Week #50 Happy Thanksgiving

Psalm 100
A psalm. For giving thanks.

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.
----------------------------------------------------------------

This Thanksgiving don't forget to thank the Lord for the many blessings he has provided you. Family, friends, health, wealth, green lights, great food, the list goes on and on. Enjoy this Thanksgiving Holiday and look for a new Bible study coming next Wednesday!

Week #49 Waiting on God

20 We wait in hope for the LORD;
he is our help and our shield.

21 In him our hearts rejoice,
for we trust in his holy name.

22 May your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD,
even as we put our hope in you.

Psalm 33: 20-22

Because our God is an all-knowing, wise, and loving heavenly Father, we’ll always benefit when we follow His schedule. However, waiting on Him can feel difficult.

Throughout the Bible, we read of people who experienced delays before God acted on what He had promised. In the following examples, notice how patience and obedience led to blessing:

1. Noah was told to build an ark because a flood was coming. When the rain did not arrive, his neighbors must have thought him a fool. Yet Noah trusted God and continued to work (Gen. 6:12-22).

2. After reluctantly agreeing to approach Pharaoh about releasing the Jewish slaves, Moses learned it would take a number of warnings before God’s plan would be fulfilled (Ex. 7:1-7).

3. Jesus’ disciples were told to wait in Jerusalem until they received the promised Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4).

When I was a young boy, I learned the importance of patience. After having me plant some seeds in her garden, my mother explained what would happen. First, green sprouts would appear, and then the plants would develop. I kept a close watch on that area, but nothing seemed to be happening. One day I decided to dig up those seeds to see if there was any progress. I found no plants at all. My impatience did not produce any fruit.

The Lord has a plan for each of us, and the timing of every detail is always right. Are you living according to His schedule?

--------------------------------------

© 2008 In Touch Ministries® All Rights Reserved.

Week #47 Do What I Say

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
"Honor your father and mother" - which is the first
commandment with a promise - "that it may go well with you
and that you may enjoy long life on the earth." Fathers, do
not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the
training and instruction of the Lord.

Ephesians 6:1-4

This one pokes fun at us young folk...and a lot of older folks too. We are told to honor our father and mother. Why? So that we may enjoy long life on the earth. Is it that simple? Pretty much. The Bible is clear that we are to respect our elders and those placed in authority over us. This holds especially true for our relationships with our parents.

Our main job as children is to obey our parents. Our parent's main job should be to teach us about God, show us how important having a personal relationship with God truly is, and set an example for how a godly person should act and carry themselves on a daily basis both inside and outside of the home. (Obviously parents have other jobs and responsibilities, but for the sake of this post, these are the ones I am focusing on...yer dig?)

This doesn't always happen. Many parents don't have a personal relationship with the Lord and therefore they do not know how to relay the importance of having a relationship with God to their children. In this case, we have to hope and pray that a Christian friend, church member, or family member will step in and plant the seed in the family's life. In cases like these, the child that learns about God can be a major influence on the parent's life by displaying the Christian lifestyle to his or her parents. I feel like I have branched off into another topic here (oops).

Anyway...we are supposed to obey our parents. By obeying our parents, we are obeying God. God is pleased when we obey His commands. He wants to bless us and He wants us to enjoy our lives. God teaches us what to do and what not to do, allowing us to enjoy true freedom. By obeying God, we are able to avoid sin and the misery sin brings into our lives and we can look forward to the blessings God wants to pour over all of us!