Praise and Worship in ALL form

[tiobanned]

Amen, thank you Pastor tiobanned.

am not a Pastor la
just a fellow believer like you

 

[cutekawaii]

Let's learn and grow together under God's guidance.

am not a Pastor la
just a fellow believer like you

 

[cutekawaii]

Zeus lighting god is more powerful than guan yin ma.

What about Guan Yin Ma?

 

[tiobanned]

The psalmist is helping us reset our focal point on the Lord by reminding us that all of us can have a tendency to set our eyes and our goals on the temporary and the material aspect of life. His advice is to let God work in our lives and plant His word in us, to grow over time and mature us slowly into a creature in awe for their maker. God wants us to set our eyes on the prize, the problem is that most of us are looking in the wrong direction, because the prize is not down here. Invest in the eternal before the ephemeral dissipates !

 

[tiobanned]

The Marriage Test​

Most husbands would respond with a sharp rejoinder: "Hey, it was your bright idea, now it's your problem. Don't blame me." But Abraham was not like most husbands.

Abraham and Sarah had waited a long time for the LORD to fulfil His promise by granting them the conception of a child. In the days of the patriarchs, men practiced polygamy. Abraham was free to take a second wife at any time. In eighty-seven years, though, despite Sarah's bareness, he had chosen to remain faithful to his one wife. Maimonides says that the long wait for the birth of a promised son was Abraham's fifth great test of faith: the marriage test.

Abraham's wife, Sarah, had no hope of having children. Her child-bearing years were gone. Like many women in her position, Sarah's thoughts turned to consider adoption. She had a handmaid named Hagar who was young and fertile. "The best solution," Sarah thought, "would be to have Hagar conceive a child for Abraham and bear it on my behalf." Sarah said to Abraham, "Now behold, the LORD has prevented me from bearing children. Please go in to my maid; perhaps I will obtain children through her." And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai" (Genesis 16:2).

In desperation Sarah asked Abraham to take her maidservant Hagar as a second wife and impregnate her. She said to Abraham, "Please go in to my maid; perhaps I will obtain children through her" (Genesis 16:2). In the Hebrew, she says, "Perhaps I will be built through her." She meant the building of a family and a home. Sarah desperately longed to conceive and bear children, and without children, she felt like a building left unbuilt, like blueprints never executed.

Sarah's plan to have another woman conceive on her behalf seems strange to us, but probably not as strange as our use of artificial insemination and in-vitro fertilization would seem to her.

Abraham gave in to Sarai's wishes. At first the plan seemed to be working well. Young and fertile Hagar conceived quickly. Sarah did not feel any joy over the good news, though. The plan backfired. Instead of bearing a son for Sarah, Hagar regarded herself as a wife in equal standing. The child was to be hers, and Abraham was to be hers. Sarah had taken a risk and lost.

Distressed and broken-hearted, Sarah went to Abraham to lodge a complaint and to inquire about his intentions. She said, "May the wrong done me be upon you. I gave my maid into your arms, but when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her sight. May the LORD judge between you and me" (Genesis 16:5).

What would you do if you were Abraham? He had consented to the affair only at Sarah's behest. Now she comes lodging accusations at him, calling down curses on him and blaming him for her mistake. Most husbands would respond with a sharp rejoinder: "Hey, it was your bright idea, now it's your problem. Don't blame me." But Abraham was not like most husbands. Instead of returning Sarah's recriminations, he listened past the verbal abuse and heard the pain of her heart. She was wounded, hurting and desperately afraid of losing her husband to her maidservant.

Husbands ... live with your wives in an understanding way, as with someone weaker, since she is a woman; and show her honour as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered. (1 Peter 3:7)

Learn from Abraham's example. Abraham saw that Hagar no longer considered herself Sarah's servant. She considered herself as Sarah's peer. He told Sarah, "Behold, your maid is in your power; do to her what is good in your sight" (Genesis 16:6). Abraham affirmed that Hagar was still subordinate to Sarah. Sarah had not been replaced by the younger woman in Abraham's eyes—and he passed the test by remaining true to his wife.

 

[cutekawaii]

 

[tiobanned]

As Paul travelled across parts of Europe, he knew that the message he had to share was one with eternal ramifications, but also one that He did not control. Like Paul, today we speak the truth on which we stand and live by, hoping that others will grab hold of that life saver in an ocean of hurts, lies and difficulties always leading to eternal separation from God. We also need to remember that while sharing is important, only the Lord will open the heart of our audience to accept our message as saving truth. When people ignore or reject our message, they really reject God, not His ambassadors

 

[fearhimwhofearsnothing]

This is probably the best thread in the whole of edmw

 

[tiobanned]

The Famine​

Now there was a famine in the land; so Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land. (Genesis 12:10)

Not long after his arrival in Canaan, Abraham's newfound faith was sorely tested. Though God had promised to give the land to Abraham's children, that seemed like a remote possibility. Abraham had no children, and the land was already occupied by the Canaanite nations. To make matters worse, a drought brought on a severe famine.

Abraham had no choice but to pack up his wife, his servants, his flocks and his herds and travel to Egypt, where the Nile's abundant waters irrigated the crops even in drought years. He would find food in Egypt.

Maimonides refers to the famine in Canaan as the second great test of Abraham's faith. Suppose you had sacrificed everything, leaving your job, your family and your home in order to take an offer for a high-paying executive position with a firm halfway around the world. When you arrived you discovered that the position was not yet open, and you had to take a temporary job in the mailroom. As if that was not bad enough, a financial slump forced the company to lay off several mailroom employees, including you. You would probably be feeling pretty bitter toward the company that offered you the position.

Abraham did not give in to bitterness and resentment. He did not give up on God. When a person holds on to faith and hope despite bad circumstances, it is called perseverance.

We also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out." (Romans 5:3-5)

The need to persevere is a normal part of being a believer. The joy of a convert's newfound faith is routinely tempered by life's difficult realities. Faith offers no quick fixes or easy solutions to problems. Sometimes being a believer makes life a lot harder.

So, if life is just as tough for believer and unbeliever alike, what's the advantage of believing? The advantage is hope. As a believer, you have God on your team, and you never know what He has up His sleeve.

 

[tiobanned]

This is probably the best thread in the whole of edmw

Praise The Lord !

 

[cutekawaii]

God is great and is our best friend.

This is probably the best thread in the whole of edmw

 

[the only way]

 

[tiobanned]

We often ask God for things like wisdom, discernment and the ability to make wise decisions like King Solomon did. His selfless request was answered by God Who allowed him to be one of the wisest man who ever lived. When we are committed to study, obey and apply God’s word to our lives, we find ourselves in God’s will more than we realize. It is only when we are in God’s will that our requests will be granted, no matter how out of reach they might seem. The challenge is to really be in God’s will as opposed to our perception of His will.

 

[tiobanned]

The Quarrel with Lot​

Disputes and arguments are inevitable, but the way we respond to conflict reveals whether or not we are true sons and daughters of Abraham our father

Abraham and his nephew Lot both had herds and flocks. In the land of Canaan, water was limited, and the two kinsmen found it impossible to stay together. Their herdsmen quarrelled over grazing territory and water rights. Abraham said to Lot, "Please let there be no strife between you and me, nor between my herdsmen and your herdsmen, for we are brothers" (Genesis 13:8).

In this relationship, Abraham was Lot’s senior. He was clearly in a position of authority over Lot. He could have sent Lot away, sent him back to Haran, or assigned him to any scrap of ground he chose. Instead, Abraham elected to give Lot the first choice of territory and to be content with whatever remained.

Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. (Philippians 2:3–4)

This can be compared to a man who started a business that prospered from the man’s sharp financial prowess and business acumen. When he saw that his young cousin was struggling financially, he brought him into the business as a kindness. After some time the young cousin demanded that the business be split between them. What did the man do? He said, “You take whatever customers you like and as many assets as you want, and I will continue on with whatever is left.”

People don’t ordinarily behave that way. They usually look out for their own interests, and when a quarrel rears up, they do their best to come out on top. Looking out for “number one” is human nature, but it’s not godly nature. Yeshua taught an attitude of self-effacement:

Do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also. Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you. (Matthew 5:39–42)

By giving Lot the first choice of the land, Abraham exemplified the spirit of humility and heart of love that Yeshua described. To Abraham, preserving peace between brothers was more important than success or prestige. Predictably, Lot chose the best land for himself. Lot was not wicked. He was a normal sort of person, self-serving and looking out for his own interests. Abraham was not normal. “The disciples of Abraham, our father, are generous, poor in spirit and humble” (m.Avot 5:19.).

 

[Canis Lupus]

 

[tiobanned]

noted with thanks
then no reason why you are still alive

 

[the only way]

 

[cutekawaii]

God is not dead. Jesus died on the cross and resurrected 3 days later. Now he is in heaven. Praise the Lord.

 

[tiobanned]

One of the greatest hindrances to knowing God is knowing God. Most believers will tell you that they know God. Most religious people will say the same thing. Because they think they know God, they don't have to know Him anymore. They already know all there is to know. But the very first word used for God in the Bible is the Hebrew Elohim.

Elohim is a mystery word. It's both singular and plural at the same time. Why? Because God is singular, one, and plural... in that there's always more to God, there's always more of Him to know. Why do we have eternity in heaven?
Because in heaven we will be knowing God, and eternity is just about how long it takes to know God.

Make it your aim to know Him more than you ever have before - seek Him, learn of Him, go deeper, farther. For the one who truly knows God is the one who knows they don't know even the half of Him. Press on today into the joy and the wonder of those who can say, "That I might know Him," the God who is Elohim.

 

[cutekawaii]

Christianity is a relationship with God. We talk to God, tell him our day, praise him when we receive our blessings and seek his refuge when we are in trouble. We do not worship a dead person but have a relationship with a living God.