Saturday, August 20, 2016

August 20, 2016_Blog

By Keesha Sullivan

"Do you know why I have these talks with you guys?" I said slightly saddened by my students' poor behavior that day. One of the students immediately raised her hand, "Yes! Because you love us," she replied quite enthusiastically. The students in her class nodded in agreement. I tried  to regain my composure from the comment. She had caught me off guard. I didn't realize they knew how much I cared about them. Twenty-five eager faces seemed to be awaiting my reply to the little girl's comment. I looked at them, and my heart melted. All the frustration I had felt only moments before seemed to dissipate. My prayers for every student in this class and my prayers for God's love to fill me as I taught were being answered.  Surprised by the overflow of my Father's love, I smiled and stated, "I really do love you guys, and I sincerely want the best for you." They received my affirmation, and that class was more on task that day then I had ever seen before. In fact, they continued to strive to do better for the last three months that we had together.

This memory seemed to pop into my mind as I read the scripture for today. Paul talks about not only seeking the gifts of God, but he explains how we should serve others with these gifts. He says in 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:1, "But eagerly desire the greater gifts. And now I will show you the most excellent way. If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal." The greatest way to serve others with the gifts that God bestows on us is through His love.

God's love changes hearts, minds, and even actions. His love softens and heals wounds; it makes people feel worthy and special. His love opens up people's hearts and earns you a right to be heard. Without love nothing changes. With love all things are possible, even getting twenty-five students to get back on task and work hard.

Father, thank You for loving us so much that You would send Jesus, Your Only Son, to die that we would have the honor of being in relationship with You.  Thank You for loving us even while we were sinners and enemies to You.  We cry out for You to fill our hearts with Your love.  May Your love flow from our very hearts like streams of living water and quench the thirsty hearts of those who have never encountered You before.  All for Your glory and in Jesus' Name.  Amen.

August 19

Esther 4-7

There are no supernatural miracles in Esther's story. There are just fortuitous coincidences. Taken by themselves they prove nothing, but woven together there is a miraculous chain of events orchestrated by God. Even in times of disobedience and spiritual blindness, God is on the move. There is never a moment in our life when God is not at work.   Contrast these two worldviews with the letters…. N O W H E R E.  Haman says, God is NO WHERE. Esther says, God is NOW HERE. Faith gives us the courage to see God working in both the good and bad circumstances of life.  

 

1. He was working in the death of Esther's parent.

2. He was working when she was brought to Susa.

3. He was working in her adoption.

4. He was working in her hidden resume.

5. He was working in the drunken party where Queen Vashti was called out to pole dance.

6. He was working in the Queen saying no to the bachelor party request.

7. He was working in the selection of Esther.

8. He was working when Mordicai over heard a plot to kill the king.

9. He was working when the King couldn't sleep and read the story of Mordicai.

 

These are not just coincidences. This small stuff all adds up and you can see God's fingerprints all over the evidence. They all point to God. This is a major problem in the church today. We have people who claim to be Christians but they cannot tell you about any "God Sightings" in their lives.  Why don't we see them today? Secularism has over taken us. Secularism means that the supernatural can be removed from life as irrelevant. When secularism has characterized a people for a long period of time, it creates a great blindness to the acts of God. If there was ever a time to renew this ability to see God acting in our world, it is today.

 

So our homework today is to go on a God hunt. Ask God to help you perceive his hand in your life. Then write it down in your daily journal. You will need this list someday when your faith is low and you believe God is NO WHERE. 

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"Multiplying leaders to change the world"

Thursday, August 18

THURSDAY, AUGUST 18, 2016

 

 

Today’s reading presents the first part of the Book of Esther, a fantastic account of using a position of influence to benefit God’s people.  The book does not give strong outward prescriptions and does not even include mention of God Himself.  Its narrative is much more focused on “show” than “tell.”  While some commentators wondered of its Scripture-worthiness due to these characteristics, its inclusion in the Word highlights God’s multifaceted communication to us.  In addition, Esther’s centrality emphasizes how He uses both women and men to accomplish His purposes.  In addition, we have the blessing of reading a perfectly crafted account in which the author wastes no details at all.

 

In Esther, we find a woman who is sharp, cunning, and careful to absorb advice from trusted parties.  As she prepares for her first visit to the king, she “asked for nothing other than what Hegai, the king’s eunuch who was in charge of the harem, suggested.  And Esther won the favor of everyone who saw her.....  But Esther had kept secret her family background and nationality just as Mordecai had told her to do, for she continued to follow Mordecai’s instructions as she had done when he was bringing her up.”  Her care to listen to well-informed voices points to Proverbs 15:22:  “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.”

 

Haman becomes “enraged” when Mordecai would not kneel to him in order to pay him honor.  His anger quickly extends to the entire Jewish people:  “Yet having learned who Mordecai’s people were, he scorned the idea of killing only Mordecai.  Instead Haman looked for a way to destroy all Mordecai’s people, the Jews, throughout the whole kingdom of Xerxes.”  Haman then receives a death warrant for the Jewish people, sealed with the signet ring of Xerxes.  Haman would soon become blinded with this combination of hatred and ambition.

 

After mourning deeply at the coming fate, Mordecai seeks out Esther and implores her to consider taking a stand, saying:  “Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape.  For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish.  And who knows but that you have come to the royal position for such a time as this?”  Mordecai shows a trust in God’s ultimate deliverance for the Jews but conveys a sense of urgency, too.  This account demonstrates the close interaction between God’s ultimate sovereignty and human responsibility to take action where necessary.

 

 

Lord God, thank You for strengthening Mordecai and Esther to serve you so faithfully and present to us a beautiful example of following You under challenging circumstances.  We wish to honor You as they did.  Fill us with Your Holy Spirit so that we might perceive truth and put Your eternal interests above our short-term worries.  We love You and dedicate this day to You.  In Jesus’s Name, amen.

 

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August 17

Psalm 35

I doubt there is anyone reading this blog or watching the latest news that can't relate to David's cry for God to defeat their enemy and bring justice to every injust circumstance that's going on today.  I think there is a something to be said for taking a stand against sin and evil, however I believe we need to renew our minds to the word of the Apostle Paul in Romans 12:19 "Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord."  Cruelty, injustice and life just not being "fair" is a daily occurrence for many. Frustration when circumstances don't seem to change comes as a result of seeing this evil spread.  It certainly isn't a new theme in life, as David gives us a glimpse into how sometimes, even when we cry out to God, it seems as if our prayers aren't going passed the ceiling as we wait for God to answer.  Perhaps David wrote this while he was running for his life and hiding from Saul in a cave.  We can take this Psalm and relate to it in every injust situation that awaits deliverance.  So what do we do while we wait?  Although our flesh might want to react by "taking matters into our own hands",  David shows us another way. He sets his mind on things above (Col. 3:2) and he prays. He cries out to God for the victory. Psalm 116:2 tells us "  Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live".  God hears every prayer.  His answer comes according to His wisdom.  That's what makes Him Sovereign.  That's what gives us hope.

Randi
  

August 15: Of fears, children's futures, and Daniel

Nehemiah 9:22-10:39

1 Corinthians 9:19-10:13

Psalm 34:1-10

Proverbs 21:13

Psalm 34:4 

I sought the Lord and He answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.  

This verse led me to reflect on what I fear.  Heights, under certain conditions.  Failure, definitely . Physical pain?  We were just at Pearl Harbor, and it was cause for me to talk about what happened in the Philippines during World War 2, so yes, physical pain.  But what really worries me, what keeps me up at night, what seems to tie in so many of my other fears, is the fear for my children's future - particularly when one looks at the way the world is going, the values it espouses with such growing certainty.  

Prov 22:6 

Start children off on the way they should go

     And even when they are old they will not turn from it

I am going to cheat a bit here, and reference readings other than today's when reflecting about the verse above.  We are away on holiday, and were privileged to hear a sermon preached about Daniel.  That sermon opened my eyes, not just to Daniel, but to his parents.  We all know that Daniel and his friends were taken away by the Babylonians when they conquered Jerusalem.  And perhaps we like to think that they had it pretty easy, having been adopted into the king's household and given the finest food and drink.  How tough must it be to live in the king's palace, after all?

See, here's what had never occurred to me.  When Daniel was taken, he was a teenager.  Consider his likely circumstances: the rest of his family was likely murdered - quite possibly in his presence; he was likely castrated, which is what was done to servants - foreigners especially - who entered the king's household.  And he was dragged away captive to an unknown fate, fearful for the worst.  What a recipe for someone to turn out angry and bitter, particularly at everything he'd put his security in - God, for example.

It gets worse.  When he gets to Babylon, the attempts to wean him away from his old life, habits and beliefs, begins.  He is taught a new language.  He is enticed with food and drink, likely prepared in violation of his beliefs.  He's put in the luxury and comfort of the king's household.  And he's given a new name - his old one is replaced with one more representative of his new environment; the new name perhaps the final nail in the coffin of his old life under God?  

We know how the story develops, though.  Daniel refuses the king's food and drink, and asks for food he knows will not violate God's commands.  We know that even when the king passed a decree that no man should pray to anyone other than the king on pain of death that Daniel continued to pray to God three times a day.  Daniel separated himself to God...to the God whom many a bitter teenager has rejected for far far less than Daniel had to endure.  

What Daniel did, the choices he made, the decision to separate himself to and for God, is nothing short of amazing.  But, as father to three children myself, what I want to know is, what the heck did his parents do to raise him to be that way?  As much as I hope for good things for my children, I fervently, even desperately desire, however difficult the circumstances they find themselves in may turn out, that they cleave to God the way Daniel did.  

Father, I seem you as we pray for our children.  We thank You for the privilege of being their parents.  And we come to You in our imperfection, delegating their upbringing upward to You, that they might grow to be as faithful to You as Daniel was, whatever circumstances You might choose for them to face in their lives.  Take away our fear for their future, in the knowledge today that they are in Your care.  In Jesus's name we pray.

PS - As the world is caught up in the spectacle of physical achievement that is the Olympics, I cannot help but bring up the amazing story of Simone Biles.  So much of the focus has been on how she is the first African American to win the all around gymnastics gold.  It is amazing to read about the circumstances of her life, and how God has been such a huge part of it.  

Saturday, August 13, 2016

Saturday, August 13, 2016

By Keesha Sullivan 

Have you ever analyzed Satan's strategy? Have you ever thought about the most deadly weapon that he uses against humankind? Many times I believe he uses one, single tool to hamper or impede people from attaining God's perfect plan for their lives. This mechanism has been used since the beginning of time. In fact, it was used in the scriptures that we read today:  "They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, 'Their hands will get too weak for the work, and it will not be completed.' But I prayed, 'Now strengthen my hands.'" (Nehemiah 6:9). Nehemiah clearly saw Satan's strategy. Satan tried to use "fear" against him and the Israelites to stop them from completing the task that God had for them. Satan knew that if he could get Nehemiah and the Israelites to quit the project that God had given them, of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, that they would be in a state of disobedience and they would not fulfill God's perfect plan for their lives.

Nehemiah not only identified Satan's tool, but he knew how to combat it as well. It says in Nehemiah 6:9, "But I prayed, 'Now strengthen my hands.'" Nehemiah took his fear and intimidation to the Lord in prayer. He knew that he could not face the evil one on his own, but that He needed his Heavenly Father. When he called on the Lord, the Lord came to the rescue. He gave Nehemiah and the Israelites boldness in place of fear and hope in place of despair. The Lord helped them complete the wall. 

In fact it says in the scripture, "When all our enemies heard about this [the wall being completed], all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God" (Nehemiah 6:15-16). If Nehemiah and the Israelites had allowed "fear", Satan's favorite tool against humanity, to stop the work, they would've been the ones that stayed in a constant state of fear. 

When we feel fear trying to thwart us from completing God-ordained plans for our lives, we too need to rise up in prayer and cry out to God for strength. We, too, need to remember that our Heavenly Father has the power to overcome all the schemes of the enemy. There is nothing too difficult for Him. 

Lord, please help us to go to you when we are feeling timid. Help us to remember that timidity comes from Satan. "For [You] have not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind" (2 Timothy 1:7). We pray that You would give us renewed minds that immediately cry out to you when we feel fear. Help us to fulfill the God-given purposes and plans for our lives. Forgive us for the many times we've let fear get the best of us. From this day forward, it is our desire to complete all You have for us. We love You. In Jesus's name. Amen 

August 12

Nehemiah 3

The walls of Jerusalem have been knocked down for 142 years. No one in almost a century and a half could come up with a strategy to rebuild them. In the ancient world a city without a wall is a city without a future.  

Onto this scene comes Nehemiah with two key strategies for rebuilding and fortifying the kingdom. These strategies can be applied to Grace church as we seek to build God's kingdom. 

Nehemiah 3:23 Beyond them, Benjamin and Nasshub made repairs in front of their house; and next to them….

Nehemiah was on to something in this verse. He had the families work together in a united effort and he had them work in front of their own homes. Both of these are brilliant.

We can accomplish much more when we work together than when we work alone. Someone has pointed out the difference between "UNITED" and "UNTIED" is where you place the "I". When a group of Christians work together incredible things can be accomplished. But when individuals advance their own agenda and only look out for themselves failure is not far away.

The second strategy was working at their own homes first. Each family was asked to defend their own property. The best place to start working on making the community strong is in your own home. If we could train parents to make their own families strong and stable that would impact the neighborhood, the city and the nation.

As Grace church prepares for ministry headed into fall of 2016 here is your chance to change the world. Here are three questions we need to ask ourselves.

1. What gift will you use to build the kingdom at Grace this fall?

2. Where will you use that gift?

3. What is your strategy to build and protect your family spiritually?

 

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"Multiplying leaders to change the world"