Scripture in Review

I have been seeing posts for the Year in Review, so I thought I would do a post on Scripture in Review. These are scriptures that I have written down over the year. Scriptures are alive. Depending on what you are going through, you can find scriptures to help.

Ephesians 3:20 Glory belongs to God, whose power is at work in us. By this power he can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine.

When we do what God has called us to do, he can use that beyond our wildest dreams. Go ahead. Test him. What has God called you to do for him? Don't dream too small.

1 Peter 5:7-11 Turn all your anxiety over to God because he cares for you. Keep your mind clear, and be alert. Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion as he looks for someone to devour. Be firm in the faith and resist him, knowing that other believers throughout the world are going through the same kind of suffering. God, who shows you his kindness and who has called you through Christ Jesus to his eternal glory, will restore you, strengthen you, make you strong, and support you as you suffer for a little while. Power belongs to him forever. Amen.

God cares for us. He does not want us anxious. Turn it all over to him. If we are firm in the faith, God will restore, strengthen, and support us. We are not alone. Others are going through the same things we are. God brings us together. Don't go through this alone. Find someone to talk to, who will pray with you and for you.

Jeremiah 29:11-14 I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord. They are plans for peace and not disaster, plans to give you a future filled with hope. Then you will call to me. You will come and pray to me, and I will hear you. When you look for me, you will find me. When you wholeheartedly seek me, I will let you find me, declares the Lord. I will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I've scattered you, declares the Lord. I will bring you back from the place where you are being held captive.

When we wholeheartedly seek God, pray to him, call to him, he will appear, hear, and answer. If we put our whole hope and faith in him, he will give us peace. Whatever is holding you captive, God can take that away and give you a future filled with hope in Him.

Proverbs 16:3 Entrust your efforts to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.

When I am following God's will for my life, my plans will be his plans and they will succeed. God will bless us when we are doing his will. When we are following his will, the plans are God's plans and not our own.

Ezekiel 44:30 The priests should have the best of all the first ripened fruits. The best of every gift from all your contributions must go to the priests. The best of your dough must go to the priests. This will cause a blessing to rest on your home.

This is a big scripture for me. All the first ripened fruits belong to the priests. This will bring a blessing to rest on your home. When I read this, what popped into my mind was tithing. Tithing should be the first thing I do, first. That will cause a blessing to rest on my home. Tithing to the church, helping someone out, I've done my part. I've given what the Lord has required. What the other person does with it is on them. As long as I've followed what God has called me to do, he will bless that.

Psalms 4:3 Know that the Lord singles out godly people for himself. The Lord hears me when I call to him.

I want to be singled out by the Lord for being godly. I want him to hear me when I call to him. I may not understand why things happen as they do, for his ways are above my ways, but I pray to feel his peace and love no matter what may come my way.

Isaiah 40:31 Yet, the strength of those who wait with hope in the Lord will be renewed. They will soar on wings like eagles. They will run and won't become weary. They will walk and won't grow tired.

I heard that waiting with hope meant waiting with earnest expectation. When we wait on the Lord, we shouldn't be sitting, doing nothing, but waiting and staying ready. If you are in earnest expectation for someone, as you wait you continue to make sure everything is ready for their arrival. I pray to be continually ready as I wait with earnest expectation.

Isaiah 58:13-14 If you stop trampling on the day of worship and doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the day of worship a delight and the Lord's holy day honorable, if you honor it by not going your own way, by not going out when you want, and by not talking idly, then you will find joy in the Lord. I will make you ride on the heights of the earth. I will feed you with the inheritance of your ancestor Jacob. The Lord has spoken.

This verse means so much to me. Stop trampling on the day of worship; stop doing as you please on God's holy day; don't talk idly; call the day of worship a delight; call the Lord's holy day honorable. Then, you will find joy in the Lord. Don't do this; do this; then this will happen. Pay attention to these commands.

Job 37:6 For he saith to the snow, be thou on the earth; likewise to the small rain, and to the great rain of his strength.

Anyone who knows me knows I love snow. When I came across this verse, I smiled. Snow, be thou on the earth!

I hope you have enjoyed my journey through the scriptures that have spoken to me in the past year. Below is the link to my post on my scripture for 2014.

http://personalbiblestudies.blogspot.com/2014/05/ephesians-429-30-and-philippians-46-7.html

What scriptures have spoken to you? Which scriptures do you find you go back to? Have you picked a scripture for 2015? In another post, I'll discuss which scripture I have picked and why.

Migraines and Giving Everything to God

This past Sunday morning, our pastor gave a message that really spoke to my heart. Matthew 10:32 So I will acknowledge in front of my Father in heaven that person who acknowledges me in front of others (God's Word translation). We need to have a revelation knowledge of Jesus, not just a head knowledge. Each one needs a personal experience with Jesus. That is the only way we can show Jesus to others and He draw them to Himself.

I'd been thinking on this for a while. Time should be spent each day praying, reading God's Word, just spending time in His presence. I made a decision Sunday morning to give it all to God: my money, my job, , my worship, my kids, my husband, my relationships with friends, my writing, my bass playing, learning to play the harmonica, my life. We just finished Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace and he says it takes 90 days for a new habit to become automatic. So, I am prayerfully turning over these things that I haven't already. Proverbs 16:3 states-Entrust your efforts to the LORD, and your plans will succeed (God's Word translation). If I am praying, listening for God's voice, following God's Word and will for my life, then what I am doing would be in accordance with Him. And if I fail one day, I will ask for forgiveness and start over the next day. So many times when I skip a day of reading the Bible, it can turn into many skipped days. But each day that I read, is a day God can speak to me through His word. He's my best friend and what better way to get to know Him better than to spend time in His word where He speaks?

Reading the Bible is more than reading words on a page. They open up who Jesus is, His heart, His mission, His will for my life. He places great value on me, on each of us, so I can surrender my all to Him in love and trust. I want to spend my time with Him, learning all I can about Him, what He wants me to do, listening for His will. I want to spend time reading His Word, praying to Him, worshiping who He is. Each time I read, there is something there for me, no matter what I'm going through. God's Word speaks to my heart. When I pray, I feel His peace surround me. I don't want to lose that feeling of closeness.

As I consciously made this decision to grow closer to God, and turn it all over to Him, I had a bout with headaches again. I figure these came from eating the wrong foods, caffeine, and not sleeping well, all known migraine triggers for me. So, it appears I should give my eating habits over to God as well. It would make me more healthy. He looks out for us, cares for us. He doesn't want us to suffer. I love eating out. They put something in that food so I'll have to go back for more. But sometimes it gives me headaches when I go out to eat. Drinking coke just makes me want more coke. And when I don't drink enough caffeine, I get headaches. So, I looked up what foods are considered migraine triggers and what foods aren't. Pretty much I can eat grass, as long as there are no bugs in it, because meat can cause headaches too. I found a list of foods that I can eat for a few days and then after that I can add my regular foods back a little bit at a time to see which foods are causing the headaches. This is a plan. But I will need God's help because I like food. I should already be eating more vegetables, but do they come in chocolate? No.

So, as the sermon ended on Sunday morning, I was thinking of the song that says something's moving, something's changing. Then I was thinking I give it all to you, Lord. All that I am and all that I have. And such peace surrounded me it reminded me of the verse I have claimed as my verse for the year, which is fitting since we are getting close to the end of the year and I'll need to find another one for next year. This is the verse: Philippians 4:6-7 Never worry about anything. But in every situation let God know what you need in prayers and requests while giving thanks. Then God's peace, which goes beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your thoughts and emotions through Christ Jesus.

As we get ready to start a new year, let's make a renewed effort to lean on God, let Him lead us, and turn our everything over to Him.

Chapter Two of the God First Life by Stovall Weems

Chapter Two Order and Blessing

Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

Overall, everyone pretty much wants the same things: s good job, financial security, meaningful relationships, love. God-first living is the only way to receive the blessing we instinctively seek. No matter how much success, fame, or money we have, if our priorities are out of whack, none of those things will make us happy. Happiness isn't about more, better, or greater; it's about order.

This paragraph says it all, "This is why Jesus told us to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. When we do that, 'all these things' will be added to us. He meant that a life of anxiety is never an issue of unmet need but always an issue of disordered priorities. If we get the order right, God promises to meet our needs, with unexpected blessings attached. When we strive to set our own priorities, however--when we put God way down the list--we miss out on a life marked by blessing and peace."

What this says to me is, if I put God first, I don't have to worry about anything else. He has promised to take care of them for me. All I have to do is put Him first. It seems the more we try to get our lives under control through our own efforts, the more our lives control us. And while our lives control us, things that will build our lives and restore our souls go unattended.

When we worry and stress over money, love, material possessions, security, popularity, it distracts us spiritually. When we seek those things first, when that becomes our primary goal, over seeking God and putting him first, our life is out of balance. Putting God first doesn't undo bad choices, but it's the first step toward regaining the peace that has been lost.

So, what did we learn with this chapter? "God must be first. He cannot be second. We yield to a God whose authority brings an empowering blessing, not an oppressive burden. He can satisfy and fulfill us in ways that no person, place, or thing ever will. He created us to find supreme joy only in him, in a profound relationship with the Creator of the universe." The creator of the universe, the one who hung the stars, knows your name and he wants to bless you!

Chapter One of The God First Life by Stovall Weems

My personal Bible study of the God First Life: I decided to do my first Bible Study on this book because when I read it the first time, it really spoke to my heart. In the foreword of the book, it states, "It all starts with the decision to put God first." Once I make that choice, everything else will fall into place. As Matthew 6:33 states, "Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

Chapter One is New Priority: No matter how our life is going, we should live it God's way. Doesn't that put a new perspective on things? No matter what's going on, when we put Him first, letting our faith move from our head to our hearts, then God will take care of all the rest.

There are three life-altering, game-changing realizations that Weems points out: 1)God has a way for our lives. 2)We don't have to carry the weight of our life alone. 3)God's way is better than ours. God will provide all we need in life, but we must put Him first. This is the life God intends us to live.

How Does God Speak To Us?

How does God speak to you? Through His Words in the Bible, your pastor, other people, circumstances, your conscience, dreams? The key is knowing when God is speaking. As our pastor preached this morning, Jonah knew the voice of God, and still made the wrong decision. But no matter how far or how fast you run, God is still there. Even in the belly of the whale, God used that situation for the people that Jonah was to talk to.

This morning I had a dream. People were gathered, practicing for a play. I could hear people singing in a room behind me. A group of people passed us in the hallway. One person from my group said that girl wanted to be Alvin; she had to be Theodore. (I take it this was going to be a Chipmunk play.) There were other groups practicing in other parts of the building, and I remember thinking how is all this going to come together? How will the singers know when to come in? When will the speakers know when to speak their parts? The speakers and singers can't talk at the same time. How about the other parts? When the play is performed, how will all these people know when to come in for the role they are to play?

Then I heard God speak: In church, we all have a role to play. We can't all be Alvin, the preacher, the worship leader, or other spotlight positions everyone would like to hold. But, everyone has a job to do. You have to practice your part for everyone to be in unity. You have to pray at home, get in your secret place and talk to God, to know what your part is. You can't do someone else's part; you have your own part to play. You don't know what so-and-so went through to get where they are. Would you want to? The worship team must practice. If they don't sing and play throughout the week, worship is warming up, and it's over before they've gotten into it. We must pray throughout the week. We must read God's Word throughout the week. That's what gets us ready for church Sunday morning. Each part comes together in beautiful unity when God is in the whole.

How has God spoken to you? What has God told you to do? Did you do it, or were you like Jonah from this morning's message, running from God's will? Jonah's disobedience put the others around him in a storm also. Do you feel like you are in a storm? Obey God and watch the storm dissipate. Our obedience brings God's favor, like a blessing magnet. Obedience is the key.

Ephesians 4:29-30 and Philippians 4:6-7

How many of you have a verse for the year? I saw this on facebook and thought it was a great idea.
Last year, my verse was: Ephesians 4:29-30 Don't say anything that would hurt another person. Instead, speak only what is good so that you can give help wherever it is needed. That way, what you say will help those who hear you. Don't give God's Holy Spirit any reason to be upset with you. He has put his seal on you for the day you will be set free from the world of sin.
Now, this verse, made me stop and think. Speak only what is good so that you can give help wherever it is needed. We never know how what we say may impact whoever hears us. And, sometimes, we may be talking to one person, but someone else may overhear us. Is our speech at all times edifying, or building up, the people who hear us? When you're standing in line, and it is backed up, it is so easy to blame the cashier for being slow, or a customer for having too many items. But, have we stopped to think about what the cashier may be going through? Maybe she is having trouble at home, or just having a bad day. Maybe the customer has a spouse in the hospital, or a sick child at home, or is just having a bad day. We should be praying for them instead of complaining about having to stand in line. Our talk, whether at home, or with friends, or with coworkers, or just standing in line, should be building up, not tearing down.
My verse for this year is: Philippians 4:6-7 Never worry about anything. But in every situation let God know what you need in prayers and requests while giving thanks. Then God's peace, which goes beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your thoughts and emotions through Christ Jesus.
God's peace. That is what I am seeking. In every situation, I can let God know what I need, not because he needs to know. He already does. But, sometimes, just talking about something, makes us feel better. And you're talking to God. It brings us closer. We don't have to worry. God is in control. We can experience His peace that will guard our thoughts and emotions. Can you control what you think or feel? No. But God can. Peace can cover us no matter what we are going through.
For this year, I also have a mascot. A cow. I love cows. When they are sitting in a field, under a tree, enjoying a breeze, chewing their cud, that is so peaceful to me. My sister shared a picture with me.

We get stressed when we are separated. After reading this, I realized if I have missed a service in church, or have not been around other Christians, I get stressed. God's peace surrounds those who know Him. God uses the pastor's messages, the worship team's songs, and what people say to you, to impart His Word, a word that you need for that day, or a word you will need in the very near future.
What scriptures have impacted you? How did they impact you? Was it because of a situation you were going through? Are there scriptures that you found while reading the Bible that spoke to you? What was going on that made that scripture dear to you?

Reason for this blog...

I have been reading some really great books lately. I have come across quite a few books that would make great Bible studies. This blog grew from that. Here, I will blog about books I've read and how they've impacted me, or conduct a series of posts relating to a book I'm reading, or post scriptures and how they've impacted me, my life, and what I'm going through. If you really enjoy a Bible study post, appreciate a Scripture I talk about, or can relate to a book, please comment. Let's have discussions!