalem is a rebellious city."

 

EZRA5: Zerubbabel began to build the temple.

Tattenai wrote to Darius: "The elders say that Cyrus

issued a decree to rebuild this temple."

 

If you write a blog I challenge you to start reading from today on.

 

If you're a blog reader even on facebook you don't have to write a response just by liking the blog entry helps us to see they are being read and not written in vain. Even an email saying "hey I loved that song", or "good thought"

 

As blog writers we should not be expecting response.

As bible and blog readers we should not feeling reading God's word is such a huge boring task! Please don't forget this one huge aspect of this task. SATAN does not want us to read through God's word! Our own sin does not want to read through God's word!

Our own busyness and at times laziness does not want us to read through God's word. Because when we read through God's word lives are changed, hearts are restored, sin loses it's grip and GOD is glorified.

So Go pick up God's word today and start fresh.   

--
Chuck Goulart
President
Anytime Appliance
203-943-0961

"Effective leadership is not about making speeches or being liked; leadership is defined by results not attributes."

Sept 22

September 22, 2012

 

Encouragement and a Challenge

 

First the encouragement, it is possible you have lost some momentum in the Bible reading journey. From my personal experience, summer and vacation are the most difficult times to stay consistent with my Bible reading. If you have fallen behind in the journey, just jump back in and pick up where we are today. I can guarantee that God will not ask us if we have completed reading the Bible. He will ask us if we loved his Word. Love his Word by reading it today and love God by obeying him.

 

The challenge is found in Daniel 6:5. Finally these men said, "We will never find any basis for charges against this man Daniel unless it has something to do with the law of his God."

 

We live in a day without heroes. It seems that every public figure has some dirty secret in their closet. If someone wanted to dig up some dirt on you, how difficult would it be? When we read the story of Daniel we see one of the few characters in the Bible who doesn't have a secret closet. Now that I think about it, he does have a secret closet, but he uses it for prayer. To Daniel's credit, this guy is squeaky clean. Not even a rumor to build a scandal on in the National Inquirer.

So what was his secret?  Three times a day he would get down on his knees and pray. Why three times? My guess is that sin was such a powerful and devious enemy Daniel could only go 6 hours without realigning his heart to gaze on the face of God. Daniel found that gazing on God's beauty and holiness would give him enough strength to make it 6 hours.

We are all in need of spiritual transformation in our lives. May I suggest we copy Daniel's discipline to keep us all on the straight and narrow pathway? Let's take the challenge from Daniel One... do a test for the next 10 days. Let's pray three times a day on our knees and see if after 10 days our hearts are not much stronger.    

 

There is no better time to start praying and reading than right now.

 

Lord, I pray that many will take up this 10-day challenge. May we all gaze upon your beauty and your character over the next 10 days. Lord, give us your strength to kill sin in our lives.  We want to live in the freedom and victory that Daniel experienced.  In Jesus' name, Amen

 

Friday, September 21, 2012

(posted on behalf of Pastor Scott)
Friday, September 21, 2012
Daniel 9:24-27


This passage is one of the most outstanding prophecies in the entire
Bible. It contains incredible evidence of the prophetic accuracy of
the Bible.

Let me give you some observations concerning this prophecy:

1. Entire prophecy deals with Daniel's people and Daniel's holy city.
This is the outline of the future of Jerusalem and the nation of
Israel.

2. Two different people appear:

The Anointed One, the ruler:

The ruler who will come: (future tense)

3. The time period. In context the "weeks" here almost certainly
refers to periods of seven years, not seven days. We know this because
earlier in the passage Daniel had been praying concerning the seventy
years of Jerusalem's desolation. Immediately after the prophecy of
seventy weeks, Daniel mentions having fasted for "three weeks of
days." So the weeks as years would be 7 (sevens) 62 (sevens) 1 (seven)
70 X 7 = 490 years.

4. Three basic views to interpret this promise.

a. Fulfilled in past - Antiochus IV Epiphanes did it in 168-167

b. Fulfilled in a continuous flow of 70 weeks - Titus A.D. 70

c. Partial fulfillment with Jesus, but future fulfillment under the
rule of antichrist.

5. Our hermeneutic principle: If it makes good sense don't look for
another sense lest you end up with non-sense. We aim at a plain
literal interpretation, within the understanding of grammar and
historical context. We read the Bible in a similar way to reading our
daily newspaper. The highest guide to indicate how to interpret a
passage is the interpretations of other Biblical authors.

6. Everyone agrees this passage is a flashing neon light announcing
the specifics concerning the arrival of the Messiah. The beginning
point is the decree to rebuild Jerusalem

Historical fact: That decree was issued March 14, 445 BC Neh 2:1-8

* The problem: Jewish calendar and Modern Calendar are different.

Jewish calendar has 360 days. Modern Calendar has 365 and 1/4 days.

* The answer: Compute in days. 69 X 7 X 360 = 173,880

Divide 173,880 by 365 476 years

Leap years (3 less in 4 centuries) 116 days

No year zero

Add 24 days from March 14 - April 6 24 days

173,880

7. This prophecy boldly says we should expect to see the Messiah to
appear on the scene on April 6, 32 AD.

April 6 was Palm Sunday when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the donkey
fulfilling this prophecy!!!!

At this point all believers should be jumping up and down
yelling… Praise the Lord!!!!

8. The second person, the "ruler who will come" is identified by his activities:

He will destroy city

He will destroy the Sanctuary

War will continue to the end

Desolations have been decreed

A Covenant will be made, which will be violated three and a half years
after it has been made.

The Temple will be present

The "abomination that causes desolation" will occur. Jesus said this
was future to his time in Mt 24.

There is still a 7 year period of Jewish history that is
not fulfilled. That explains why Revelation is so

Jewish in its language and culture.

Kenneth Boa says regarding this prophecy, "This may be the most
astonishing fulfilled prophecy in the Bible."

September 20: Daniel 7,8

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2012

Daniel 7,8

Intrinsically, visions of the future often appear mysterious to the prophets.  Our logical, finite minds have difficulty connecting today’s reality to the future or the physical and temporal to the spiritual and eternal, given the two-dimensional, linear nature of our thinking.  God, however, sees all of creation in four-dimensional space (via height, width, depth, and time) and the multi-faceted metaphysical (physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual) and may therefore communicate these visions, but it doesn’t mean that people will understand.  Even Daniel notes that the second vision that he received “was beyond understanding” and had overwhelmed him to the point of illness.  Still, there are clear truths about God’s character and redemptive purposes transferred through a true prophet’s visions.

 

You may have read about Dan Brown’s book, The Lost Symbol.  Dan Brown has written two immensely successful books, The DaVinci Code and Angels and Demons.  Even secular critics note how Brown likes to stir controversy by tapping into people’s suspicions about the Christian faith.  Brown argues that the church has suppressed truths that were inconvenient in order to maintain its power and, in this latest effort, that all religious traditions grasp for common ground.  Based on Brown’s thesis, the Egyptian sun-god, Ra, has equal legitimacy with the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  Brown’s hocus-pocus offers a neat “out” for those considering the Gospel.  If all faiths have some common, underlying symbology, why not construct your own faith that gives you the greatest bang for your buck while loading on the least amount of guilt and effort?

 

We can have confidence in the truths of the Scriptures and the present and coming Kingdom of Jesus Christ because of His fulfillment of hundreds of detailed prophecies about His life, death, resurrection, and reign over the earth.  Indeed, no other figure has fulfilled such vivid prophecies, whose origins span 10-plus centuries.  No mere human could even come close to matching the descriptions that the prophets had received about Jesus.  Despite confusing attempts to the contrary, we have immensely strong (contemporaneous) manuscript and historical evidence of His ministry and resurrection, unparalleled among ancient figures.

 

In today’s first vision, Daniel sees four beasts, which represent “four great kingdoms that will rise from the earth.”  Despite the ferocious beasts, God has ordained that the saints will indeed reign over the earth and “possess it forever,” resting on the power of Christ Himself:  “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven.  He approached the Ancient of Days [God the Father] and was led into his presence.  He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all people, nations and men of every language worshiped him.  His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”  Jesus would later identify Himself as the Son of Man.  Revelation contains similar language about the eternal King Jesus.  In the Person of God the Father, we note that his hair and clothing is “white like wool,” representing holiness and purity, and that “his throne was flaming with fire.”  In the vision, God is ready, willing, and able to mete judgment on the kingdoms of the earth.  The Kingdom would be for all the faithful, of every tribe and nation.

 

Indeed, even the fourth kingdom that had not yet come into being would not last, but the saints will participate in a peaceful and eternal kingdom of Christ:  “But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever.  Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be handed over to the saints, the people of the Most High.  His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.”

 

In short, while we cannot decipher the entirety of these visions, God has provided a clarion call for eternal reign of Christ, His authority, and His righteousness.  As Paul writes in Colossians 1:13,14, “he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”  Amen!

 

 

QUESTIONS

 

1.  How should the reality of Jesus’s coming Kingdom affect your day-to-day reality?

 

2.  What lies have you heard recently that call Jesus’s authority into question?  How could you combat these with the truth of today’s passage?

 

 

________________________________________
1) Blog:      http://bit.ly/rV1Cw1

2) Facebook:  http://on.fb.me/tc6jkS

Psalms 102, 106, 123, 137

Psalms 102, 106, 123, 137

 

These Psalms are very bittersweet to me.  They ache with pain and mourning describing the loneliness, helplessness, and the need for God.  But we also see in these chapters the hope and mercies of God.  Psalm 106 gives us a history of the Israeli people and I love the fact that it begins and ends with, "Praise the Lord."  It makes me think how the beginning and the end of time as we know it is with praise to God. 

            In these chapters we see the character and realities of man:

·      Time is numbered "My days vanish like smoke…and withered like grass," (Ps 102) 

·      The importance of history: remember in where we come from, the relationship with God, what was learned, ignored, and how we can teach our children, "Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord," (Psalm 102)  (Isn't this our prayer for our children and their children?)

·      We are a wicked people, and we have "Glory" (God) in front of us, all around us as Job saw and asked, in the form of Creation, and " They forgot their Glory  for an image of a bull, which eats grass.  They forgot the God who saved them…" (Psalm 106)

There are of course, many other attributes we see in Israel and man, but as I mentioned before, there is hope despite our constant forgetfulness.  There are so many more images of God and descriptions of who he is as a Lord, Savior, Creator, and Father.  A few examples:

Psalm 102:

·      He listens to our cries and prayers

·      Has great Wrath

·      Compassionate

·      Lord over all the nations

·      Reigns on High

·      Created the foundations in the beginning

·      Unchanging

Psalm 106:

·      Is Good.

·      His Love endures Forever

·      He SAVES for His OWN Namesake!  (just for that reason alone!  Charles Spurgeon had an amazing sermon on this in 1857.  Why Men are Saved.)

·      Provider

·      Disciplines

·      Commands

·      Angers at disobedience

·      MERCIFUL

·      God of Israel (forever and always)

·      Remembers His children. 

Amen.

September 18

Psalm 44, 74, 79, 80, 85, 89

"Awake, O Lord! Why do you sleep? Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever. Why do you hide your face and forget our misery and oppression?"

"Remember how the enemy has mocked you, O Lord, how foolish people have reviled your name. Do not hand over the life of your dove to wild beasts; do not forget the lives of your afflicted people forever."

"How long, O Lord? Will you hide yourself forever? How long will your wrath burn like fire?"

The author of these psalms felt like God forgot about His people and was hiding Himself from them. He was honest with God by expressing his feelings and emotions. This is a good thing because God wants us to be honest with Him. Even though He already knows what goes on in our hearts and minds, He still wants us to tell Him the truth. 

It is also important to remember that emotions do not equal truth. In this case, the psalmist felt like God was far away and that God had forgotten His people. When we focus on what we know to be true about God, we have to admit that He is never far from us. Psalm 139 clearly shows us this:

"O Lord, you have searched me and you know me.

You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.

You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.

Before a word is on my tongue, you know it completely, O Lord.

You hem me in—behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.

Where can I go from your Spirit?

Where can I flee from your presence?

If I go up to the heavens, you are there;

if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,

even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.

If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,"

even the darkness will not be dark to you;

the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you."

If you feel like God is far from you, be honest with Him and tell Him how you feel. He wants us to share all of ourselves with Him. Also, as you are sharing with Him, don't forget what you know to be true. He is never far from us, He will never forget us, and nothing is beyond Him. 

Nothing Is Beyond You

by Rich Mullins

http://youtu.be/xwbVy3Ak3V8

Re: Monday September 17th Job 38-42

I forgot to put this link at the end of my blog.  So sorry for that.  It is to the Casting Crowns song I spoke of.  Ruth


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9Kcm2OAWNA

-----Original Message-----
From: Ruth Goulart <regoulart@aol.com>
To: brgpost <brgpost@gracestamford.org>
Sent: Mon, Sep 17, 2012 8:17 pm
Subject: Monday September 17th Job 38-42

How would you describe me?  How do you believe I handle stressful situations?  How do you believe I show people I love them?  How do you believe I show fairness towards others?  Tell me how do I think?  Tell me how do I form an opinion?  Tell me what makes me loose my temper?  Tell me how easy or difficult is it for me to be patient?  Tell me who Ruth Goulart is in your eyes?

For some of you these questions will be very difficult as I know that some of you don't really know me.  We haven't met therefore we haven't spent time together so how would you know the answers?  Others will fair a little better, as you know me some, but you will have difficulty still.  You have not spent enough time with me to have seen me in these many different elements.  There are just a few of you who will do somewhat well as you have spent time, in some cases years, getting to know me and seeing me in many different phases of my life.

How do you think I would feel if you started telling people about my character and nature and you were dead wrong?  If you had based your knowledge of me only on the Monday bogs I have written this year?  If you thought you knew me from simply observing me a few times in Church?  If you thought you could be a witness to my personality and character based on what other people told you about me?  I will tell you that I would be hurt and very upset.  Why?  Because you would be wrong.  You would not be revealing a complete picture of who I am.  How dare someone spread false or incomplete information about me.  That affects how others see me and it can affect the relationships I have with others.  Unless you take the time to build a relationship with me and take the time to truly get to know me and understand me you can never speak to who I am as a wife, mother, Christian, friend, a person.

Job's friends were guilt of this with God.  They thought they knew God based on things they had observed and what others thought based on what they observed.  They failed to build a relationship with their Lord, the Redeemer as Job call's God (19:25).  The problem is they could not see, and they were unwilling to hear, the truth of God's character as it contradicted their understanding.  They saw God as nothing more then Judge and Jury.  Vindictive and wrathful.  Lacking in love and mercy.  When a friend of theirs was found to be in the midst of one of life's storms all they could bring with them was finger pointing and judgment. 

As Christians I think we are guilty of the same thing as these 3 friends.  We show the world a God of judgment and wrath.  A loveless God who is out to right the wrongs of mankind.  We are constantly pointing our spiritually lofty finger at the world around us and telling them of all the wrongs they do and how God will punish them.  We forget to first approach with open arms in love.  To embrace them just as Christ did when He walked the earth.  Remember it was not the spiritual religious leaders home that Jesus went and had diner at.  No it was in the home of "sinners".  He ate with prostitutes, tax collectors, thieves, the social outcasts.  He wanted them to spend time getting to know who He truly was.  He wanted to make sure they were able to see His heart of love and compassion, the desire to give grace and mercy to ANYONE who wanted to receive it.  Later, once He had built the relationship He would speak of right living and repentance.  He wanted to heal not condemn (Rom 8:1)

Job's friends were reprimanded by God:

"I am angry with you (Eliphaz) and your two friends, because you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has."   Job 42:7

God wants us to be proper witnesses to His Character.  To speak the complete truth of who He is.  To reveal the fullness of His being to all who we meet.  We are to speak of Him what is right.  The only way we can do this is to spend time every single day getting to know Him better and better. To remember the love, grace and mercy He has shown us and to show the same to others.

There is a song by Casting Crowns that I just love that really convicts my heart to be careful as to how I am living my life as a Christian in a world that doesn't truly know the right Character of God.  I encourage you to listen to the song and read the lyrics and to pray and ask God to help us to know Him better so that we can be better witnesses for Christ & portray a complete and accurate picture of who our Redeemer is (Job 19:25).