“[Thanksgiving and Prayer] We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing.”- 2 Thessalonians 1:3
To be completely honest, this verse doesn't make a ton of sense to me, probably because it is out of context. I think that the overall theme, however, is that we need to thank God always. When you think about that, it's true. Just think, what has God done for you? Well he died for us, he loves us, he protects us....this list could go on for a really long time! I think that is really cool. Usually we thank people when they do us a favor or some gesture of kindness, but God is continually doing these things for us. Thank God for God. :)
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Monday, February 8, 2010
Matthew 5:43-45
“[Love for Enemies] "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”- Matthew 5:43-45
How hard is it to pray for the people who you don't like or those who have hurt you? It can be really hard! Everyone has probably read the part about loving your neighbor, it is a recurring theme throughout the Bible. I had to read this verse a few times because I tend to want to zone out as soon as I read that part. I almost expect it to be a repeat of that same classic rule, but it really isn't. This verse tells us that while we are called to love our neighbors, we are also called to love our enemies and pray for those who turn against us. I think that in a perfect world Christianity would really be like this. Just think: there would have been no religious wars because we would all be loving our enemies. If you love someone, you don't just go to war against them.
This verse really makes me think. It is also challenging to me. A lot of times I just want to take the easy way out, and that really isn't possible here. It's kind of impossible to partially love your enemy. It's all or nothing. This is one of the harder aspects of Christianity in my opinion. Loving people who dislike you and maybe even persecute you is incredibly hard, and it is a test of devotion to our cause as Christians.
How hard is it to pray for the people who you don't like or those who have hurt you? It can be really hard! Everyone has probably read the part about loving your neighbor, it is a recurring theme throughout the Bible. I had to read this verse a few times because I tend to want to zone out as soon as I read that part. I almost expect it to be a repeat of that same classic rule, but it really isn't. This verse tells us that while we are called to love our neighbors, we are also called to love our enemies and pray for those who turn against us. I think that in a perfect world Christianity would really be like this. Just think: there would have been no religious wars because we would all be loving our enemies. If you love someone, you don't just go to war against them.
This verse really makes me think. It is also challenging to me. A lot of times I just want to take the easy way out, and that really isn't possible here. It's kind of impossible to partially love your enemy. It's all or nothing. This is one of the harder aspects of Christianity in my opinion. Loving people who dislike you and maybe even persecute you is incredibly hard, and it is a test of devotion to our cause as Christians.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Psalm 97:10
I haven't had much access to a computer lately so I haven't posted for about 2 days...but anyway....
“Let those who love the LORD hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.”- Psalm 97:10
The first part of this verse is pretty easy. As Christians, we are supposed to hate evil. Simple. The second part of this verse gives the reason, "for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked." I like how this verse doesn't just command, it gives a reason as well. We are supposed to hate evil because God does, and because God cares for each of us and guards our lives.
“Let those who love the LORD hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.”- Psalm 97:10
The first part of this verse is pretty easy. As Christians, we are supposed to hate evil. Simple. The second part of this verse gives the reason, "for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked." I like how this verse doesn't just command, it gives a reason as well. We are supposed to hate evil because God does, and because God cares for each of us and guards our lives.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Psalm 18:1-2
“[For the director of music. Of David the servant of the LORD. He sang to the LORD the words of this song when the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said:] I love you, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”- Psalm 18:1-2
This isn't exactly a powerful, life changing verse in my opinion. But it still is meaningful. David has always been an inspiration to me by the way that he lived his life and because of his passionate pursuit of God. Hearing what God meant to him personally inspires me to rely on God for all those things as well. Cool stuff. :)
This isn't exactly a powerful, life changing verse in my opinion. But it still is meaningful. David has always been an inspiration to me by the way that he lived his life and because of his passionate pursuit of God. Hearing what God meant to him personally inspires me to rely on God for all those things as well. Cool stuff. :)
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Psalm 59:16
“But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.”- Psalm 59:16
I had no idea that this verse existed until today. To say that God's love is worthy of song is saying a lot, it's meaningful in our own terms. Many songs are motivated by strong emotion, so to say that God's love is song-worthy is saying that it is powerful and meaningful. I think that my favorite part of this particular verse is the second half, which says that God is our fortress and refuge. This message really gets me, because that is one of the main reasons why I lean on God. Whenever something goes wrong, or I get hurt I know that I always have someone there for me. And this "someone" won't ever let me down or betray me. Pretty cool. :)
I had no idea that this verse existed until today. To say that God's love is worthy of song is saying a lot, it's meaningful in our own terms. Many songs are motivated by strong emotion, so to say that God's love is song-worthy is saying that it is powerful and meaningful. I think that my favorite part of this particular verse is the second half, which says that God is our fortress and refuge. This message really gets me, because that is one of the main reasons why I lean on God. Whenever something goes wrong, or I get hurt I know that I always have someone there for me. And this "someone" won't ever let me down or betray me. Pretty cool. :)
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
1 Corinthians 2:9
“However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him"—”- 1 Corinthians 2:9
Simple verse. Big meaning. I have to say I love verses like this one; verses that aren't really wordy but still have a great message. This verse kind of goes along with the fact that as humans we can never really understand or comprehend God in all of His power and glory. This verse, in simple terms, says that we can't even begin to imagine the awesome things that God has in store for those who love him.
This isn't a very long or in depth post, but this verse really speaks for itself. I have also had a very long day today and currently all I can think about is sleeping. :) Which makes concentrating a little difficult. More tomorrow. Good night. :)
Simple verse. Big meaning. I have to say I love verses like this one; verses that aren't really wordy but still have a great message. This verse kind of goes along with the fact that as humans we can never really understand or comprehend God in all of His power and glory. This verse, in simple terms, says that we can't even begin to imagine the awesome things that God has in store for those who love him.
This isn't a very long or in depth post, but this verse really speaks for itself. I have also had a very long day today and currently all I can think about is sleeping. :) Which makes concentrating a little difficult. More tomorrow. Good night. :)
Monday, February 1, 2010
The First Verse
Alright, let's get started. The very first verse that I am going to put on here is from BibleGateway.com, from their verse of the day section.
“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”- Deuteronomy 6:4-5 (New International Version)
This is probably a verse that we have all seen or read before, so it's easy to overlook. I tend to not pay attention to the things that I associate with the most, like taking small things for granted. When you really look at this verse, and really think about it, it is a real challenge to us. How often do we go into worship and don't commit all the way? How many times do we go through the steps of talking to God without really pouring out our hearts to Him? I will admit that I do this a lot. Sometimes I'm afraid of pursuing God with my whole heart because I'm afraid of change and where God may take me. I believe that as Christians we are always growing, and trying to the best of our ability to love God with all our hearts, souls, and strength. It's definitely not easy, and definitely not done in a day.
“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”- Deuteronomy 6:4-5 (New International Version)
This is probably a verse that we have all seen or read before, so it's easy to overlook. I tend to not pay attention to the things that I associate with the most, like taking small things for granted. When you really look at this verse, and really think about it, it is a real challenge to us. How often do we go into worship and don't commit all the way? How many times do we go through the steps of talking to God without really pouring out our hearts to Him? I will admit that I do this a lot. Sometimes I'm afraid of pursuing God with my whole heart because I'm afraid of change and where God may take me. I believe that as Christians we are always growing, and trying to the best of our ability to love God with all our hearts, souls, and strength. It's definitely not easy, and definitely not done in a day.
New
So yes, I now have a blog. Exciting. :) But not a new experience, I have another blog for my photography, but I haven't used it in a very long time. Recently a lot of things have been going on in my life, some good and some not. I've decided that I will try and find a Bible verse each day and discuss it on this blog, this has been something that I have wanted to try for a while, and now I'm finally making myself do it.
Feel free to discuss and interpret the verses that I post, your input is welcome. This exercise will ideally improve my personal quiet times and I hope it will help the people who read this blog as well :). I hope you all got a kick out of my blog's URL, it was probably the only name I could come up with that wasn't already being used!
~Rachel
Feel free to discuss and interpret the verses that I post, your input is welcome. This exercise will ideally improve my personal quiet times and I hope it will help the people who read this blog as well :). I hope you all got a kick out of my blog's URL, it was probably the only name I could come up with that wasn't already being used!
~Rachel
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