- Tuesday, 6/13/23 Psalm 119:2, Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart. All of us need to up our game. Seek HIM: His mind
to guide our minds; His compassion to tenderize our hearts; His love; His submission to the Father; His effort to keep going when He was tired. Seek His character. Philippians 4:4, Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice. The verses that you’ve known, seemingly forever: how’s your obedience to those verses? To rejoice? Trust in the Lord with all thine heart? Forgive as Christ forgave you? Follow me and I will make you fishers of men? Honor the Lord with thy substance and the first fruits of all thine increase? I will set no wicked thing before mine eye? Love one another as I have loved you? This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth? Don’t let familiarity cause disobedience.
- Wednesday, 6/14/23 2 Kings 5:11, But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the Lord his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper. The time we spend thinking whether to obey a clear command from God is usually time spent justifying disobedience. Psalm 2:3-4, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Psalm 2:4, 37:13, 52:6, 59:8, Proverbs 1:26 OR Psalm 119:51, Proverbs 3:34, Jude 18, I Peter 4:4, 2 Peter 3:3. You WILL be laughed at: you can’t choose not to be. However, choose which crowd laughs at you.
- Thursday, 6/15/23 Psalm 1:1, Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. To be fully bless-able, be on guard during your active times, your casual times, and your resting times. Psalm 4:7, Thou hast put gladness in my heart, MORE THAN in the time that their corn and their wine increased. God’s products are superior to man’s: His joy, peace, friends, provisions, security, fun, education, methods, marriages, salvation, etc.: all of them are better. Don’t choose 2nd best. Revel in what you have.
- Friday, 6/16/23 2 Kings 13:22-23a, But Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. And the Lord was gracious unto them, and had compassion on them, and had respect unto them... God can oppress us and be gracious and compassionate simultaneously; we can’t be and can’t see how that works or how those two can coexist, but He can. Trust...endure...& obey. 2 Kings 17:9, And the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not right against the Lord their God, and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city. The secrets that you successfully keep from others, you’re not keeping them from God. But, if you’ll care for those secrets before judgment comes, the repentance can be kept just to Him.
- Saturday, 6/17/23 Proverbs 13:6, Righteousness keepeth him that is upright in the way: but wickedness overthroweth the sinner. A Christian can’t settle for the status quo. Stopping growth guarantees failure just like a bicycle must go to stay up. I can’t be good if I don’t do good. 2 Kings 19:14, And Hezekiah received the letter of the hand of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah went up into the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord. Do you have a situation that is truly hopeless? Study what Hezekiah did here (facing a huge, powerful army) and copy him. And, if God is your only option and He decides not to intervene as you ask, trust Him: He’s still aware and involved. But follow Bible recipes, even when they’re given in story form.
- Sunday, 6/18/23 2 Kings 22:20, Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place. And they brought the king word again. God killed Josiah so he wouldn’t see the judgment that was about to come upon his people. We don’t know when God is being gracious or being “mean and unreasonable.” 2 Kings 23:22, Surely there was not holden such a passover from the days of the judges that judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel, nor of the kings of Judah. (This includes the times of Samuel and David.) Even the best don’t fully match up to God’s standards. 1) Be comforted: you’re not as bad as you think you are. You’ve probably got more things right than you’re aware of. 2) Be challenged: you’re not as good as you think you are. You’ve got a lot of things that you’re not doing or not doing well enough.
- Monday, 6/19/23 2 Thessalonians 2:7, For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. The Holy Spirit (“he”) is hindering (“letteth”) the power of sin. So, if He allows negatives into your life, that’s it: He did ALLOW it. So, trust in the trial, and learn. 1 Timothy 4:12, Let no man despise thy youth... Interesting: “Timothy, control what others think about you.” On the surface, we can’t. But, the rest of the verse tells him (& us) to do all that we can to gender a good reputation. Those who think somewhat less of you: do any of the accusations that they have against you have any merit? Are you actively working on those faults, or is it a case of, “Well, they’re just a jerk”?
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