TODAYS WORD FOR FRIDAY MARCH 9, 2012.
COMMUNITY
DEFINITION:
Living in a particular locale; a group having interests or religion in common.
SCRIPTURE:
Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. James 5:16.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
We can remember our grandparents talking about the community that they lived in. Every person within miles was considered part of their community. When one was sick everyone would endeavor to help out. If another was facing a concern everyone wanted to be with them in their time of need.
Community life today has all but left us. Many people do not even know the names of their neighbors let alone show any interest for them if they are in need. This is a by-product of the “ME” generation that we live in. Everyone is concerned about self and no one else.
In chapter 5 (above), James paints a beautiful picture for us of an authentic Christian community. He shares with us four qualities that make a Christian community of believers. They are confession, prayer, honesty and love.
As believers in Jesus we need Christian fellowship. This fellowship requires us to talk openly with fellow Christian brothers and sisters about our situations and concerns and then to pray for insight and healing, with honesty and love.
If Christians were committed to live this way then the grace of God would flow through us individually and as a family of faith. We would become a dynamic and invigorating community and the world would press its nose against the glass, trying to see what we have and trying to become what we are.
Most Christians today live in isolation cells not willing to let anyone else into their lives and not willing to let anyone see exactly who they are. You can ask someone how they are and they will answer something like, “just fine.” But they really are not just fine but have hurts and concerns that basically, they feel, no one cares about.
The real problem today, as we see it, is that most Christians do not want to share with others because in the past they have been hurt communicating to others because they have betrayed their trust. Christians need to learn to share with trust-worthy believers who will encourage them, share in their concerns and pray for them. This is how it should be among the community of those who love the Lord.
Take the time now to look for several people that you can trust because they have the same spiritual desires that you have and begin your community. Start with prayer for others and then allow God to do His work.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is the first of the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20:3.
“You shall have no other gods before Me.”
PRAYER:
Help my family to find that Christian community that will serve as a support base for us and that we in turn can be a support base for them. Give us a renewed desire to serve others as we serve You.
March 11, 2012
Walls? March 8, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR THURSDAY MARCH 8, 2012.
WALLS
DEFINITION:
Structures to enclose, divide, support or protect.
SCRIPTURE:
And I went out by night through the Valley Gate to the Serpent Well and the Refuse Gate, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem which were broken down and its gates which were burned by fire. Nehemiah 2:13.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
A wall is a very symbolic structure. Down through the ages walls were built to protect the people and things inside the walls. But walls are more than just a barrier of stone and mortar. The walls of the city of Jericho symbolized the pride and arrogance of that godless city and that is one reason why God chose to pull them down with nothing but the faith of the Children of Israel and their leader. The arrogance of Jericho was no match for the humility of God’s people when it was aligned with the limitless power of God.
The Berlin wall not only symbolized the division between east and west, but also the misery and despair of the people living under communism. The 1500 mile long wall of China symbolized the vast power of the Chin Dynasty and was built to defend China from the warring tribes of the north. It was so long and tall that it made a clear statement, “Do not even think of invading our land.”
In ancient cities, massive walls were the first, last and only line of defense. The walls of the city of Babylon, according to Daniel, were not as long as the Great Wall of China but were much higher and more massive.
The wall that Nehemiah went to look at by night, verse above, was the wall around Jerusalem that God had called him to rebuild. And it had even a deeper spiritual meaning than any of the other walls ever built. The walls of Jerusalem were symbolic of God’s protection and power. The rebuilding of these walls around Jerusalem, symbolizes an act that must be taken by everyone who is spiritually broken down. They must rebuild the walls of their lives.
Jerusalem is a symbol of the City of God. This is God’s dwelling place and the center of life in the world. In the New Testament, we see that God’s ultimate dwelling place is in us, His people. If we have allowed the walls of our spiritual life to become broken down now is the time to rebuild them and surround ourselves with God’s protection and strength.
There were 5 steps that Nehemiah shares with us that he took in the process of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. We need to adhere to these same steps as we rebuild the walls of our lives.
First, Nehemiah had a CONCERN about the ruins. We will never rebuild the walls of our lives unless we have a concern and mourn the ruins of our lives, just as Nehemiah mourned the ruins of the wall at Jerusalem.
Secondly, Nehemiah wept and prayed for days over his concern for the way that the nation of Israel had forsaken God. He prayed and CONFESSED the sins of his people and asked God for forgiveness. We need to confess our sins if we are to rebuild the walls of our lives and ask for forgiveness.
Thirdly, Nehemiah was COMMITTED. He didn’t just pray. He got to work and took immediate steps to fulfill his commitment. When we take the time to pray God will empower us to solve “impossible” situations and then we must do the work of rebuilding in our lives. Rebuilding the wall would have not been possible without God’s enabling power.
Fourthly, Nehemiah needed COURAGE to rebuild these walls. Nehemiah was mocked and threatened but he did not give up because he knew God was directing him. Whenever one says that they will arise and rebuild, Satan always responds by saying that he will arise and destroy. Satan will put roadblocks and obstructions in our way when we start to return to God by rebuilding the walls of our lives.
Finally, Nehemiah approached the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem with CONFIDENCE. He did not just rush out and start laying bricks or recruiting people to help. He went out at night and secretly surveyed the damage to the wall to determine exactly what needed to be done. When he was ridiculed Nehemiah confidently replied, “The God of heaven will give us success.” Nehemiah 2:20. We will be ridiculed by those who do not believe, but our confidence is found in God.
We can learn by these 5 steps as we work to rebuild the walls around our lives. Start by reading the Bible and then communicating to God through prayer. You will be amazed at what God will do through you.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is the first of the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20:3.
“You shall have no other gods before Me.”
PRAYER:
Give me the courage of Nehemiah as I work to rebuild the walls of my life. Help me to be willing to follow Your leading in all that I do as I work diligently to serve You in this evil world that we live in.
WALLS
DEFINITION:
Structures to enclose, divide, support or protect.
SCRIPTURE:
And I went out by night through the Valley Gate to the Serpent Well and the Refuse Gate, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem which were broken down and its gates which were burned by fire. Nehemiah 2:13.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
A wall is a very symbolic structure. Down through the ages walls were built to protect the people and things inside the walls. But walls are more than just a barrier of stone and mortar. The walls of the city of Jericho symbolized the pride and arrogance of that godless city and that is one reason why God chose to pull them down with nothing but the faith of the Children of Israel and their leader. The arrogance of Jericho was no match for the humility of God’s people when it was aligned with the limitless power of God.
The Berlin wall not only symbolized the division between east and west, but also the misery and despair of the people living under communism. The 1500 mile long wall of China symbolized the vast power of the Chin Dynasty and was built to defend China from the warring tribes of the north. It was so long and tall that it made a clear statement, “Do not even think of invading our land.”
In ancient cities, massive walls were the first, last and only line of defense. The walls of the city of Babylon, according to Daniel, were not as long as the Great Wall of China but were much higher and more massive.
The wall that Nehemiah went to look at by night, verse above, was the wall around Jerusalem that God had called him to rebuild. And it had even a deeper spiritual meaning than any of the other walls ever built. The walls of Jerusalem were symbolic of God’s protection and power. The rebuilding of these walls around Jerusalem, symbolizes an act that must be taken by everyone who is spiritually broken down. They must rebuild the walls of their lives.
Jerusalem is a symbol of the City of God. This is God’s dwelling place and the center of life in the world. In the New Testament, we see that God’s ultimate dwelling place is in us, His people. If we have allowed the walls of our spiritual life to become broken down now is the time to rebuild them and surround ourselves with God’s protection and strength.
There were 5 steps that Nehemiah shares with us that he took in the process of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. We need to adhere to these same steps as we rebuild the walls of our lives.
First, Nehemiah had a CONCERN about the ruins. We will never rebuild the walls of our lives unless we have a concern and mourn the ruins of our lives, just as Nehemiah mourned the ruins of the wall at Jerusalem.
Secondly, Nehemiah wept and prayed for days over his concern for the way that the nation of Israel had forsaken God. He prayed and CONFESSED the sins of his people and asked God for forgiveness. We need to confess our sins if we are to rebuild the walls of our lives and ask for forgiveness.
Thirdly, Nehemiah was COMMITTED. He didn’t just pray. He got to work and took immediate steps to fulfill his commitment. When we take the time to pray God will empower us to solve “impossible” situations and then we must do the work of rebuilding in our lives. Rebuilding the wall would have not been possible without God’s enabling power.
Fourthly, Nehemiah needed COURAGE to rebuild these walls. Nehemiah was mocked and threatened but he did not give up because he knew God was directing him. Whenever one says that they will arise and rebuild, Satan always responds by saying that he will arise and destroy. Satan will put roadblocks and obstructions in our way when we start to return to God by rebuilding the walls of our lives.
Finally, Nehemiah approached the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem with CONFIDENCE. He did not just rush out and start laying bricks or recruiting people to help. He went out at night and secretly surveyed the damage to the wall to determine exactly what needed to be done. When he was ridiculed Nehemiah confidently replied, “The God of heaven will give us success.” Nehemiah 2:20. We will be ridiculed by those who do not believe, but our confidence is found in God.
We can learn by these 5 steps as we work to rebuild the walls around our lives. Start by reading the Bible and then communicating to God through prayer. You will be amazed at what God will do through you.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is the first of the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20:3.
“You shall have no other gods before Me.”
PRAYER:
Give me the courage of Nehemiah as I work to rebuild the walls of my life. Help me to be willing to follow Your leading in all that I do as I work diligently to serve You in this evil world that we live in.
Grow: March 7, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR WEDNESDAY MARCH 7, 2012
GROW
DEFINITION:
Mature; develop; progress.
SCRIPTURE:
Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. II Peter 3:18.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
New believers come from all sorts of backgrounds. Some may have gone to church before they found Christ but never accepted Jesus as their Savior. Others may have come from a very worldly and sinful background and never darkened the door of a church or ever even opened a Bible to read it.
Spiritually they are as newborn babies. Just as a baby needs to be fed to thrive and grow, a new believer needs to be fed from God’s Word in order to grow and mature in their new found faith.
In Ezekiel 47, Ezekiel shares with us that he had a vision of a river flowing out from the temple. The temple symbolizes God and the river the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In this vision, stages of spiritual growth, is depicted, of those who have accepted Christ into their life.
When we first find Jesus it is likened to walking ankle deep in the water, as portrayed by the prophet Ezekiel in Ezekiel 47:3, and we experience only a shallow sense of God’s grace and power in our life. If a person does not begin to learn more about Christ the Scriptures calls one a babe in Christ. Such a person has not learned how to live a Spirit-lead life which is a life of obedience, trust, surrender and peace.
A lot of people today who say they are Christians want to wade just ankle deep into the grace of God. They are not motivated to want to take the next step as portrayed by Ezekiel (47:4) by wading into knee deep water which is hungering and thirsting for God. At this stage a Christian is not satisfied by being merely born again but hungers for a deeper knowledge and closer relationship with their Savior and Lord.
In Ezekiel 47: 4 the prophet talks about walking into the water up to the waist. At this point the Holy Spirit is now captivating the believer in Jesus to be possessed by His Lord. There is less of the believer now and more of the Lord.
You can see we live today among so many Christians who are still just babes in their faith and need to be motivated to wade up to their waist in God’s Word in order to be possessed by God. Where does this motivation come from today? For the most part it is not common in our churches by our pastors. It is not seen within our family structures. So the result is that we live in a world where Christians are living according to the will of the flesh rather than living according to the will of the Spirit of God.
The motivation comes from the Holy Spirit but we must be willing to listen to Him and allow Him to lead us into the deep water of His Word. It is only by reading God’s Word that we can grow into the mature Christian that our Lord wants us to be.
The apostle Paul tells us in I Corinthians about how the people in the church at Corinth were divided into factions and cliques and continually at each other’s throats, dragging one another into courts of law, gossiping against each other and undermining each other. What a mess it was! Does it sound a little like what you see today among those you know and perhaps even among your friends and family?
The source of these divisions that we read about in the church in Corinth and that we see today in our society is pride, the fleshly desire for preeminence, and to be idolized and praised. Paul reminds us that as long as the desire to live for worldly pleasures is alive and well in our lives, as believers we will remain spiritual infants and will never grow up into what God wants us to be.
God is not the least bit impressed by what we do in the flesh. Only what we do in the Spirit will last. The word of the cross and of Jesus’ shed blood, must come into our lives and cut off the flesh so we can experience growth and maturity. Until we learn to walk up to our waist in the water as Ezekiel tells us division and conflict will reign in our lives.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is the first of the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20:3.
“You shall have no gods before Me.”
PRAYER:
Help me to step out by faith into the deep waters of Your Word and submerge myself so that there is more of You and less of me. May Your Holy Spirit become more real to me today so that others may see Christ in and through me. Help me to grow spiritually each day of my life and may I lead my family to draw closer to You.
GROW
DEFINITION:
Mature; develop; progress.
SCRIPTURE:
Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. II Peter 3:18.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
New believers come from all sorts of backgrounds. Some may have gone to church before they found Christ but never accepted Jesus as their Savior. Others may have come from a very worldly and sinful background and never darkened the door of a church or ever even opened a Bible to read it.
Spiritually they are as newborn babies. Just as a baby needs to be fed to thrive and grow, a new believer needs to be fed from God’s Word in order to grow and mature in their new found faith.
In Ezekiel 47, Ezekiel shares with us that he had a vision of a river flowing out from the temple. The temple symbolizes God and the river the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In this vision, stages of spiritual growth, is depicted, of those who have accepted Christ into their life.
When we first find Jesus it is likened to walking ankle deep in the water, as portrayed by the prophet Ezekiel in Ezekiel 47:3, and we experience only a shallow sense of God’s grace and power in our life. If a person does not begin to learn more about Christ the Scriptures calls one a babe in Christ. Such a person has not learned how to live a Spirit-lead life which is a life of obedience, trust, surrender and peace.
A lot of people today who say they are Christians want to wade just ankle deep into the grace of God. They are not motivated to want to take the next step as portrayed by Ezekiel (47:4) by wading into knee deep water which is hungering and thirsting for God. At this stage a Christian is not satisfied by being merely born again but hungers for a deeper knowledge and closer relationship with their Savior and Lord.
In Ezekiel 47: 4 the prophet talks about walking into the water up to the waist. At this point the Holy Spirit is now captivating the believer in Jesus to be possessed by His Lord. There is less of the believer now and more of the Lord.
You can see we live today among so many Christians who are still just babes in their faith and need to be motivated to wade up to their waist in God’s Word in order to be possessed by God. Where does this motivation come from today? For the most part it is not common in our churches by our pastors. It is not seen within our family structures. So the result is that we live in a world where Christians are living according to the will of the flesh rather than living according to the will of the Spirit of God.
The motivation comes from the Holy Spirit but we must be willing to listen to Him and allow Him to lead us into the deep water of His Word. It is only by reading God’s Word that we can grow into the mature Christian that our Lord wants us to be.
The apostle Paul tells us in I Corinthians about how the people in the church at Corinth were divided into factions and cliques and continually at each other’s throats, dragging one another into courts of law, gossiping against each other and undermining each other. What a mess it was! Does it sound a little like what you see today among those you know and perhaps even among your friends and family?
The source of these divisions that we read about in the church in Corinth and that we see today in our society is pride, the fleshly desire for preeminence, and to be idolized and praised. Paul reminds us that as long as the desire to live for worldly pleasures is alive and well in our lives, as believers we will remain spiritual infants and will never grow up into what God wants us to be.
God is not the least bit impressed by what we do in the flesh. Only what we do in the Spirit will last. The word of the cross and of Jesus’ shed blood, must come into our lives and cut off the flesh so we can experience growth and maturity. Until we learn to walk up to our waist in the water as Ezekiel tells us division and conflict will reign in our lives.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is the first of the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20:3.
“You shall have no gods before Me.”
PRAYER:
Help me to step out by faith into the deep waters of Your Word and submerge myself so that there is more of You and less of me. May Your Holy Spirit become more real to me today so that others may see Christ in and through me. Help me to grow spiritually each day of my life and may I lead my family to draw closer to You.
Battles: March 6, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR TUESDAY MARCH 6, 2012.
BATTLES
DEFINITION:
A fight; a hostel encounter; struggle.
SCRIPTURE:
For the flesh lusts against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. Galatians 5:17.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
In real life today we constantly hear and witness battles taking place. These include battles between nations, civil war among tribes within a country and even battles among friends and families.
But today we want to talk about the battles we face personally in our own lives. We constantly are fighting battles in our mind between right and wrong. We often want to do something or go somewhere but something inside of us says that we should not. Thus the battle begins.
In Exodus 17, we come to a battle, symbolic of the Christian’s battle with the flesh today. The battle against the sin of the flesh is always startling to a new Christian. They have experienced the emotional and spiritual high of discovering their new faith in Christ.
And suddenly sin pops up its ugly head and we wonder, “What happened?” This is the situation that the Children of Israel faced in Exodus 17. They had just gone through the glory of the Passover, the Red Sea crossing, and the demonstration of God’s Fatherly love for them as He provided all of the manna needed to eat.
Life was going so good for the Children of Israel. They had been chosen by God to represent Him to the world. God was meeting their every need but soon a shocking realization confronted them. Those who belong to God have enemies. They were soon to learn that life requires believers to fight battles.
In Exodus 17:10 we read that Amalek attacked Israel. The Amalekites were a pagan and evil nomadic tribe. They attacked and killed others for pleasure and carried off their possessions. They saw the Israelites as an opportunity for pleasure and profit. What they did not see was that to battle against Israel they would be doing battle against God. Israel obeyed God and fought the battle according to His instructions, and because they obeyed, God gave Israel the victory.
In the verse above from Galatians, we read what the Apostle Paul tells us about the nature of the battle that constantly takes place in our lives as believers. Basically, our sinful nature often desires what is contrary to God’s Holy Spirit, and the Spirit desires for us what is contrary to our sinful nature. Thus the battle is in our inner being between God and our sinful desires.
After God gave the Israelites victory over the Amalekites Moses warned that “the Lord would be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation.” Exodus 18:15. The same is true for each of us who are believers in Jesus. We live in an evil and sinful world and the desires of our flesh will always be a battle for us to fight. God has given us His Holy Spirit to fight our battles if we will just let go of our fleshly desires and do as the Holy Spirit leads us to do.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is the first of the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20:3.
“You shall have no other gods before Me.”
PRAYER:
Give me the strength today to fight the fleshly battles that come my way. May I learn to rely on Your Holy Spirit to guide me through every step that I take today.
BATTLES
DEFINITION:
A fight; a hostel encounter; struggle.
SCRIPTURE:
For the flesh lusts against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. Galatians 5:17.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
In real life today we constantly hear and witness battles taking place. These include battles between nations, civil war among tribes within a country and even battles among friends and families.
But today we want to talk about the battles we face personally in our own lives. We constantly are fighting battles in our mind between right and wrong. We often want to do something or go somewhere but something inside of us says that we should not. Thus the battle begins.
In Exodus 17, we come to a battle, symbolic of the Christian’s battle with the flesh today. The battle against the sin of the flesh is always startling to a new Christian. They have experienced the emotional and spiritual high of discovering their new faith in Christ.
And suddenly sin pops up its ugly head and we wonder, “What happened?” This is the situation that the Children of Israel faced in Exodus 17. They had just gone through the glory of the Passover, the Red Sea crossing, and the demonstration of God’s Fatherly love for them as He provided all of the manna needed to eat.
Life was going so good for the Children of Israel. They had been chosen by God to represent Him to the world. God was meeting their every need but soon a shocking realization confronted them. Those who belong to God have enemies. They were soon to learn that life requires believers to fight battles.
In Exodus 17:10 we read that Amalek attacked Israel. The Amalekites were a pagan and evil nomadic tribe. They attacked and killed others for pleasure and carried off their possessions. They saw the Israelites as an opportunity for pleasure and profit. What they did not see was that to battle against Israel they would be doing battle against God. Israel obeyed God and fought the battle according to His instructions, and because they obeyed, God gave Israel the victory.
In the verse above from Galatians, we read what the Apostle Paul tells us about the nature of the battle that constantly takes place in our lives as believers. Basically, our sinful nature often desires what is contrary to God’s Holy Spirit, and the Spirit desires for us what is contrary to our sinful nature. Thus the battle is in our inner being between God and our sinful desires.
After God gave the Israelites victory over the Amalekites Moses warned that “the Lord would be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation.” Exodus 18:15. The same is true for each of us who are believers in Jesus. We live in an evil and sinful world and the desires of our flesh will always be a battle for us to fight. God has given us His Holy Spirit to fight our battles if we will just let go of our fleshly desires and do as the Holy Spirit leads us to do.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is the first of the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20:3.
“You shall have no other gods before Me.”
PRAYER:
Give me the strength today to fight the fleshly battles that come my way. May I learn to rely on Your Holy Spirit to guide me through every step that I take today.
Hurt: March 5, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR MONDAY MARCH 5, 2012
HURT
DEFINITION:
Cause bodily pain; do harm or mischief; injure; insult; affect emotionally.
SCRIPTURE:
“Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.” Daniel 3:25.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
We all have hurts in our lives. Some hurts are physical caused by sickness or injury. Other hurts are emotional caused by how we are treated by others. How we respond to these hurts can affect our daily life. Fortunately most physical hurts heal with time. Emotional hurts are difficult to heal and can affect us for a lifetime. As believers it is important how we respond to hurts when they come our way because the way we respond can affect our spiritual life. Hurts and the threat of hurts can cause us to doubt and lose our faith when we most need it.
The scriptures give us numerous examples of those who went through times of great hurt yet remained faithful to God. In the verse above we are reminded about Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego and how they responded when they faced physical harm. They believed in God and stayed true to their faith refusing to obey the command of King Nebuchadnezzar to bow down to the King’s statue in worship.
They faced a most painful death, but God protected them and as the verse above reads, they were not hurt. Three people were thrown into the fire but when the King looked he saw four men. God sent someone from heaven to protect them. It is possible that it was Jesus Christ. One thing the King was certain of was that the fourth person was a heavenly being. God intervened because they stood true to their faith so they were not hurt.
Later in Daniel 6:16 we read about Daniel being thrown into the lion’s den. King Darius made it a law that no one could pray to any god but him. The punishment for breaking the law was to be cast into a den of lions for thirty days. Daniel continued to pray to his God, the true and living God, just as he always had done in spite of facing a painful death of being eaten by lions.
When the King ordered Daniel taken out of the lion’s den no injury or hurt was found on him. God protected him. Daniel told the King, “My God sent His angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me.” Daniel 6:22
In Acts 18:9-10, we read about the Apostle Paul who was in Corinth preaching to the Jews telling them that Jesus was the Christ. The Jews opposed Paul and became so abusive that Paul decided to quit preaching to them. The scripture tells us that the Lord spoke to Paul in the night and told him to preach without fear and no one would hurt him. Paul realized that he must remain faithful to what God had called him to do in spite of the threat of hurt, so he continued preaching.
These are great examples for us, teaching us to rely on God’s protection. We urge you that when a hurt comes your way, lay that hurt in the hands of Jesus and never waver in your faith but continue to serve and honor Him.
We can be hurt by words or deeds. We can be hurt with sickness or disease. We can be hurt with disaster or crises. But no matter what comes our way our Lord is always there for us.
Many people that we know today are hurting. Some are hurting physically, others emotionally and many spiritually. We continue to see such a difference between one that knows the Lord as to how they deal with a hurt opposed to one who does not know the Lord.
If you have accepted Jesus as your Savior you are a child of God and have the assurance that He is with you through every difficulty you may face. Put your complete trust in the Lord and do not get defeated by the hurt that may come into your life.
LEARNING:
Our memory verses for the next few weeks will be the Ten Commandments. We feel that every person should know by heart these commandments. This week is the first commandment found in Exodus 20:3.
“You shall have no other gods before Me.”
PRAYER:
Thank You that when hurts come my way that I can turn them over to You and that I can have the confidence that You will take care of those hurts. Help me to be one that shares with others that are hurting the good news of Your love and Your willingness to take their hurts if they put their trust in You.
HURT
DEFINITION:
Cause bodily pain; do harm or mischief; injure; insult; affect emotionally.
SCRIPTURE:
“Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.” Daniel 3:25.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
We all have hurts in our lives. Some hurts are physical caused by sickness or injury. Other hurts are emotional caused by how we are treated by others. How we respond to these hurts can affect our daily life. Fortunately most physical hurts heal with time. Emotional hurts are difficult to heal and can affect us for a lifetime. As believers it is important how we respond to hurts when they come our way because the way we respond can affect our spiritual life. Hurts and the threat of hurts can cause us to doubt and lose our faith when we most need it.
The scriptures give us numerous examples of those who went through times of great hurt yet remained faithful to God. In the verse above we are reminded about Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego and how they responded when they faced physical harm. They believed in God and stayed true to their faith refusing to obey the command of King Nebuchadnezzar to bow down to the King’s statue in worship.
They faced a most painful death, but God protected them and as the verse above reads, they were not hurt. Three people were thrown into the fire but when the King looked he saw four men. God sent someone from heaven to protect them. It is possible that it was Jesus Christ. One thing the King was certain of was that the fourth person was a heavenly being. God intervened because they stood true to their faith so they were not hurt.
Later in Daniel 6:16 we read about Daniel being thrown into the lion’s den. King Darius made it a law that no one could pray to any god but him. The punishment for breaking the law was to be cast into a den of lions for thirty days. Daniel continued to pray to his God, the true and living God, just as he always had done in spite of facing a painful death of being eaten by lions.
When the King ordered Daniel taken out of the lion’s den no injury or hurt was found on him. God protected him. Daniel told the King, “My God sent His angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me.” Daniel 6:22
In Acts 18:9-10, we read about the Apostle Paul who was in Corinth preaching to the Jews telling them that Jesus was the Christ. The Jews opposed Paul and became so abusive that Paul decided to quit preaching to them. The scripture tells us that the Lord spoke to Paul in the night and told him to preach without fear and no one would hurt him. Paul realized that he must remain faithful to what God had called him to do in spite of the threat of hurt, so he continued preaching.
These are great examples for us, teaching us to rely on God’s protection. We urge you that when a hurt comes your way, lay that hurt in the hands of Jesus and never waver in your faith but continue to serve and honor Him.
We can be hurt by words or deeds. We can be hurt with sickness or disease. We can be hurt with disaster or crises. But no matter what comes our way our Lord is always there for us.
Many people that we know today are hurting. Some are hurting physically, others emotionally and many spiritually. We continue to see such a difference between one that knows the Lord as to how they deal with a hurt opposed to one who does not know the Lord.
If you have accepted Jesus as your Savior you are a child of God and have the assurance that He is with you through every difficulty you may face. Put your complete trust in the Lord and do not get defeated by the hurt that may come into your life.
LEARNING:
Our memory verses for the next few weeks will be the Ten Commandments. We feel that every person should know by heart these commandments. This week is the first commandment found in Exodus 20:3.
“You shall have no other gods before Me.”
PRAYER:
Thank You that when hurts come my way that I can turn them over to You and that I can have the confidence that You will take care of those hurts. Help me to be one that shares with others that are hurting the good news of Your love and Your willingness to take their hurts if they put their trust in You.
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