Time with Abba, Singing Praising 親親爸父，唱詩歌頌

Wednesday, September 2, 2015

OT DAY 308 - Why Joshua Sent Spies? Why Two, Not Twelve Again? (Please click here for English podcast)

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

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

   Some wandered in desert wastes,
  finding no way to a city to dwell in;
5   hungry and thirsty,
their soul fainted within them.
6   Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.

Psalm 107:4-6

Confession and Repentance

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 (Joshua 2:1-3 that I recited loudly today)

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

And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there. 2 And it was told to the king of Jericho, “Behold, men of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land.” 3 Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men who have come to you, who entered your house, for they have come to search out all the land.” Joshua 2:1-3

Let's have a time to be still and give the Holy Spirit space to speak through the passage of scripture 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
The past few days we read how God confirmed to Joshua that He is going to be with him and the Israelites, so that they have faith to cross the river entering into the Promised Land. And God said many times. Yes, many times through all kinds of methods.

Then yesterday we read Joshua got enough confirmations, had strength and courage to do it. Suddenly, Joshua ordered two spies to check the city of Jericho out. Why? He lost faith? God commanded Moses to send twelve spies forty years ago. This time, God did not ask Joshua to do that, why? And, why two, not twelve again?

Let's see how Professor John Goldingay tells us:
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Goldingay) :

What on earth does Joshua think he is doing? Why does he need a couple of spies to check things out in Jericho? It isn't as if his army is going to attack it. All Israel is going to do is undertake a religious procession, blow their horns, and watch the city's walls fall down. It is going to be rather like the Reed Sea event. So why the reconnoiter? The question is given added point by the contrast with the previous ill-fated spy story in Numbers 13-14. There, it was God who commissioned the expedition, not Moses, though God's reasons for doing so are not clear, and one wonders whether it is a kind of test; certainly this is how it turned out. Further, Moses himself later speaks of the venture as the people's idea (Deuteronomy 1:22). So Joshua's initiative raises questions.

John Goldingay. Joshua, Judges and Ruth for Everyone. Louisville,KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011, p.12.

We always talk about our faith should like the two spies with names, Caleb and Joshua, not like the ten with no names. What we have been reading since Exodus to here in Joshua is a faith journey. We have to acknowledge that we do not have faith. It is God who gives us lots of tests to increase our faith.

To send out two spies in this context can be the request of the people because they still lack faith. Or, could be Joshua because he still needs one more confirmation. Anyway, it is good that he sent out two spies and not twelve spies. May be he had a talk with Caleb and both of them said, "Well, just you and me is enough, right?" So, two rather than twelve because they learned a hard lesson.

It's OK if you want to have more confirmations for you to cross the river God commands you to cross. It's OK because you are a human. But, when can you be sure that you have got all confirmations you need and have the strength and courage to cross the river to enter into God's prepared Promised Land? That's the question from Jesus to you today!

Dear Lord Jesus,

Help us to acknowledge that we are just human beings and we lack faith. Give us signs and confirmations so that we can be strong and courageous to enter into your Promised Land. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Reflect on these questions:
1. Are you waiting for some more confirmations to do the thing God is calling you to do? Do you think God has given you enough confirmations, it is you lacking faith?

2. What have you got from Jesus today?

Today's Time with Abba daily reading that I recited loudly

Psalm 97:7-12

Ecclesiastes 1:1 - 3:22

2 Cor. 6:1-13

Proverbs 22:15

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

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

You may choose to follow my other daily blog:

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

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

Tuesday, September 1, 2015

OT 第 307天 - 如果你想過河,每天大聲讀出神的話語 (請按此處收聼廣東話 )

你可到我新的"破. 立 40 日靈修"Blog/Podcast 去做一個栽培師, 幫助一至二位的親友作四十天的"破. 立"靈修, 這正是主耶穌吩咐我有"破。立"的真正原因。你願意嗎?
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

安靜
1. 停下來. 靜一靜
2. 等候主. 深呼吸經歷主之平安, 感受主的臨在, 呼出你的憂慮

讚美及感恩
1. 思想最近使你開心歡笑的時刻
2. 為那些時刻及有關的人感恩
3. 敞開心懷讚美主

你們要稱謝耶和華，因他本為善；他的慈愛永遠長存！

詩篇 107:1

認罪悔改
1. 求聖靈在你生命中工作
"親愛的聖靈, 求你光照我心靈的深處, 使我看見我的罪, 我和主耶穌的阻隔,
求主幫助, 奉主耶穌基督名求。阿們。"

2. 透過聖靈的工作, 安靜一刻, 省察自己, 之後祈禱:
「親愛的主耶穌，感謝你為我的罪釘死在十字架上，我願意在你面前承認我的罪（凡聖靈光照到的，請逐一說出），求你用你的寶血赦免我的罪，我願意打開心門讓你作我的救主，求你救贖我，我願意一生跟隨你讓你作我生命的主，求你帶領我。聖靈，求你充滿我，使我得著恩賜及力量去事奉主、見證主。奉主耶穌基督名求，阿們。」

聆聽主話 (約書亞記 1: 1-18)

Chinese (Union): https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Joshua+1&version=CUV

6 你當剛強壯膽！因為你必使這百姓承受那地為業，就是我向他們列祖起誓應許賜給他們的地。

7 只要剛強，大大壯膽，謹守遵行我僕人摩西所吩咐你的一切律法，不可偏離左右，使你無論往那裡去，都可以順利。

8 這律法書不可離開你的口，總要晝夜思想，好使你謹守遵行這書上所寫的一切話。如此，你的道路就可以亨通，凡事順利。

9 我豈沒有吩咐你麼？你當剛強壯膽！不要懼怕，也不要驚惶；因為你無論往那裡去，耶和華 ─ 你的神必與你同在。

10 於是，約書亞吩咐百姓的官長說：

11 你們要走遍營中，吩咐百姓說：當預備食物；因為三日之內你們要過這約但河，進去得耶和華 ─ 你們神賜你們為業之地。

約書亞記 1: 6-11

現在讓你有一段安靜的時間, 給聖靈一個空間, 讓主耶穌可能以藉着你剛才讀過的經文, 對你說話:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmax47l2hLU

我的聆聽
You have to listen to this message, carefully. The topic I received from Jesus yesterday was "Do You Have A River to Cross?". Today, astonishing, the topic I received from Jesus is to tell you if you want to cross that river Jesus commands you to cross, you have to recite God's words as often as you can.

讓我們聽聽 John Goldingay 教授的教導:
The key to successful leadership is sticking close to the teaching Moses has bequeathed to Joshua. One might have expected God to say that he is to keep this teaching in his mind; God actually says he is to keep it in his mouth. In other words, he is to "recite" it. The word God uses is one that denotes meditation, but not a meditation that goes on simply inside Joshua's head. When children are first learning to read, they often read out loud; only later do they learn to read silently. When Jews read Scripture, they mouth the words. This may seem less sophisticated, but it means that reading involves not only the mind but the body and thus potentially the whole person. It may then have a better chance of influencing the whole person's life. Joshua's having Moses' teaching on his lips in this way does not relate to his teaching it to the people. It is rather the foundation of his own life as Moses' disciple and God's disciple.

John Goldingay. Joshua, Judges and Ruth for Everyone. Louisville,KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011, p.9.

Today I received another question from Jesus to you following yesterday's question "Do you have a river to cross?". And, today's question is:

How often do you recite God's Words?

I have been reciting God's words daily through my podcasts since March 7, 2011 when I started this Discipler123 blog/podcast.

Then, August 17, 2015 become the date I started copying the Bible from Genesis.

Surprisingly, I started to recite loudly Rev. Dr. Abraham Poon's Time with Abba's daily list on August 23, 2015, just ten days ago. Reading out loudly of the whole reading list usually needs 15 to 20 minutes, and the copying needs 45 minutes to one hour each day. Together with my daily devotion time to prepare my daily blog/podcast of almost two hours each day, I am now having 2 1/2 hours to three hours each day to be with God through the Bible. Do I have that time in the midst of my busy schedule? NO! Can I do that? YES!

The most important thing is, I feel more peaceful, joyful and secure. It is like a boat going to the harbour and lowering down the anchor. Safe and secure!

So, my invitation to you is that this is the right path for you to go.

Recite God's Words often if you want to cross that river.

Are you willing to join me daily to do that?

親愛的主耶穌,

Help us to be strong and courageous to recite your Words daily as often as we can so that we can cross that river you command us to cross. 奉主耶穌基督名求, 阿們。

省察問題

1. Does today's message and invitation give you a surprise? Are you going to accept the invitation and challenge?

2. What have you got from Jesus today?

親父時刻今日讀經表
詩篇 97:1-6
約伯記 40:1 - 42:27
哥林多後書 5:11-21
箴言 22:14

今天用"親父時刻"讀經表抄寫之經文

感恩讚美

讓我們為神同在感恩讚美主:

10,000 Reasons

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

歡迎你使用其他二個Blog 及 Podcast:

三年三個月讀完新舊約聖經:

http://discipler123.blogspot.com/

破. 立四十日每天靈修:

http://bishopsilas.blogspot.ca/

OT DAY 307 - Recite God's Words Often if You Want to Cross That River (Please click here for English podcast)

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

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 give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
  for his steadfast love endures forever!

Psalm 107:1

Confession and Repentance

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

The Word (Joshua 1:1-18)

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

6 Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. 7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. 9 Have I not commanded you?Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” 10 And Joshua commanded the officers of the people, 11 “Pass through the midst of the camp and command the people, ‘Prepare your provisions, for within three days you are to pass over this Jordan to go in to take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess.’”

Joshua 1: 6-11

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmax47l2hLU

My Listening

You have to listen to this message, carefully. The topic I received from Jesus yesterday was "Do You Have A River to Cross?". Today, astonishing, the topic I received from Jesus is to tell you if you want to cross that river Jesus commands you to cross, you have to recite God's words as often as you can.

Let's see how Professor John Goldingay tells us:
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Goldingay) :

The key to successful leadership is sticking close to the teaching Moses has bequeathed to Joshua. One might have expected God to say that he is to keep this teaching in his mind; God actually says he is to keep it in his mouth. In other words, he is to "recite" it. The word God uses is one that denotes meditation, but not a meditation that goes on simply inside Joshua's head. When children are first learning to read, they often read out loud; only later do they learn to read silently. When Jews read Scripture, they mouth the words. This may seem less sophisticated, but it means that reading involves not only the mind but the body and thus potentially the whole person. It may then have a better chance of influencing the whole person's life. Joshua's having Moses' teaching on his lips in this way does not relate to his teaching it to the people. It is rather the foundation of his own life as Moses' disciple and God's disciple.

John Goldingay. Joshua, Judges and Ruth for Everyone. Louisville,KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011, p.9.

Help us to be strong and courageous to recite your Words daily as often as we can so that we can cross that river you command us to cross. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Reflect on these questions:
1. Does today's message and invitation give you a surprise? Are you going to accept the invitation and challenge?

2. What have you got from Jesus today?

Today's Time with Abba daily reading that I recited loudly

Psalm 97:1-6

Job 40:1 - 42:27

2 Cor. 5:11-21

Proverbs 22:14

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