Posts Tagged ‘politics’

Spiritual Training 17 May 2012

Posted: May 17, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Judges, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command
Disobedience and defeat

Judges 3:8-9 The Anger of LORD burned against Israel so that he sold them into the hands of Cushan-Rishathaim King of Aram Naharaim, to whom the Israelites were subject for eight years. But when they cried out to the LORD, he raised up for them a deliverer, Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother who saved them.

Othniel was Israel’s first judge. In 1:13 we read that he volunteered to lead an attack against a fortified city. Here he was to lead the nation back to God. Othniel had a rich spiritual heritage-his uncle was Caleb, a man with unwavering faith in God (Numbers 13:30; 14:24). Othniel’s leadership brought the people back to God and freed then from the oppression of the King of Aram, Naharaim. But after Othniel’s death, it didn’t take the Israelites long to fall back into their neighbors’ comfortable but sinful ways.

Lets bring it home: How many of us, when we win battles by asking other people to pray to for us or even going to God when we need to win a battle forget about Him and go back to our sinful ways after being shown favor.

Proverbs 14:29 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: May 14, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command
Proverbs 14:29 -A patient man has great understanding, but a quick-tempered man displays folly.

A quick temper can be like a fire out of control. It can burn us and everyone else in its path. Anger divides people. It pushes us into hasty decisions that only cause bitterness and guilt. Yet anger, in itself, is not wrong. Anger can be a legitimate reaction to injustice and sin. When you feel yourself getting angry, look for the cause. Are you reacting to an evil situation that you are going to set right? Or are you responding selfishly to a personal insult? Pray that God will help you control your quick temper, channeling your feelings into effective action and conquering selfish anger through humility and repentance.

Proverbs 11:02 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: May 11, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command 

Proverbs 11:02 – When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.  

Proud people take little account of their weaknesses and do not anticipate stumbling blocks.  They think they are above the frailties of common people.  In this state of mind they are easily tripped up.  Ironically, proud people seldom realize that pride is their problem, although everyone around them is well aware of it.  Ask someone you trust whether self-satisfaction has bind you warning signs.  He or she may help you avoid a fall.

Spiritual Training 10 May 2012

Posted: May 10, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Judges, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command
Disobedience and defeat

Judges 2:16-19 Then the LORD raised up judges, who saved them out of the hands of these raiders.
Yet they would not listen to their judges but prostituted themselves to other gods and worshiped them. Unlike their fathers, they quickly turned from the way in which their fathers had walked, the way of obedience to the LORD’s commands. Whenever the LORD raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived; for the LORD had compassion on them as they groaned under those who oppressed and afflicted them. But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt than those of their fathers, following other gods and serving and worshiping them. They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.

Throughout this period of history Israel went through seven cycles of (1) rebelling against God, (2) being overrun by enemy nations, (3) being delivered by a God-fearing judge, (4) remaining loyal to God under that judge, and (5) again forgetting God when the judge died. We ten to follow the same cycle remaining loyal to God as long as we are near those who are devoted to him. But when we are on our own, the pressure to be drawn away from God increases. Determine to be faithful to God despite the difficult situations you encounter. Recognize the importance of maintaining contact with other believers.

Spiritual Training 07 May 2012

Posted: May 7, 2012 in Encourgement, Inspiration, Judges, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command
Disobedience and defeat

One generation died, and the next did not follow God. Each generation failed to teach the next generation to love and follow God. Yet this was at the very center of God’s law (Deuteronomy 6:4-9). It is tempting to leave the job of teaching the Christian faith to the church or Christian school. Yet God says that the responsibility for this task belongs primarily to the family. Because children learn so much by our example, the home offers the most effective place to pass on the faith to the next generation.

Judges 2:10 After the whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the LORD nor what he had done for Israel.

Spiritual Training 03 May 2012

Posted: May 3, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Judges, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command
Israel Fights the Remaining Canaanites

Judges 2:1-3 The angel of the Lord went up from Gilgal to Bokim and said, “I brought you out of Egypt and led you into the land that I swore to give to your forefathers. I said, I will never break my covenant with you, and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall break down their altars. Yet you have disobeyed me. Why have you done this? Now therefore I tell you that I will not drive them out before you; they will be thorns in your sides and their gods will be a snare to you.

This event marks a significant change in Israel’s relationship with God. At Mount Sinai, God made a sacred and binding agreement with the Israelites called a covenant (Exodus 19:5-8).

Because they rejected and disobeyed God, the agreement to protect them was no longer in effect. But God wasn’t going to abandon his people. They would receive wonderful blessings if they asked God to forgive them and sincerely followed him again.

Although God’s agreement to help Israel conquer the land was no longer in effect, his promise to make Israel a nation through whom the whole world would be blessed (fulfilled in the Messiah’s coming) remained valid. God still wanted the Israelites to be a holy people (just as he wants us to be holy), and he often used oppression to bring them back to him, just as he warned he would (Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 28).

The book of Judges records a number of instances where God allowed his people to be oppressed so that they would repent of their sins and return to him.

Too often people want God to fulfill his promises, while excusing themselves from their responsibilities. Before you claim God’s promises, ask, “Have I done my part?”

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

Spiritual Training 02 May 2012

Posted: May 2, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Judges, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command
Israel Fights the Remaining Canaanites

Judges 1:28 When Israel became strong, they pressed the Canaanites into force labor but never drove them out completely.

Tribe after tribe failed to drive the evil Canaanites from their land. (Judges 1: 29-35) Whey didn’t they follow through and completely obey God’s commands?

1. They had been fighting for a long time and were tired. Although the goal was in sight, they lacked the discipline and energy to reach it.
2. They were afraid the enemy was too strong-the iron chariots seemed invincible,
3. After Joshua’s death, power and authority were decentralized to the tribal leaders, and the tribes were no longer unified in purpose.
4. Spiritual decay had infected them form within. They thought they could handle the temptation and be more prosperous by doing business with the Canaanites.

We, too, often choose to tolerate sin rather than drive it from our lives. We may know what to do but just don’t follow through. This results in a gradual deterioration of our relationship with God. In our battles, we may grow tired and want rest, but we need more then a break from our work. We need to know that God loves us and has given us a purpose for life. Victory comes from living according to his purpose, willing to fully obey him.

Spiritual Training 30 April 2012

Posted: April 30, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Judges, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command
Israel Fights the Remaining Canaanites

Judges 1:4-6 When Judah attacked, the LORD gave the Canaanites and Perizzites into their hands and they struck down ten thousand men at Bezek. It was there that they found Adoni-Bezek and fought against him, putting to rout the Canaanites and Perizzites. Adoni-Bezek fled, but they chased him and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and big toes. Then Adoni-Bezek said, “Seventy Kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off have picked up scraps under my table, Now God has paid me back for what I did to them, (Lev 24:19 If anyone injures his neighbor, whatever he has done must be done to him) “They brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.

The maiming of Adoni-Bezek was one example in a long string of actions that demonstrated Israel’s tendency to disobey God’s instructions by only giving partial obedience. Enemy Kings were supposed to be executed, not humiliated. This defeated king recognized God’s righteous punishment more clearly than God’s people acknowledge God’s commands. When we understand what God tells us to do, we run great danger if we don’t carry out both the letter and the spirit of his words.

Spiritual Training 30 April 2012

Posted: April 30, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Judges, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command
Israel Fights the Remaining Canaanites

Judges 1:4-6 When Judah attacked, the LORD gave the Canaanites and Perizzites into their hands and they struck down ten thousand men at Bezek. It was there that they found Adoni-Bezek and fought against him, putting to rout the Canaanites and Perizzites. Adoni-Bezek fled, but they chased him and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and big toes. Then Adoni-Bezek said, “Seventy Kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off have picked up scraps under my table, Now God has paid me back for what I did to them, (Lev 24:19 If anyone injures his neighbor, whatever he has done must be done to him) “They brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.

The maiming of Adoni-Bezek was one example in a long string of actions that demonstrated Israel’s tendency to disobey God’s instructions by only giving partial obedience. Enemy Kings were supposed to be executed, not humiliated. This defeated king recognized God’s righteous punishment more clearly than God’s people acknowledge God’s commands. When we understand what God tells us to do, we run great danger if we don’t carry out both the letter and the spirit of his words.

Proverbs 27:15-16 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: April 27, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 27:15-16 – A quarrelsome wife is like a constant dripping on a rainy day; restraining her is lie restraining the wind or grasping oil with the hand.

Quarrelsome nagging, a steady stream of unwanted advice, is a form of torture. People nag because they think they’re not getting through, but nagging hinders communication more than it helps. When tempted to engage in this destructive habit, stop and examine your motives. Are you more concerned about yourself-getting your way, being right-than about the person you are pretending to help? If you are truly concerned about other people, think of a more effective way to get through to them. Surprise them with words of patience and love, and see what happens.

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