GEMS OF ENCOURAGEMENT FOR SATURDAY NOVEMBER 24, 2012.
PROVERB.
He who is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and He will reward him for what he has done. Proverbs 19:17.
PROMISE.
I know that the Lord secures justice for the poor and upholds the cause of the needy. Psalm 140: 12.
PRAISE.
You gave abundant showers, O God; You refreshed Your weary inheritance. Your people settled in it, and from Your bounty, O God, You provided for the poor. Psalm 68:9-10
November 25, 2012
Praise: November 23, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR FRIDAY NOVEMBER 23, 2012.
PRAISE
DEFINITION:
Commend warmly; glorify the attributes of God.
SCRIPTURE:
Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude. Colossians 3:16.
Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise. Psalm 145:3
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
What better way to end a week and to begin a weekend then to talk about praise. The apostle Paul tells us, in this verse above found in Colossians, to admonish one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, singing with gratitude in our hearts to the Lord.
These words remind us of what we experienced when we visited Kenya for a two day conference with the pastors, church leaders, choirs and people from the some 75 churches we established their through our mission and the leadership of two dedicated missionaries, Rev. and Mrs. Rhoads.
Some of these people, who were the poorest of the poor, walked miles to attend this conference. But what we remember more than their poverty was the way they sang their praises to God. Although these people had very little of wordly treasures, the gratefulness of their hearts put us to shame in the way they praised God.
We have been in many places in our world where we visited programs we were assisting. So many times we would hear an individual humming a song. This was their way to praise God. They sang and worshipped God even though they had so little. (Read Psalm 145:3 above)
We also remember our association with a ministry helping to establish churches for the deaf in the Philippians. You will never be the same when you sit in one of their churches and see these dear deaf people singing praises to God in sign language. They did not let their physical handicap keep them from praising God and expressing the gratitude and joy in their hearts. No matter how worried or depressed you are feeling now, you can lift your spirits if you cultivate an attitude of praise.
When we think of God’s goodness to us and consider all He has done for us how can we not praise Him? When we are praising God we won’t be complaining about our problems. Think about what an impact and testimony it is to others when they see the joy believers have in the Lord.
When our children were young we often sang children’s songs of praise that they learned in Sunday school, as we were driving places in the car. Children need to learn to be grateful to God and they learn from you. Whether it is through song or conversation, let your joy for the Lord reverberate to others. You will be surprised as to how many you will encourage just by praising the Lord.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Joshua 24:15.
Choose for yourselves whom you will serve: as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
PRAYER:
Help me to continue to praise You today no matter what the day may bring. May my praising You whether even by humming a song or speaking an encouraging word to others bring honor to You and bless Your name. Lord, I praise You today for Your goodness to me. You are a great God and worthy of all praise. Help me to lead my children in praising You each day.
PRAISE
DEFINITION:
Commend warmly; glorify the attributes of God.
SCRIPTURE:
Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude. Colossians 3:16.
Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise. Psalm 145:3
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
What better way to end a week and to begin a weekend then to talk about praise. The apostle Paul tells us, in this verse above found in Colossians, to admonish one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, singing with gratitude in our hearts to the Lord.
These words remind us of what we experienced when we visited Kenya for a two day conference with the pastors, church leaders, choirs and people from the some 75 churches we established their through our mission and the leadership of two dedicated missionaries, Rev. and Mrs. Rhoads.
Some of these people, who were the poorest of the poor, walked miles to attend this conference. But what we remember more than their poverty was the way they sang their praises to God. Although these people had very little of wordly treasures, the gratefulness of their hearts put us to shame in the way they praised God.
We have been in many places in our world where we visited programs we were assisting. So many times we would hear an individual humming a song. This was their way to praise God. They sang and worshipped God even though they had so little. (Read Psalm 145:3 above)
We also remember our association with a ministry helping to establish churches for the deaf in the Philippians. You will never be the same when you sit in one of their churches and see these dear deaf people singing praises to God in sign language. They did not let their physical handicap keep them from praising God and expressing the gratitude and joy in their hearts. No matter how worried or depressed you are feeling now, you can lift your spirits if you cultivate an attitude of praise.
When we think of God’s goodness to us and consider all He has done for us how can we not praise Him? When we are praising God we won’t be complaining about our problems. Think about what an impact and testimony it is to others when they see the joy believers have in the Lord.
When our children were young we often sang children’s songs of praise that they learned in Sunday school, as we were driving places in the car. Children need to learn to be grateful to God and they learn from you. Whether it is through song or conversation, let your joy for the Lord reverberate to others. You will be surprised as to how many you will encourage just by praising the Lord.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Joshua 24:15.
Choose for yourselves whom you will serve: as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
PRAYER:
Help me to continue to praise You today no matter what the day may bring. May my praising You whether even by humming a song or speaking an encouraging word to others bring honor to You and bless Your name. Lord, I praise You today for Your goodness to me. You are a great God and worthy of all praise. Help me to lead my children in praising You each day.
Thanks: November 22, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR THURSDAY NOVEMBER 22, 2012.
THANKS
DEFINITION:
To express gratitude or appreciation; a grateful feeling.
SCRIPTURE:
Oh, give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good; for His mercies endure forever. I Chronicles 16:34.
Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness. Psalm 107: 8-9.
Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift. II Corinthians 9:15.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
When the American colonies were first settled one man suggested that as a group they were dwelling too much on their problems. It was time to focus on their blessings. Thus, we had the first thanksgiving celebration in America.
For Christians every day should be a day of thanksgiving. Just take a moment and list in your mind all the things that God has given you to be thankful for; good health, family, our salvation, a job, a home, friends, church, the Bible, food, material possessions and the list goes on and on.
Many people in our world, in fact over 85%, do not have anywhere near the many things that we as Americans have to be thankful for. How much more then should we be thankful to God? Take a moment now to read the three scriptures we have written for you above and then reflect on how God has blessed you.
In Psalm 103:2 it reads: "Praise the Lord, Oh my soul, and forget not all His benefits." It is easy to forget all the benefits God has given us. How often do we really thank God for all He gives us?
As far back as we can remember we spent time every day praying and thanking God for His blessings. As a child we prayed before every meal, we prayed every morning and we prayed every evening before we went to bed. Christian parents have the responsibility of teaching their children the benefits they received from the Lord and to be faithful in thanking Him for them. In Psalm 103: 3-5 David reminds us of the benefits we receive. Be sure to read these to your children and discuss them with them. We are thankful for the marvelous heritage we received from our Christian parents to remember all God’s benefits and be thankful to Him. We passed this heritage to our children. Now it is their responsibility to pass it on to their children.
What about you? If you do not have that heritage now is the time for you to take time every day to thank God for His blessings and establish that heritage with your children. Our God is a loving God and deserving of your gratitude. And He will respond by multiplying His blessings upon your life if you just take the time to thank Him.
Have you thanked God recently for sending His Son to pay the penalty for your sins? Have you thanked God for the assurance that you have that He is in heaven preparing a place for you for eternity? The apostle Paul calls God's gift of salvation and grace that he gave us by giving His only begotten Son to die on the cross as "GOD'S INDESCRIBABLE GIFT." We should be so thankful for this gift that Paul says is above all else.
If you pause to think, you will be aware of how many benefits you have from God that should give you cause to thank God. We need to remember with gratitude God's many blessings each and every day, not just on Thanksgiving day.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Joshua 24:15.
Choose for yourselves whom you will serve: as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
PRAYER:
Give me this day a spirit of gratitude to You dear God for all that You have blessed my life with. As a family may we begin today spending more time just to thank You for all the benefits we receive from You. Thank You for Your goodness in forgiving our sins, for redeeming us and giving us eternal life and for Your wonderful blessings to us. Thank You for satisfying my longing soul and for filling my life with your joy and peace.
THANKS
DEFINITION:
To express gratitude or appreciation; a grateful feeling.
SCRIPTURE:
Oh, give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good; for His mercies endure forever. I Chronicles 16:34.
Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness. Psalm 107: 8-9.
Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift. II Corinthians 9:15.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
When the American colonies were first settled one man suggested that as a group they were dwelling too much on their problems. It was time to focus on their blessings. Thus, we had the first thanksgiving celebration in America.
For Christians every day should be a day of thanksgiving. Just take a moment and list in your mind all the things that God has given you to be thankful for; good health, family, our salvation, a job, a home, friends, church, the Bible, food, material possessions and the list goes on and on.
Many people in our world, in fact over 85%, do not have anywhere near the many things that we as Americans have to be thankful for. How much more then should we be thankful to God? Take a moment now to read the three scriptures we have written for you above and then reflect on how God has blessed you.
In Psalm 103:2 it reads: "Praise the Lord, Oh my soul, and forget not all His benefits." It is easy to forget all the benefits God has given us. How often do we really thank God for all He gives us?
As far back as we can remember we spent time every day praying and thanking God for His blessings. As a child we prayed before every meal, we prayed every morning and we prayed every evening before we went to bed. Christian parents have the responsibility of teaching their children the benefits they received from the Lord and to be faithful in thanking Him for them. In Psalm 103: 3-5 David reminds us of the benefits we receive. Be sure to read these to your children and discuss them with them. We are thankful for the marvelous heritage we received from our Christian parents to remember all God’s benefits and be thankful to Him. We passed this heritage to our children. Now it is their responsibility to pass it on to their children.
What about you? If you do not have that heritage now is the time for you to take time every day to thank God for His blessings and establish that heritage with your children. Our God is a loving God and deserving of your gratitude. And He will respond by multiplying His blessings upon your life if you just take the time to thank Him.
Have you thanked God recently for sending His Son to pay the penalty for your sins? Have you thanked God for the assurance that you have that He is in heaven preparing a place for you for eternity? The apostle Paul calls God's gift of salvation and grace that he gave us by giving His only begotten Son to die on the cross as "GOD'S INDESCRIBABLE GIFT." We should be so thankful for this gift that Paul says is above all else.
If you pause to think, you will be aware of how many benefits you have from God that should give you cause to thank God. We need to remember with gratitude God's many blessings each and every day, not just on Thanksgiving day.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Joshua 24:15.
Choose for yourselves whom you will serve: as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
PRAYER:
Give me this day a spirit of gratitude to You dear God for all that You have blessed my life with. As a family may we begin today spending more time just to thank You for all the benefits we receive from You. Thank You for Your goodness in forgiving our sins, for redeeming us and giving us eternal life and for Your wonderful blessings to us. Thank You for satisfying my longing soul and for filling my life with your joy and peace.
Honor: November 21, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 21, 2012.
HONOR
DEFINITION:
To treat with respect or reverence; to worship.
SCRIPTURE:
You shall have no other gods before me. Exodus 20:3
What does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord’s commands and desires. Deuteronomy 10:12.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
The Word of God leaves no doubt that we are to honor God. God’s first commandment to us is: “You shall have no other gods before me.” The God of the Bible is the one and only God and we are to honor Him as God and we are to worship Him only.
Jesus reaffirmed this commandment when the devil offered to give Jesus the world if Jesus would bow down and worship Him. Jesus replied, “For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.” (Matthew 4:10)
How do we honor the Lord? The answer is found in Deuteronomy 10:12-13, and it consists of five things we are to do:
1. Fear the Lord your God. (have reverence for Him)
2. Walk in all His ways.
3. Love Him.
4. Serve Him with all your heart and soul.
5. Obey His commandments.
Jesus teaches in John 5:23 that we are to honor the Son just as we honor the Father and those who do not honor the Son do not honor the Father who sent Him. We honor Jesus in the same way we honor God, by serving Him. Jesus gives a wonderful promise to those who honor Him: “My Father will honor the one who serves Me.” (John 12:26)
REMEMBER: We cannot over honor our God!
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Joshua 24:15.
Choose for yourselves whom you will serve: as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
PRAYER:
Thank You, Lord, that You are a Holy and righteous God and above all other gods. Thank You for Your Son who You sent to be my Savior. Keep me faithful in honoring You, my heavenly Father, and Your Son, my Savior.
HONOR
DEFINITION:
To treat with respect or reverence; to worship.
SCRIPTURE:
You shall have no other gods before me. Exodus 20:3
What does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord’s commands and desires. Deuteronomy 10:12.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
The Word of God leaves no doubt that we are to honor God. God’s first commandment to us is: “You shall have no other gods before me.” The God of the Bible is the one and only God and we are to honor Him as God and we are to worship Him only.
Jesus reaffirmed this commandment when the devil offered to give Jesus the world if Jesus would bow down and worship Him. Jesus replied, “For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.” (Matthew 4:10)
How do we honor the Lord? The answer is found in Deuteronomy 10:12-13, and it consists of five things we are to do:
1. Fear the Lord your God. (have reverence for Him)
2. Walk in all His ways.
3. Love Him.
4. Serve Him with all your heart and soul.
5. Obey His commandments.
Jesus teaches in John 5:23 that we are to honor the Son just as we honor the Father and those who do not honor the Son do not honor the Father who sent Him. We honor Jesus in the same way we honor God, by serving Him. Jesus gives a wonderful promise to those who honor Him: “My Father will honor the one who serves Me.” (John 12:26)
REMEMBER: We cannot over honor our God!
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Joshua 24:15.
Choose for yourselves whom you will serve: as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
PRAYER:
Thank You, Lord, that You are a Holy and righteous God and above all other gods. Thank You for Your Son who You sent to be my Savior. Keep me faithful in honoring You, my heavenly Father, and Your Son, my Savior.
Esteem: November 20, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR TUESDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2012.
ESTEEM
DEFINITION:
Set a high value on; regard favorably; to have respect or admiration for.
SCRIPTURE:
He is despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised and we did not esteem Him. Isaiah 53:3.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
Jesus is the Son of God and God could have sent Him to this earth in all His Majesty as our glorious King. Instead, He came into this world as a humble and suffering servant. Isaiah describes Christ in Isaiah 53:2 as” having no majesty and no beauty that would attract us to Him.” He was an ordinary man. The Jewish people did not esteem Him as their Messiah because He did not meet their expectations.
We would think that God would send Jesus in His majesty and in His glory. God, however, does not do things in ways that we would expect them to be done. What He does, He does to accomplish His purpose. His purpose was to provide a way for us to escape the punishment that we deserve for all of our sins. God sent Jesus into this world to be our sacrificial lamb.
“He was oppressed and afflicted. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.”(Isaiah 53:7) When we think of all that Jesus suffered for us and His great gift of forgiveness and eternal life, how can we not esteem Him as our Lord and Savior. Nevertheless, many do not acknowledge and esteem Jesus. He is despised and rejected by many today, just as He was despised and rejected by those who knew Him while He was here on earth.
Jesus is worthy of our esteem. All those who do not reject Jesus and accept Him as their personal Savior will one day sing with the angels in heaven:
“Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom,
And strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing.” Revelation 5:12.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Joshua 24:15.
Choose for yourselves whom you will serve: as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
PRAYER:
I love You Lord and I esteem You as my Lord and my Savior. Thank You that You willingly left Your home in glory to be despised and rejected by man and to suffer and die for my sins. Guide me as I teach my family to esteem You as Lord of our lives.
ESTEEM
DEFINITION:
Set a high value on; regard favorably; to have respect or admiration for.
SCRIPTURE:
He is despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised and we did not esteem Him. Isaiah 53:3.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
Jesus is the Son of God and God could have sent Him to this earth in all His Majesty as our glorious King. Instead, He came into this world as a humble and suffering servant. Isaiah describes Christ in Isaiah 53:2 as” having no majesty and no beauty that would attract us to Him.” He was an ordinary man. The Jewish people did not esteem Him as their Messiah because He did not meet their expectations.
We would think that God would send Jesus in His majesty and in His glory. God, however, does not do things in ways that we would expect them to be done. What He does, He does to accomplish His purpose. His purpose was to provide a way for us to escape the punishment that we deserve for all of our sins. God sent Jesus into this world to be our sacrificial lamb.
“He was oppressed and afflicted. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.”(Isaiah 53:7) When we think of all that Jesus suffered for us and His great gift of forgiveness and eternal life, how can we not esteem Him as our Lord and Savior. Nevertheless, many do not acknowledge and esteem Jesus. He is despised and rejected by many today, just as He was despised and rejected by those who knew Him while He was here on earth.
Jesus is worthy of our esteem. All those who do not reject Jesus and accept Him as their personal Savior will one day sing with the angels in heaven:
“Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom,
And strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing.” Revelation 5:12.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Joshua 24:15.
Choose for yourselves whom you will serve: as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
PRAYER:
I love You Lord and I esteem You as my Lord and my Savior. Thank You that You willingly left Your home in glory to be despised and rejected by man and to suffer and die for my sins. Guide me as I teach my family to esteem You as Lord of our lives.
Backsliding: November 19, 2012
TODAYS WORD FOR MONDAY NOVEMBER 19, 2012
BACKSLIDING
DEFINITION:
To relapse into bad habits; sinful behavior or undesirable activities; the abandoning of religious principles or practices.
SCRIPTURE:
Your wickedness will punish you; your backsliding will rebuke you. Consider then and realize how evil and bitter it is for you when you forsake the Lord your God and have no awe of me, declares the Lord, the Lord almighty. Jeremiah 2:19
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. I John 1:9.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
A backslider is a person who made a decision to follow Christ but then relapsed into bad habits that God considers sin. A backslider will soon fall victim to his or her sins and will soon start to fully abandon his or her spiritual beliefs.
Backsliding brought on the downfall of Israel. God sent the prophet Jeremiah to confront the people of Judah with their sins and to warn them of the coming destruction of their nation if they did not repent. In Jeremiah 7:23-24, Jeremiah reminds them of God’s command to them to “obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people. Walk in all the ways I command you that it may go well with you. But they did not listen or pay attention. Instead they followed the stubborn inclinations of their evil hearts. They went backward not forward.”
When we do not listen to God and pay attention to what He tells us, we will become backsliders just like the Israelites. Instead of going forward with the Lord, we will go backward following our evil desires. Jeremiah warned the people to repent and return to God or they would be punished. The Israelites did not repent and Jerusalem was destroyed.
When we think of a Biblical example of a backslider we think of Jonah. God had told Jonah to go to Nineveh to preach repentance to the Assyrians. He fled because he did not want this assignment. Jonah was fleeing on a ship and then in a storm he was thrown overboard by the crew and was swallowed up, as the scriptures tell us by a big fish. We assume that this was a whale. Jonah, the scriptures tell us was in the belly of the fish for three days and nights. To say the least he was being “rewarded” for his backsliding. Backsliding may seem like a small thing which we excuse by saying, “what harm could it be?” When we turn away from God we are the ones who are harmed. Sometimes the consequence is severe, as Jonah learned.
In Jonah 2:1-9 in the MESSAGE translation there is a very vivid and clear report of what Jonah then did while inside the fish. He cried out to God asking for forgiveness and God heard him. In his prayer to God from the belly of the whale he said, “I will sacrifice to You with a voice of thanksgiving; I will pay what I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord.”
The Lord then spoke to the fish, the scripture says, and the fish vomited up Jonah onto dry land. Once again the Lord said to Jonah that he must go to Nineveh and “preach the message I tell you.” This time Jonah was quick to obey. He went to Nineveh and cried out to the people that in 40 days Nineveh would be overthrown unless the people repented. The people of Nineveh responded and believed in God and God did not destroy them.
God gave Jonah a second chance. He backslid and paid a severe penalty, but when he was at his lowest point he prayed to God. God heard his prayer and responded by giving him a second chance and Jonah obeyed God and went to Nineveh with the message that God wanted them to hear.
In the verse we have written above, we are reminded that when one backslides and falls out of a relationship with God, that if one confesses his sin, God is faithful and just to forgive and to cleanse one from all unrighteousness. God loves us and wants us to serve Him. We really do serve a wonderful and patient God.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Joshua 24:15.
Choose for yourselves whom you will serve: as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
PRAYER:
Help me today not to backslide away from my relationship with You. Keep me from relapsing into bad habits or sinful behavior that brings dishonor to You. May those that are not following You see that I am following Jesus and living in obedience to what He commands me.
BACKSLIDING
DEFINITION:
To relapse into bad habits; sinful behavior or undesirable activities; the abandoning of religious principles or practices.
SCRIPTURE:
Your wickedness will punish you; your backsliding will rebuke you. Consider then and realize how evil and bitter it is for you when you forsake the Lord your God and have no awe of me, declares the Lord, the Lord almighty. Jeremiah 2:19
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. I John 1:9.
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:
A backslider is a person who made a decision to follow Christ but then relapsed into bad habits that God considers sin. A backslider will soon fall victim to his or her sins and will soon start to fully abandon his or her spiritual beliefs.
Backsliding brought on the downfall of Israel. God sent the prophet Jeremiah to confront the people of Judah with their sins and to warn them of the coming destruction of their nation if they did not repent. In Jeremiah 7:23-24, Jeremiah reminds them of God’s command to them to “obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people. Walk in all the ways I command you that it may go well with you. But they did not listen or pay attention. Instead they followed the stubborn inclinations of their evil hearts. They went backward not forward.”
When we do not listen to God and pay attention to what He tells us, we will become backsliders just like the Israelites. Instead of going forward with the Lord, we will go backward following our evil desires. Jeremiah warned the people to repent and return to God or they would be punished. The Israelites did not repent and Jerusalem was destroyed.
When we think of a Biblical example of a backslider we think of Jonah. God had told Jonah to go to Nineveh to preach repentance to the Assyrians. He fled because he did not want this assignment. Jonah was fleeing on a ship and then in a storm he was thrown overboard by the crew and was swallowed up, as the scriptures tell us by a big fish. We assume that this was a whale. Jonah, the scriptures tell us was in the belly of the fish for three days and nights. To say the least he was being “rewarded” for his backsliding. Backsliding may seem like a small thing which we excuse by saying, “what harm could it be?” When we turn away from God we are the ones who are harmed. Sometimes the consequence is severe, as Jonah learned.
In Jonah 2:1-9 in the MESSAGE translation there is a very vivid and clear report of what Jonah then did while inside the fish. He cried out to God asking for forgiveness and God heard him. In his prayer to God from the belly of the whale he said, “I will sacrifice to You with a voice of thanksgiving; I will pay what I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord.”
The Lord then spoke to the fish, the scripture says, and the fish vomited up Jonah onto dry land. Once again the Lord said to Jonah that he must go to Nineveh and “preach the message I tell you.” This time Jonah was quick to obey. He went to Nineveh and cried out to the people that in 40 days Nineveh would be overthrown unless the people repented. The people of Nineveh responded and believed in God and God did not destroy them.
God gave Jonah a second chance. He backslid and paid a severe penalty, but when he was at his lowest point he prayed to God. God heard his prayer and responded by giving him a second chance and Jonah obeyed God and went to Nineveh with the message that God wanted them to hear.
In the verse we have written above, we are reminded that when one backslides and falls out of a relationship with God, that if one confesses his sin, God is faithful and just to forgive and to cleanse one from all unrighteousness. God loves us and wants us to serve Him. We really do serve a wonderful and patient God.
LEARNING:
Our memory verse for this week is found in Joshua 24:15.
Choose for yourselves whom you will serve: as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
PRAYER:
Help me today not to backslide away from my relationship with You. Keep me from relapsing into bad habits or sinful behavior that brings dishonor to You. May those that are not following You see that I am following Jesus and living in obedience to what He commands me.
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