Wrestling with God
As we’ve learned the last few weeks, God has a plan for Jacob. Jacob knows this, too, but he’s still trying to do things his own way and for personal reasons. Jacob was the second son born of Isaac and Rebekah, and God had told Rebekah that the elder would serve the younger. Esau was [...]
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 2 so far )God's Will Be Done Despite Us
I’m looking for a role model this week. As I studied Isaac, Rebekah, Esau and Jacob, I couldn’t help but think, “What is wrong with these people?†First they give us an excellent example of walking with God, then they give us a horrible example. These are the great patriarchs of the bible, yet they [...]
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 8 so far )Tower of Babel
Even though lunch today is at Fajita Flats, I brought along a suggestion from a restaurant I was recently visiting called La Place in Hengelo, The Netherlands. Here’s also a list of today’s specials; I can highly recommend the voorgerecht. (Other handouts go here: the complete menu, shopping flyers, German newspaper, Dutch newspaper, French airport [...]
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 6 so far )God Loves His Creation
Sometimes it can be difficult to remember that God is in control, that God has a plan for us. Let’s open God’s User Manual, Chapter 1, and start at the beginning. Genesis, verse 1:1 begins – In the beginning, God created… Let’s stop right there and discuss just those 5 words. Lately on the New [...]
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 7 so far )Christian Behavior in God's Church
I’ve discovered how slow to understand I must be. We’ve been remarking that when Chris or Fred teach, they get large amounts of text to cover. Chris had the entire Beatitudes plus half of the New Testament to teach in 30 minutes. Fred gets, like, the entire Old Testament when he teaches. And when I [...]
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 3 so far )Take Part in Missions
Sometimes we bite off more than we can chew. I remember my grandfather saying to me that my “eyes were bigger than my stomachâ€. He was referring to the way I’d heap food on my plate and then be unable to eat everything. My eyes were bigger than my stomach. Home remodeling projects can easily [...]
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 4 so far )Resisting Temptation
I’m sure you’ve all heard the prayer that goes, Dear God, So far today, I’ve done all right. I haven’t gossiped, and I haven’t lost my temper. I haven’t been grumpy, nasty or selfish. But in a few minutes, God, I’m going to get out of bed and that is when I’m going to need [...]
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 19 so far )Love Wholeheartedly
Our next minor prophet is Malachi. In Hebrew, Malachi means “messenger of Yahweh” or “my messenger.” Was Malachi the name of the man who wrote this book? Some scholars believe “Malachi” was simply the title of the book, as in “my message” to the people. We don’t know anything about the man himself, but it’s [...]
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 4 so far )Dependence
I’m going to be honest about my struggles this week to study for Zechariah books 4-6. Zechariah is full of symbolism and things difficult to explain and interpret. When I started studying it, I was lost. It was like trying to understand the book of Revelation using only a Julia Childs cookbook for interpretation. Things [...]
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( 2 so far )Pride and the Lord God
We’re continuing our study of the minor prophets today with Obadiah. Obadiah. When I found out this week’s lesson was on Obadiah, my first obvious question was, “Who in the heck is Obadiah?†Isn’t he one of the Beverly Hillbillies? “Let me tell you ‘bout a story ‘bout a man named Obadiah.†Or is he [...]
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