I finally understand not being able to go to church worshipping God is so painful!

 

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.   Sing a song to praise God (you are welcome to use "Father, I adore you" which I have been singing every morning for the past 20 years or your own choice to praise God)

          Father, I adore You, lay my life before You, how I love You.

          Jesus, I adore You, lay my life before You, how I love You.

          Spirit, I adore You, lay my life before You, how I love You.

      

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

1.  Pray for the Holy Spirit to shine on you that you are able to discover your sins and be willing to repent:

     “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 and having Jesus as my Lord. 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 sins 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 gifts to love God and His people. In Jesus Name I pray, Amen."

3.  John Stott's daily prayer of Christlikeness (Christopher J.H. Wright, Cultivating the fruit of the Spirit. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2017, 13)

(Please click this link to see how God used John Stott to change my life:https://bishopsilas.blogspot.com/2009/07/

           "Heavenly Father, I pray that this day I may live in your presence and please you more and more.

             Lord Jesus, I pray that this day I may take up my cross and follow you.

             Holy Spirit, I pray that this day you will fill me with yourself and cause your fruit to ripen in my life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control."

    

    The link to today's Time with Abba passages:   http://api.pastoralcareschool.org/twa/

    Time with Abba passages: (Psalm 42:1-5, Numbers 33:40-35:34; Luke 5:12-28; Proverbs 11:23)

    Today's key passage: 

    

As the deer pants for streams of water,

    so my soul pants for you, my God.
2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
    When can I go and meet with God?
3 My tears have been my food
    day and night,
while people say to me all day long,
    “Where is your God?”
4 These things I remember
    as I pour out my soul:
how I used to go to the house of God
    under the protection of the Mighty One
with shouts of joy and praise
    among the festive throng.

5 Why, my soul, are you downcast?
    Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
    for I will yet praise him,

                  my Savior and my God.   

        Psalm 42:1-5 

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 to Jesus as you listen to him. 

   

     My Listening

    The topic I received today from Jesus is:  I finally understand not being able to go to church worshipping God is so painful!

    Today's Psalm is a lament of the Israelites not being able to worship God in the Temple in Jerusalem because of their rebellion they lost their country and being taken away from home to Babylon! It is a lament and cry for the salvation of God!

    Before the pandemic, whenever I read this Psalm, I usually thought: You guys deserved that disaster! You left God, you should know that's the consequence!

    But now, most churches in the world stop their Sunday services for quite some time in the past two years. We started to have online life streaming worship on March 15, 2020, the third Sunday of March. And, we stopped our daily 6am Time with Abba and 7am Holy Communion on March 16,2020 which lasted for four years and four months in our church until two years ago!

    Those Israelites waited for 70 years for them to be able to return to Jerusalem, to be able to worship in the Holy Temple again!

   Praise to the Lord! We resume almost everything two days ago, March 20, 2022, the third Sunday on March!

     I sincerely hope and pray that we will cherish more of our being able to worship God in our own church, in the Holy Temple! 

     Don't take it for granted that you can go to worship in your church anymore!

     

      Dear Lord Jesus,

      We give thanks to you that after two painful years we can worship you in your sanctuary. Help us to cherish this precious opportunity and do not take it for granted. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.
     

     

      Reflect on these questions:

     1. What inspiration have you received from today's catch and what have you heard from Jesus now?

      

      2.  What is your next step to be more closer to Jesus?

    

      Family Corner:

     Find an opportunity to share with your family the importance of today's message. 

     

Please click this link for the video version of this blog: 

https://youtu.be/XWx4QZuZjWk

     To know, learn and practice the method of Time with Abba, please click this link: https://www.pastoralcareschool.org