Time with Abba, Singing Praising 親親爸父，唱詩歌頌 : OT DAY 54 - Don't Run Away! Return! (請按此處收聼廣東話Cantonese podcast click here)

Friday, October 31, 2014

OT DAY 54 - Don't Run Away! Return! (請按此處收聼廣東話Cantonese podcast click here)

Today's Reading: Genesis 16:8-16

** If you would like to learn a simple and good way of Daily Devotion method please read my “Count Down 5” from my Devotion on Fire blog:

http://bishopsilas.blogspot.ca/2009/08/count-down-5-subject-shifting-devotion.html

To use this simple and good way of Daily Devotion method please click this link:

.Subject Shifting Devotion.pdf

Please click this link to read Genesis 16:8-16

English(ESV): https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis 16&version=ESV

Chinese: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=創世記 16&version=CUV

Bible Study

Today's passage is a strange but wonderful story. How could Hagar went back to Egypt but then returned to Abram and Sarai? That doesn't make sense!

Let's take a look at what Professor John Goldingay says (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Goldingay) :

Hagar was told, "I know it's hard. But you have to go back."
Hagar somehow escaped Egypt and found herself in the family of Israel's ancestors. No matter how grim things get there, it is a better place to be, the place where God's promise and God's purpose for the world is at work. Egypt is the place where the israelites will be ill-treated and from where God will rescue them. In this same wilderness where Hagar is at the moment, they will wish they were back in Egypt because life continues to be hard. But Egypt is the last place anyone should want to go back to…
Hagar recognizes that when God's aide finds you, this person really does mediate the presence and care of God in person.

John Goldingay. Genesis for Everyone. Louisville,KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010, p.189, 191.

If you are Hagar, do you think you would return? What do you think makes Hagar to return? What would happen to Hagar if she insists to run away?

Let's have a time to be still and give the Holy Spirit space to speak through the passage we have just read. Offer this time up to Jesus as you listen to him, while listening to "Gabriel's Oboe": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmax47l2hLU

Spiritual Journal

The title I heard from Jesus today is: Don't run away! Return!

What I got from Jesus today is something important for us to think of. Why? Because I have seen too many people running away from God and at the end they were being totally destroyed by the Deceiver into a black hole of darkness, anger and depression. I have seen too many people running away from their home church trying to find a better church. Most of them can't find one and keep on hopping to more churches. The Word of God is to tell you to stop that and start to build your home church to be a better church, a true body of Christ that can bring reconciliation, acceptance, appreciation, love and peace to other people.

If you are not those who are running away from God and from your home church, I give thanks to the Lord for you! Are you willing to be the aide to help those who are running away from God or running away from their home church to return, just like what Hagar did? RETURN!

Lord Jesus, you are saying to us, "Don't run away! Come back to me, my child!"

Dear Lord Jesus,

Help us to return to you if we are running away from you. Pour down your fresh anointing on us so that we can be able to be the aide to help more people to return back to you. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

Please click this link to the app. Andy Ng wrote. You really need to use that if you have an Android cel. Andy said he is going to do the App. for iPhone later:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ideal.rec.app

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