OT DAY 415 - The Scary Trap of Money, Sex and Power (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

All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,
    and all your saints shall bless you!
11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom
    and tell of your power,
12 to make known to the children of man your mighty deeds,
    and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
    and your dominion endures throughout all generations.

                    Psalm 145:10-13

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 (1 Samuel 2:12-36)

English(ESV): https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+samuel+2&version=ESV

22 Now Eli was very old, and he kept hearing all that his sons were doing to all Israel, and how they lay with the women who were serving at the entrance to the tent of meeting.23 And he said to them, “Why do you do such things? For I hear of your evil dealings from all these people. 24 No, my sons; it is no good report that I hear the people of the Lord spreading abroad. 25 If someone sins against a man, God will mediate for him, but if someone sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for it was the will of the Lord to put them to death.

26 Now the boy Samuel continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the Lord and also with man.

27 And there came a man of God to Eli and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Did I indeed reveal myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt subject to the house of Pharaoh? 28 Did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? I gave to the house of your father all my offerings by fire from the people of Israel. 29 Why then do you scorn my sacrifices and my offerings that I commanded for my dwelling, and honor your sons above me by fattening yourselves on the choicest parts of every offering of my people Israel?’30 Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: ‘I promised that your house and the house of your father should go in and out before me forever,’ but now the Lord declares: ‘Far be it from me, for those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed.           

1   Samuel 2: 22-30

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

        Money, sex and power are the three main things Satan always tries his best to trap us to pull us into sinning and darkness. How if two priests(pastors) commit all three? Well, Eli's twos sons as priests did that all!  

Let's see how Professor John Goldingay tells us: 

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

    

      It is said that there are three spiritual issues that men, and particularly pastors, have to deal with: money, sex, and power. Pastors are more likely to get into a mess in these areas than ordinary people, with more disastrous consequences for themselves and for other people. In a traditional society such as Israel there is no such things as money, but there are the kind of things we would want to spend money on, things with which we can indulge ourselves, so Eli's sons' behaviour in relations to the sacrifices already illustrates that they have a problem with the first and third of that unholy trinity of money, sex and power. The allusion to their involvement with the women who serve at the sanctuary then illustrates their problem with the second.  

          

John Goldingay. 1 and 2 Samuel for Everyone. Louisville,KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011, p.27-28.

       

          
       We know that in 1 Samuel 4:17-18 tells us Eli and his two sons died because of God's severe punishment.

       The consequence of committing what Professor Goldingay says "unholy trinity of money, sex and power" is so severe that you may not be able to comprehend. 

       Your pastors need your daily prayer in order that they won't step into those traps. You need some people to pray for you daily in order that you won't step into those traps! 

       The only way to avoid those traps is our daily intimate relationship with Jesus and our willingness to die those desires of greed and to control. Only Jesus can lead you to win against Satan's cunning and skillful attacks! 

Dear Lord Jesus, 

    Help us to be as close as we can to you each day so that we won't step into the trap of money, sex and power. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Reflect on these questions:

1. Do you think money, sex and power is really a scary trap? How well are you doing to avoid stepping into those traps?

2. What are your plans to stay holy, out of greed and control?

3. What have you got from Jesus today?

Today's Time with Abba daily reading:

Psalm 3:1-8

Genesis 8:1-10:32

Matthew 4:12-25

Proverbs 1:20-23

Photos of my copying the Bible today using Time with Abba passages 

Today's photo of our daily 6:30a.m. to 7a.m. Copying Bible session

Today's photos of our daily 7a.m. to 7:30a.m. Prayer Meeting

Praise and Thanksgiving

Let's give thanks for God with us. Let us praise Him:
10,000 Reasons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXDGE_lRI0E

Please click the link below to my new 40 days Break.Build site any time you like to having a 40 days "Break.Build" daily devotion with one to two people as a discipler to help those Jesus prepares for you to disciple. You need to know that the call and purpose of my Break.Build and this Discipler123 blog/podcast is for you to become a discipler to help more people to have a daily intimate relationship with Jesus and then they can become disciplers too:

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

Please click these links to the app. Andy Ng wrote if you have an Android cel.:

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

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

You may choose to follow my other daily blog:

Daily Devotion on Fire: http://bishopsilas.blogspot.ca/

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