1 Month into Yr of Sabbath
Hey family,
We are 1 Month into the Yr of Sabbath, so have you been resting well (in the Lord)? Haha. Personally there has been some form of breakthrough for myself. I've definitely grown in the aspect of
discipline; that is, waking up earlier than normal and spending the precious moments with our Maker, reading his Word in Psalms. Psalms is the Bible's book of personal devotions.
Following is something interesting that I read,
Type of Psalms.
When studying a psalm, one should ask the following questions.
1) Was is sung by an individual or congregation?
2) What was the psalms'
purpose (praise, cry for help, thanksgiving)?
3) Does it mention any special theme?
I think we should focus more on question 2. What is the real purpose of every psalm that we read? Once we recognize the purpose of what is, we can use the psalm as our
own personal cry out to God. Lets not see this as a chore or a obligation on our part to commit ourselves to reading psalms but really, lets see this as an extended time with God. A time where we see what were the needs/cries of the Christians before us. A time to just cry out to God in your hearts as you read the psalm.
From every psalm that we read, there is
something new we learn about God. I leave you with Psalm 23, which is one of the most beautiful revelations of God.
Psalm 23
A Psalm of David.
1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
3 he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.
4 Even though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6 Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.
Lets continue reading His Word in the Month of February, every morning before food. God Bless you!
Labels: DEVOTION
Psalm 16
this morning i asked GOD, what can He teach me from Psalm 16.
Here are what He have spoken to me:
Psalm 16:2 : I said to the LORD, "You are my LORD; apart from you i have no good thing"
-> Without GOD we are nothing, without His blessings we will not have what we had today.
Psalm 16:4 : The sorrows of those will increase who run after other gods
-> We cannot serve both GOD and money. The pleasure are temporal, there will still be sorrow down deep in their heart. Only GOD can give the everlasting pleasure.
Psalm 16:5-6 : 5 LORD, you have assigned my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. 6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely i have a delightful inheritance.
-> GOD have given us a place in heaven
-> He have placed for us blessings ready for us to be poured out onto us.
-> We will have a wonderful blessings and inheritance
Psalm 16:10 : because you will abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One See decay.
-> Resurrection of Jesus. But it also means those who come back to GOD and those who trust in the LORD will not see the grave but a path of life GOD have prepared.
please keep in prayer for me. I'm still sick from yesterday, had flu and quite an irritating sore throat..haha so please keep in prayer. =D
Psalm 15
1 LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary?
Who may live on your holy hill?
2 He whose walk is blameless, and who does what is righteous, who speaks truth from his heart
3 and has no slander on his tongue, and who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellowman,
4 who despises a vile man but honors those who fear the LORD, who keeps his oath even when it hurts,
5 who lends his money without usury and does not accept a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things will never be shaken.
this morning as i read Psalm 15, i asked God what can He teach me from today's chapter. Then as i continue to read on, God showed me Proverbs 3. It's about "Further Benefits of Wisdom" and some of the verses are link in a way that it will help us understand better.
Psalm 15:2-3
2 He whose walk is blameless, and who does what is righteous, who speaks truth from his heart
3 and has no slander on his tongue, and who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellowman,
Proverbs 3:34
34 He mocks proud mockers but gives grace to the humble.
Psalm 15:5
5 who lends his money without usury and does not accept a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things will never be shaken
Proverbs 3:29-30
29 Do not plot harm against your neighbor who lives trustfully near you.
30 Do not accuse a man for no reason-when he has done you no harm.
Psalm 15:4
4 who despises a vile man but honors those who fear the LORD, who keeps his oath even when it hurts
Proverbs 3:7
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear of the LORD and shun evil.
Labels: DEVOTION
Brief review of recent events
Salt and Light / Yr of Sabbath
Salt and Light (Matthew 5:13-16) 13"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. 14"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
How does it feel to be different in and among your friends when you hang out? Have you ever wanted to follow their ways? No, lets not go down that path but instead claim the fact that you are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. As it is, there are always two sides to a coin and two extreme ends of a road. Have you been so worn out by this race you have been tirelessly running that you have lost your saltiness, or rather, is your light is getting dimmer? I pray this is not so. Why? Because as His disciples, He wants us to provide illumination for a lost and dying world. But, even if you are feeling breathless in the race that you have been running for Him, fear not because it's the Year of Sabbath!
Do you recall the 3 Key Indicators for the Year of Sabbath that pastor shared?
1.Intimacy - Remembrance and Reliance upon the Lord
2.Interdependence - Restoration and Rebuilding of Relationships
3.Integration - Rest and Recreation of the Land
I just sense that in this Year of Sabbath, God is yearning for many of us to grow mightily in Him. We'll grow strong in the Word, learn more about our Saviour and spend more quality time with our Friend. Lets take this opportunity to rewind, reflect and recharge.
Rewind - Lets look back on the past years and remember God's goodness in our lives. Something that Pastor said that really speaks a lot to me, "God's faithfulness to us in the past stirs up our faith in Him for the future." Today, lets recall all the great, might works that God has done in our lives. (It's quite similar to my previous post about giving thanks to God.) We know that God has been faithful to us and let us allow his faithfulness to increase our faith in Him for more things to come in the years ahead.
Reflect - I think we need to reflect on how our time set aside for God is spent. Was it for the sake of something in return? Or, just for the sake of your ministry (cell group)? I think we have to change our attitude of QT(Quiet Time). Lets not always come before God and keep asking asking asking, but lets come before God and dwell in his presence. Do you know that God delights in our time that we spend with Him? Something pastor said, "Your devotional life is about how much God is blessed, not how much we are blessed." I think this is so true. I remember myself doing QT for the sake of it, or even for the sake of asking for something in return. But as His followers, lets learn to bless God with each and every time that we come before Him in our devotional life.
Recharge - The Year of Sabbath is also a Year to recharge our spiritual batteries. If your light is getting faulty or your salt is losing its saltiness, then take this Year to regenerate your energy and get things back on track. I feel that the camp verse for end last year speaks so much about re-charging. Isaiah 40: 28-31.
28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
29 He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
31 but those who hope in the LORD
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
I just feel that God knows so many of us are growing tired and weary, or even stumbling and falling. I personally have felt this way before. But God doesn't want us to give up. I believe in this year, God will re-ignite the passion of every heart that longs to shine for Him, every fire that wants to burn just for Him because he is preparing us for rapid growth in the build up to the year of Jubilee. He doesn't want us to be tired and weary in the most exciting times ahead, but he wants us to soar on wings like eagles, run and not grow weary, walk and not be faint, when the time comes for massive revival. Just wanna bless you with my personal devotion. Cheers.
