Some Blog Answers from Life Groupies:
God is All Powerful:
1. Do we ever live like God is here for us instead of the fact that we are here for Him?
Amy: I think far too often that we live as if God is here for us. When we try to fit Him into our mental box, when we only come to Him when we have a need, when we neglect our time with Him for busyiness and stuff.
Michelle: Especially with our me-centric society, it’s very easy to get into the line of thinking that God is here for us…to meet our every need, want and desire. It is a very arrogant opinion to hold especially considering HE is the creator of the universe, but I have fallen into that trap myself…one that I want to consciously be reminded that this is not the case.
Lori: It is very easy to forget that we are here ONLY for His good pleasure and to serve Him. Our thoughts seem to naturally focus on what is going on in our lives, or with our families or friends. We seek Him out, sometimes routinely and sometimes with a passion or fervor when we are overwhelmed, worried, or anxious. We pray for relief from pain - emotional or physical, healing or relief from troubling relationships, etc. It is easy to forget that God is allowing us to go through each and every situation, no matter how painful, how lengthy, how troubling, to either teach us and refine us or because He is working in the lives of others and USING us to that end. We are indeed here for Him, but we easily forget!
We tell God to use us, but we forget that He is using us! In every situation that He places before us or allows us to endure, He is using us and reminding us that we are here for Him.
2. (Also from the pastor’s sermon) Name a worldview opinion that is different than God’s. If God is all powerful, how should we react to worldview opinions that differ from God’s opinion?
Amy: There are so many to choose from, from abortion being a woman's right to choose to the acceptance of sexual sin as a whole society. The way we should react is to make the bible our standard of behavior. I know that none are perfect, but this should be our goal.
Michelle: How much time and space do you have? Abortion, same-sex marriage, pre-marital sex, living with someone prior to marriage. How should we react…love the sinner…hate the sin, as well as not participate in the opinions that don’t line up with God. We are called to be in this world, but not of this world. We need to be set apart from the world, so that others will hopefully see a difference in us (Christ’ love) and will want what we have.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
God in our suffering...
It was a Friday and being the computer nerd I am... in front of the computer, I got an email. It was from my son's teacher. He was caught cheating on a test. My heart sank. It felt like it grew in weight and sank to my stomach. I physically felt the life drain out of me in that moment.
Briggs is having some issues in school, so this just added to his current rap sheet of incidents. I had to get my message to him and since it was my weekend being a Friday, it was up to me to administer punishment and work on his studying and the issue itself.
It was a long weekend. I yelled at him trying to put the fear of God in him. His punishment was to clean my backyard and he had to study the rest of the weekend outside of that. I know: harsh, but this has been going on for some time in his life and somehow I have got to get him to stop making these decisions.
I even begged him to stop walking down this road. I told him how these decisions lead to more damaging ones and that as he gets older, the punishments get worse. I told him that I would fight him every step that he walked down this road. Not because I hate him, but because I love him so much that I don't want to see him live this way. If I deal with him, I know that I will be able to give mercy at some point. However, if he is an adult out of my care, I can't do anything if he breaks the law or loses his job.
With all this said, my son is one of the most tender-hearted kids I've seen in my life. I don't just say that because he's my son, he really is. He's a giving and respectful kid and he amazes me sometimes, but he's making these bad decisions lately that have literally hurt him and me both. I want more for him and I know he can do it.
After that weekend was over, I was emotionally drained. In that fatigue, I learned something about God. When we sin, and we are His, the pain He must feel is horrible. Sometimes, we can feel like God doesn't care when we hurt, but this weekend of punishment with Briggs has taught me alot. If the sinking feeling I had when I first learned of Briggs' cheating hit me like it did, I can only imagine how all our sins together hit God.
In the Old Testament, He calls out to Israel to return to Him. Sometimes punishment, and sometimes abandonment for a period of time, but God always took them back and restored them. At the end of the Old Testament, it looks like He's about to give up on them and scatters them, in 1948, they are a nation again. I mean really. Say you were a betting person back then, if I said, "Who do you think will exist a few hundred years from now? the Romans, the Greeks, or... the Jews? Who will have their own country?" The chances of the Jews coming out on top only could have happened with God's hand. Sin or no sin, He loves. He forgives. He restores. It's all throughout His book. It's how I want to love my son.
That weekend when Briggs was working, it was all I could do to not go help him. I knew I couldn't however. I knew he had to learn, just like I did when I was young. It hurt me to see him working on something he didn't have to do. Sometimes, trials come our way and we deal with pain and crippling times. After this weekend, I learned in as much as I could that God really cares about my pain. Well, I "knew" it, but after this weekend, I was given a taste of what He might feel with my sin and trials I've faced.
I believe now more than ever that God hurts with us through our trials and that He loves us more than we can imagine. That sounds crazy, but I think it's true. Imagine being loved more than you can understand? It's not even possible to comprehend really.
When that weekend was done, it took me a few days to recover. I had to let some things go and regain my strength, but my son left my house knowing how much I love him. God loves you. No matter how much you've sinned and no matter what you are going through. He is with you and His heart for you is good. He sealed that with the cross and made a way for you to be with Him forever... because He loves you. If you are jobless, He's your provider. If you are lonely, you are not alone. He's with you. If you are in need, He knows. Sick? He's your healer. No matter what you face, you are loved by Love Himself.
God bless,
Dave
Briggs is having some issues in school, so this just added to his current rap sheet of incidents. I had to get my message to him and since it was my weekend being a Friday, it was up to me to administer punishment and work on his studying and the issue itself.
It was a long weekend. I yelled at him trying to put the fear of God in him. His punishment was to clean my backyard and he had to study the rest of the weekend outside of that. I know: harsh, but this has been going on for some time in his life and somehow I have got to get him to stop making these decisions.
I even begged him to stop walking down this road. I told him how these decisions lead to more damaging ones and that as he gets older, the punishments get worse. I told him that I would fight him every step that he walked down this road. Not because I hate him, but because I love him so much that I don't want to see him live this way. If I deal with him, I know that I will be able to give mercy at some point. However, if he is an adult out of my care, I can't do anything if he breaks the law or loses his job.
With all this said, my son is one of the most tender-hearted kids I've seen in my life. I don't just say that because he's my son, he really is. He's a giving and respectful kid and he amazes me sometimes, but he's making these bad decisions lately that have literally hurt him and me both. I want more for him and I know he can do it.
After that weekend was over, I was emotionally drained. In that fatigue, I learned something about God. When we sin, and we are His, the pain He must feel is horrible. Sometimes, we can feel like God doesn't care when we hurt, but this weekend of punishment with Briggs has taught me alot. If the sinking feeling I had when I first learned of Briggs' cheating hit me like it did, I can only imagine how all our sins together hit God.
In the Old Testament, He calls out to Israel to return to Him. Sometimes punishment, and sometimes abandonment for a period of time, but God always took them back and restored them. At the end of the Old Testament, it looks like He's about to give up on them and scatters them, in 1948, they are a nation again. I mean really. Say you were a betting person back then, if I said, "Who do you think will exist a few hundred years from now? the Romans, the Greeks, or... the Jews? Who will have their own country?" The chances of the Jews coming out on top only could have happened with God's hand. Sin or no sin, He loves. He forgives. He restores. It's all throughout His book. It's how I want to love my son.
That weekend when Briggs was working, it was all I could do to not go help him. I knew I couldn't however. I knew he had to learn, just like I did when I was young. It hurt me to see him working on something he didn't have to do. Sometimes, trials come our way and we deal with pain and crippling times. After this weekend, I learned in as much as I could that God really cares about my pain. Well, I "knew" it, but after this weekend, I was given a taste of what He might feel with my sin and trials I've faced.
I believe now more than ever that God hurts with us through our trials and that He loves us more than we can imagine. That sounds crazy, but I think it's true. Imagine being loved more than you can understand? It's not even possible to comprehend really.
When that weekend was done, it took me a few days to recover. I had to let some things go and regain my strength, but my son left my house knowing how much I love him. God loves you. No matter how much you've sinned and no matter what you are going through. He is with you and His heart for you is good. He sealed that with the cross and made a way for you to be with Him forever... because He loves you. If you are jobless, He's your provider. If you are lonely, you are not alone. He's with you. If you are in need, He knows. Sick? He's your healer. No matter what you face, you are loved by Love Himself.
God bless,
Dave
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