OT DAY 550 - Even until Now, God Has Been Unwilling to Destroy His People (Please click here for English podcast)

Silence

1.   Put on your “brakes” and stop for a moment of silence

2.   Wait for God. Breathe deep for God's peace and feel His presence. Exhale your worries.

Praise and Thanksgiving

1.   Think through your day, all the times that made you smile

2.   Thank God for all those moments, and for all those people

3.   Open your heart to praise the Lord

       Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints,
          for those who fear him have no lack!

        The young lions suffer want and hunger;

           but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

        

                                     Psalm 34:9-10

Confession and Repentance (Subjective Shifting Devotion Method http://bishopsilas.blogspot.ca/2009/08/count-down-5-subject-shifting-devotion.html)

1.  Pray for the Holy Spirit to work in you:

     “Dear Holy Spirit, shine your light into the places of darkness in my life. Show me my sins, everything that blocks me from encountering God. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.”

2.  Through the Holy Spirit, examine yourself for a short silence and then pray:

     "Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for dying on the cross for our sins and being victorious over death and sin. I confess my sin to you(pause, to tell Jesus what the Holy Spirit has shown you). Forgive my sins by your blood and help me follow you. Holy Spirit, fill me that I may be able to receive your gift to love God and His people. In Jesus Name I pray, Amen."

The Word (2 Kings 13:22-25)

English(ESV): https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=列+王+紀+下+13&version=ESV

22 Now Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. 23 But theLord was gracious to them and had compassion on them, and he turned toward them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, nor has he cast them from his presence until now.

24 When Hazael king of Syria died, Ben-hadad his son became king in his place.25 Then Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz took again from Ben-hadad the son of Hazael the cities that he had taken from Jehoahaz his father in war. Three times Joash defeated him and recovered the cities of Israel.

                                                 2 Kings 13:22-25

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

    My Listening

           There is a very shocking word in the English version of verse 23 "To this day he has been unwilling to destroy them or banish them from his presence." "To this day"! What day?

     Let's see how Professor John Goldingay tells us: 

     (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Goldingay) : 

            The closing part of the chapter spells out further what is going on in God's heart and draws on some key Old Testament ideas about God. God's action is an expression of God's grace. It's the first reference to God's grace since Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the temple (1 Kings 8-9), but grace has underlain the entire story. God's action is also an expression of God's compassion…we know about compassion because it was the motherly feeling for her baby displayed by one of the women in 1 Kings 3…
           All this meant that God wasn't willing to annihilate them or throw them out, "even until now." When is this "now"? Prophets such as Elijah and Elisha and kings such as Jehoahaz and Joash lived in the ninth century; Hazael died about 806BC. But for the author of these books, the "now" is much later. The Assyrians put Ephraim out of business, nearly a century later, in 722, but the period covered by these books covers the best part of another two centuries.

   

John Goldingay. 1 and 2 Kings for Everyone. Louisville,KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011, p.154.

     God holds his anger and his last warning for a long, long time because of his love and compassion. But, do we take it for granted that we are not willing to change our life to walk with God rather than to walk with other gods in our lives! Do you know when God says, "Enough!" there is no one or nothing can change God's decision to destroy!

    Dear Lord Jesus,
    Help us not to take God's love and compassion for granted so that we can be in His presence at all time.  In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

Reflect on these questions:

    1. Do you think you are one of those people take God's love and compassion for granted?

2. How can you stay alert and help other people to stay alert to be willing in God's presence at all time?

    3. What have you got from Jesus today?

10,000 Reasons

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXDGE_lRI0E

四十天的"破. 立"靈修:

http://www.breakbuild.blogspot.ca/

如果你有 Android cel. 請按此處上載程式,可直接一按收聽最近之十次廣播:

Discipler123: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ideal.rec.app

破.立 Break.Build: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ideal.bb.app

Welcome to use my first blog: Read one chapter of Bible a day 

     http://bishopsilas.blogspot.ca/2009/08/day-1-i-am-blind.html

Today is our 296 days non stop Morning Prayer Monday through Friday 6:30a.m. to 7:30a.m. Saturday 8a.m. to 9:45a.m., Sunday 7:30a.m. to 8:30a.m.

The offering of our First Fruit every morning have changed lots of things: unity, lifestyle, character …and many more!

Today is our DAY 300 Time with Abba at 6:30a.m.! Praise the Lord!