the story ch 7

i'm now able to start chapter 7...

so far i've been feeling really thankful for the bible. thankful that we have this book.. haha... yeah.. anyway.

moses died (at the end of chapter 6) so God spoke to joshua. God commanded joshua to prepare himself and his people by first abiding in God's word and laws, and being confident in God's power.

joshua sent two spies to the promised land to scope it out for him and his people before they embarked on their journey. the spies ended up having to stay at the local prostitute's residence for the evening. but the woman, when questioned by the guards if she was hiding the israelite spies in her residence, chose to protect the israelites and lied to the guards. she did so because she had heard of how powerfully God's hands were protecting over the israelites and performed miracle after miracle... so she was fearful of God and His people. she asked the spies to promise her that her and her family would receive God's protection for she hid the israelites in her home.

[saturday's post]

proverbs 25

""if you find honey, eat just enough - too much of it, and you will vomit.. it is not good to eat too much honey, nor is it honorable to seek one's own honor." even a good thing should be had in portions, don't overindulge. always exercise self-control and discipline. it's interesting how God relates not eating too much honey and not seeking one's own honor. it makes the think that when we gain good earthly things, whether tangible things (money or material goods) or intangible things (success and fame), we should be humble and give all credit and glory to God. remembering that taking in those blessings should not be taken in as if that's all we live for - our greater reward and true treasure is in heaven.

jeremiah 3

importance of FAITHFULNESS to God. God talks about this by illustrating the commitment of marraige. you should only give yourself fully to your husband and him alone. God calls himself the husband of Israel and she has been committing adultery and giving herself to so many other things (idols).

the story ch 6

finishing up chapter 6...

moses complained that he's not the best public speaker, but he was able to deliver one of the most fundamental and convicting speeches to the israelites.
since moses wasn't allowed to enter into the promised land along with the rest of his people, God gave moses the words that he should speak to the israelites... reminding them about just how faithful God was to His people with whom he had made a covenant, just continuously providing for them no matter how much He'd done for them already. to never worship any other false gods, and to obey and follow every command God is giving to them if they want to keep living... etc....

---
the way that the book paraphrased moses's speech into simpler expressions was awesome. but i think i really need to read the full niv or esv version of the speech so that i'll know exactly which verses to come back to when i need a reminder of basic truths.

proverbs 23

"do not let your heart envy sinners but always be zealous for the fear of the Lord. there is surely a hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off."

jeremiah 1

God calls Jeremiah first by reminding him that he is God's special, beloved creation AND that God gave his life a special purpose. after that, he gives him his calling as a prophet. Jeremiah immediately doubts in response... doubts that he is capable or adequate for the job. but God responds with "you must go.. do not be afraid for i am with you and will rescue you.. i have put my words in your mouth.. go get yourself ready.." He will not take "no" as an answer from Jeremiah. He encourages him mainly with the fact that "I will be with you." that should be enough for us to have courage and obey God in anything.. bc if God is with us, then that means He is on our side and enabling us with His own power to accomplish anthing in front of us.

proverbs 23

"do not let your heart envy sinners but always be zealous for the fear of the Lord. there is surely a hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off."

jeremiah 1

God calls Jeremiah first by reminding him that he is God's special, beloved creation AND that God gave his life a special purpose. after that, he gives him his calling as a prophet. Jeremiah immediately doubts in response... doubts that he is capable or adequate for the job. but God responds with "you must go.. do not be afraid for i am with you and will rescue you.. i have put my words in your mouth.. go get yourself ready.." He will not take "no" as an answer from Jeremiah. He encourages him mainly with the fact that "I will be with you." that should be enough for us to have courage and obey God in anything.. bc if God is with us, then that means He is on our side and enabling us with His own power to accomplish anthing in front of us.

the story cont'd

i've started chapter 6.
i'm about 2/3 done with this chapter but i haven't really written on this blog about it.
this chapter is a continuation of moses and the israelites' journey...
one thing that i remember the most is about how moses did just ONE thing to displease God and therefore moses wasn't allowed to enter the promised land.
moses didn't engage in sexually immoral acts with the moabite women or worship a statue made of gold. he performed a miracle (creating water out of a rock) that is beyond ordinary human abilities... so it was from an anointing from God. but moses didn't quite follow God's instructions to the t; moses performed a Godly miracle out of his own anger and not to bring glory to God. so moses was punished...
this was actually really sad for me to read. if i were living in moses's time... goodness gracious... i wouldn't have made it past age 5. moses, the most humble and obedient person out of the whole camp, dishonored God through one instance of his life but was cursed for the rest of his time. :( poor moses...

proverbs 21

"there is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the Lord" if God has a will for you, He will make it happen. nothing will stand in the way.

isaiah 65

we're all unclean and our unrighteous acts are like filthy rags before God. yes we are sinners. but God looks upon the Israelites and gives them another chance NOT because of their good deeds and how they "fixed" themselves up bc even if they tried to, it's not like that would be good enough. so bascially, we'll never be "good enough" for God but that's the beauty of it - that's why CHrist came to be the perfect sacrifice for us - HE is enough for us to be accepted and fully loved by God. He extends grace to the Israelites because they are HIS CHILDREN - that very fact alone. He just cannot abandon His own chosen ones. that goes against His character. He would never.

sunday's post (caught up now phew)

at the top of mount sinai where God arranged for moses to encounter God's full presence, God promised to moses that He was making a covenant with him and the people. God emphasized that they should not worship any other god because God is a jealous God. and moses carved out on new tablets the ten commandments. moses stayed there for 40 days and 40 nights without food or water.
afterwards when moses descended from the mountain, his face was glowing from having encountered God. so he put a veil over his face when he talked to other people but removed the veil while talking to God.
the people put together their talents and adorned the tabernacle beautifully. when clouds were settled over the tabernacle, that was God's presence dwelling in those clouds. so when the cloud was lifted from the tabernacle, the people took it as a sign that they should travel that day. when the cloud stayed above the tabernacle, they didn't venture out.
during the year that the people spent near mount sinai, God laid out specific rules for how the hebrews should live their lives. this was because God was holy, therefore His people had to be holy as well.

friday's post

the story cont'd
from the israelites, moses recruited only those that were still for God. that group of people were the levites. as God told moses, moses instructed the levites to kill their brothers/friends/neighbors at the israelites' camp. so about 3000 people ended up dying.
the next day, moses went up to mount sinai to ask for God's forgiveness towards the people for worshipping the golden calf. God told moses to lead the people towards the promised land, and held off on bringing them punishment right away.
moses asked God for His presence to lead the people during their journey to the promised land. this is because God's presence with the camp of the israelite people would give them distinction from other people in the world, and also it'd be proof that God was pleased with them. so God agrees to do this for moses.
moses then asked God to reveal His face to moses. God said that whoever sees God's face will not end up living. but instead, God arranged for moses to be able to encounter His glory on mount sinai.


--God just killed thousands of people without any hesitation because they were unfaithful and worshipping a false god. thank the Lord for Jesus... right..? b/c Jesus paid for our sins that we're not struck to death right away when we sin... is this correct?

isaiah 63

juxtaposing God's intense wrath and vengeance with God's kindness and grace. magnifies His power and justice. God's expressions are extravagant -whether in wrath or grace.

proverbs 19

many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails. submitting my plans to the Lord.. let His purpose move forward.

wednesday's post

i WILL... catch.. up...... ok so sunday (tomorrow) i'll have to do friday's post and also sunday's post and i'll be caught up.... almost there... ok.

today's reading: more of chapter 5 of the story

moses spent time with God up in mount sinai for almost six weeks. while he was doing that, the israelite people that were waiting for him started to get restless of waiting for moses to return with God's commands. so they asked aaron to make them something that they can bow down to and worship. aaron collected all the gold earrings that the israelites were wearing, melted them and made a statue of a cow. the people bowed down in front of it, laid out burnt offerings, etc.
the Lord was very angry with the israelites. He told moses to go down the mountain and also said that He is very angered by them so He would kill them all. but moses begged God not to do that because those people are the descendants of abraham, isaac and israel, to whom God had a covenant to grow and prosper their offspring.
moses went down the mountain, saw what was happening and became very angry. he threw down the tablets that had God's writing of the covenant law engraved on them and broke them all. then he took the gold calf and burned that.

while i was reading this, i immediately started thinking of how i spent most of my day idol-worshipping. for example, when i chose to stay at home and not go to the lg dinner, i was worshipping my pride over fellowship with God's people. then i decided to watch two korean tv shows. i'm a very big fan of those shows and watch them every week when new episodes come out. so basically i was worshipping the tv shows over people's testimonies of how they were touched by ODF.
i'm really sad i chose not to go now.... the act of not going was so sinful and selfish.

friday's post (haha uhoh we both need to get better at this)

proverbs 17-18

"before his downfall a man's heart is proud, but humility comes before honor."

reminds me of my architecture days and how God totally humbled me... showed me how proud my heart was and how i selfishly sought after my own success, respect and glory. and after painfully surrendering my future to God over and over.. it's a few years later and God has been showing me SO much grace in depositing in me new passions and ambitions. something i thought i could never have again because of my sin and failure. but God had to humble me first before He gave me a new dream to live out. so it goes like this.. man's downfall - humility - surrender to the Lord - God honors you for obedience. He redeems, blesses, and lifts you up when we obey Him. humility before honor!

isaiah 61-62

prophecy of Zion/Jerusalem being restored and being given a brand new name. being given a new identity is always very emphsaized in the Bible. it's like... giving someone a completely NEW life and setting them on a completely NEW trajectory in life. it's an amazing thing when God gives a new name. Zion had a very bad reputation at this point... Israelites were so sinful and messed up and they were being humiliated and suffering a lot for it. But God promised that He would lead them to repentance and bring their hearts back to Him. and when that happens, God will give them a NEW NAME - they will no longer be regarded as "deserted" as many other nations thought of them. but ppl will call them Hephzibah, "my delight is in her". Zion (and the Israelite people) will be called... "HOly People" "the Redeemed of the Lord" "Sought After" "the City No Longer Deserted". what a beautiful transformation.

hahaha.. and reading all these promises about Jerusualem makes me think of Detroit.. can God restore Detroit and show His mercy and rebuild the city????

monday's post

so through moses, God gave the israelites the ten commandments and the book of the covenant. the israelites received God's words and commandments and declared that they would obey.
it is said that clouds covered mount sinai and God's glory settled there. it's also said that the glory of God on top of mount sinai looked like a consuming fire. ("consuming fire" is a phrase that i've heard many times from praise songs ands stuff but i don't know what this really means. and this book doesn't explain it either really...)

God commanded moses to get the israelites to bring an offering to God. He also told moses to build a tabernacle. the tabernacle would serve as the location of worship for the israelites. God told exactly how the people should organize their worship. God's presence would rest inside the tabernacle. also, the tablets for the ten commandments and the ark of the covenant would be stored inside the tabernacle.

proverbs 15

"better a little with the fear of the Lord than great wealth with turmoil. better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened calf with hatred." hm can i really say this and believe it? reminds me of paul who learns the secret of being "content whether in plenty or in want".. whether you have much or little.. can i still find my joy in the Lord? can i value the love of God and His lordship over my life more than all else? very difficult to say and takes so much faith!

isaiah 59

very sinful and rebellious nation (v12-16) yet God saves them and fights to get their hearts back to Him. He makes a covenant with them and continues to emphasize that he WILL NEVER break that covenant. He's a promise-keeper. He chose them and He is forever faithful!

post for friday and sunday! eeks sorry it's late!

proverbs 9-13

recurring theme: fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. if we want to gain wisdom, it all starts with knowing God first.

God is pleased and honors those who are diligent... as long as they also have integrity and pure desires... if you work diligently only to gain riches that you can trust in, then you will not be blessed and your life will end in ruin.

isaiah 53-57

"though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken." God's unfailing love for the Israelites again; God continues to affirm over and over again that He will redeem and restore them... yes, they were uber sinful, but God promises to FORGET their shame and sin, and He will show them grace and everlasting mercy. God doesn't hold grudges.. He will never try to bring up our old sins and try to punish us for them.. once we repent and turn to Him, He will forget them forever and see you as his holy and righteous child! wow! that's REAL forgiveness.

FASTING COMMITMENT:

personal:

-commitment to Detroit- should i stay here or go back to chicago? if i stay in detroit, how long should i commit to being there? should i stay long enough so i can teach in detroit? asking that God will show me the specifics of how to invest in detroit this year and in the future.

churchwide:

-church plant in detroit

-1 person to know Christ- one of my cca coworkers. right now there isn't any one person im investing in intentionally, so i wanna pray that God will show me who to pray and invest in this year.

-read bible in one year and that God's word will literally TRANSFORM ppl's lives!

the story cont'd - begin ch 5

God, the owner and ruler of the entire universe, told moses that he'd give him and his people a holy nation and land to live on. also, God told moses to get the israelites to start preparing to receive God's commandments and covenant. so israelites consecrated themselves by cleaning themselves and staying away from sinning.
on the third day since God told of moses about his plan, there was a thick cloud over the mountain, smoke, thunder, lightning, and a very loud trumpet blast. God came down to the top of mount sinai and moses went up to meet God. israelites were scared but God had planned it to be this way b/c they will have a fear of God. then God gave moses the ten commandments.

the way that God revealed Himself to the israelites was very grand and striking... and very apparent. i wish i could see God like that in an in-my-face kind of way. i feel like God works more subtly in my heart and i wish i could attest to being able to see - with the naked eye - God's presence in my life.

one thing that really struck me from james and faith's testimonies today was that they drew a lot of the references from scripture from the old testament... and more specifically, genesis and exodus. i was grateful and kind of amazed that i was able to say "hey i know that story. hey i recognize that..." even one of the slides used the visual of God's thick pillar of cloud leading the israelites out of egypt. i JUST read that like... a few days ago. this is meaningful to me, because when i read these stories from the beginning of the old testament and was subsequently touched/moved by them in my personal life, i still felt like such a noob for having JUST learned the significance of those stories of God's faithfulness in abraham's life and having JUST been moved by those stories. in other words, i was kind of ashamed b/c i felt like, for other christians that have been walking with the Lord longer than i have, they were too far advanced in their walk and knowledge of scripture that they would consider abraham/moses's stories to be "too fundamental/foundational" and the scripture that they are influenced more would be from like the new testament like acts and books by timothy and john and etc. so basically i was surprised that james and faith are still deeply moved and influenced by God's relationship with abraham and moses and used those in sharing their testimonies with us.

the story cont'd - ch 4 done

i finished up the rest of the chapter of moses and aaron bringing the israelites out of egypt.

God enabled moses to perform a range of different miracles... and God worked through moses and also through pharaoh to show His full glory to the israelites - basically get them to understand that it's the almighty and glorious God that rescued them out of egypt.

but the israelites are so so impatient... they get tired from walking through the desert, so they complain to moses and aaron. they say things like, "did you guys bring us out of egypt so that you can have all of us die out here in the desert?" what's the most shocking was that they say that they would've preferred to live in egypt, because at least in egypt, they were able to eat and have a place to rest their heads at night, despite the fact that they were slaves.

but then....... really, who am i to condemn them? honestly. i've dragged my feet through the last few months, wanting to run away from God because i didn't want to be subjected to having to suffer through the difficulties in life. God allowing me to go through hard times so that He can show me how good it'll be when it's all over? no way jose. i'd rather stay in my depressed state, wallowing in my misery; i'd much rather do that than deal with my problems. OR what God could do is to just get me to the good stuff right now please. just give me the promised land (like, FLY me over there and not make me walk for goodness sake) and just give me drinkable water and just give me manna right now. ok i'm kind of rambling, but i mean, basically my train of thought in terms of wanting to just take the shortcut and avoid seeing my sins in full display and just wanting to get to the "ah i'm so happy God is so good yay" state of mind - HOW is that any different from the israelites complaining about how tired they are from running away? it's basically the same thing. i'm a sinful human like they were and... to the israelites, God was faithful; He displayed His power and glory to them and showed them that He was the ruler of everything. so that means that God will display His power and glory to me and show me that He is the ruler of everything i my life. (i hope that my family/career/school is included in that "everything.")

ok most rambling post ever... sorry....

The story contd

Post that should have been up on Tuesday

Moses and Aaron went to pharaoh and performed miracles, just as God instructed. Moses turned a staff into a snake but the pharaoh didn't believe. Then God instructed moses and Aaron to go to pharaoh and declare that all the waters and vessels and etc. will turn into blood. But pharaoh didn't believe. Moses performed a few more miracles in front of pharaoh but he didn't believe bc the Egyptian magicians could replicate most of them.

---all of these miracles that God performed through Aaron and Moses were truly powerful indeed... God's powerfulness was clearly shown... God is in control. But the thing that struck me the most about this reading was that God was ruling over even pharaoh. It said "God hardened pharaoh's heart." Moses was getting fed up and angry with pharaoh being so stubborn despite all the miracles and plagues God performed... But even that repeated refusal by pharaoh were planned, so that God's glory would be augmented.

proverbs 8

if you love wisdom, it will love you in return. that sounds kinda weird.. but throughout the passage, what i think the author was getting at was that... if you cherish and value wisdom as you should, your life will be blessed in return bc wisdom "yields fruit" in your life - more than any other valuable thing (gold, silver, any amt of money). wisdom will bring enduring prosperity. blessed is the one who listens to wisdom and "watches" for it daily... do i seek wisdom from God every day. my job requires so much wisdom in every choice, decision, word, interaction with my students.. they're so impressionable and what we do as teachers can leave a lasting mark on them... so it's very improtant for me to pray for wisdom every morning on my drive to work. ive been trying to do that especially since i started reading proverbs.. im learning that wisdom is something to PURSUE after, not just something you gain naturally by just "living life" and gaining "life experiences" like so many others think. "whoever FINDS ME finds life and receives favor from the Lord." you must SEEK AND FIND wisdom.

isaiah 52

again, how faithful God is to Israelites. im learning how deep God's commitment is to His own ppl... if He chose you as His own, then He promises to provide everything you need and deliver/rescue you from a life of sin... even when you make mistakes and find yourself in an ugly mess bc of YOUR OWN SIN... God STILL redeems you no matter what and will restore you no matter what. how crazy is that. Israelites were grave sinners and idol worshippers time after time.. yet GOd still shows them mercy and will not let them be put to shame and get devoured by their sin. He will save them from their own sin and stubborness. and He doesnt even stop there! he says he will give them "splendor" and "enthrone" them. WHAT?! they dont deserve to be enthroned?! but yet, GOd loves them THAT much and honors them THAT much bc they are His own. that is undeserved grace and an amazing, committed love.

proverbs 6

warnings against folly

consider ways of the ant - its wisdom compared to sluggard. ant is wise and doesnt need authority to tell it what to do - it is faithful in storing provisions in summer and gathering food at harvest. thinks ahead and prepares.

isiaha 50

trust in the lord now because if you choose to go your own way, you will be in torment and darkness - small decisions in our control may seem harmless, but they will ultimately lead us down a path of destruction.

no reading today...

no reading for today...
it was a tough night again with more arguments about the same old things. i realized that whenever either one of my parents initiate a conversation with me (doesn't matter what topic), i always find some way to twist/misunderstand their words and believe that they have nothing but insults to say to me. and then i get so angry...
sigh there's more i could go on about this but i will spend tonight journaling and just asking God for peace. i keep thinking that i'm so sinful towards my parents that God will punish me by setting up my future (career/school) for failure. -__-

the story contd

moses's story contd...

moses and aaron met up, just as God instructed them to. aaron is moses's brother and God suggested that moses and aaron go to egypt together and aaron will serve as moses's mouthpiece (since moses kept saying that he doesn't have the eloquency/abilities etc).
moses and aaron met up with the elders of the israelites and told them that they were sent by God. the elders went to pharaoh to ask for the freedom of the israelites but pharaoh refused and instead put the people to more harsh labor.
the israelite elders were upset that pharaoh was angry with them, so they went and insulted moses and aaron for putting them up to this.
moses asked God why He chose moses and also why he brought upon oppression to the israelites. since God promised to fulfill the covenant he made with abraham to take care of his people, God was going to redeem the israelites and free them from slavery. God told moses that through the rescuing of the people, God's great power would be shown.

the story ch 4

note to self: this post is for the update that i should've posted on...... wednesday 1/4

the israelites flourished in egypt. this is now a long time after jacob & sons died. there was a new pharaoh in the land that didn't look favorably upon the israelites flourishing in egypt. so he became jealous, and to spite them, he made them into slaves and put them to labor.
but even through oppression, israelites did not cease to grow in numbers and become widespread. so now pretty much all the egyptians hated the israelites.
->i feel like i have the heart of an egyptian most of the time. i'm a very jealous person :(

pharaoh gave a ridiculous order to have all hebrew boys thrown into the nile river. a levite man and levite woman had a son, and she kept hi for three months. but then she couldn't hide him anymore, so she sent him down in a basket on the nile. then the pharaoh's daughter found the baby and decided to raise him. this baby was named moses.

moses grew up and became an adult and saw that the egyptians were oppressing his own people. when he witnessed an egyptian beating a hebrew man, he killed the egyptian and hid the body.
-> :-O i didn't know moses did this.

moses ran away and went to live in a place called midian. although he was on the run for murder, i guess deep down his heart/intentions were for justice/good, and he helped rescue some women that came to fetch water from shepherds that tried to drive these women away from the well. moses married one of the daughters.

the israelites that were enslaved cried out to God. God was concerned about them so He sought out moses. he appeared to moses in flames of fire that seemed to be burning the bush. God told moses that he picked moses to send to egypt and bring israelites out of there. but moses didn't think he could do the job and kept on telling God to send someone else. God told him over and over that God will be with moses and he has nothing to worry about.
-> why did God pick moses? moses was of the lineage of adam/eve/noah/important ppl from the earlier days? moses said that he wasn't a very eloquent speaker and there were other people that could do the job better but God was adamant that moses was the one. and also, moses was a murderer. yes i can see that he felt that he had to stand up for his people but he executed it in a terrible way. oh so then maybe this was God giving moses another chance. yes he committed murder, but this was God's way of redeeming moses despite his sinfulness by giving him the job to rescue the israelites admirably and righteously, through holy anointing and blessing from God.
-> moses might have felt like he was a nobody and maybe felt sad/still guilty about his past sins... and i wonder if he thought that there was no way he could be holy enough to face God. (it does say that when moses first encountered God in the bushes, he hid his face b/c he was afraid to face God)
-> for me... there's so many times throughout the day when i feel like my old mistakes and sins are catching up to me and i can't outrun them all. and i feel like i can't even ask God for help. but like with moses, God shows once again that he is almighty - i mean, he MADE us... so i'm thankful that i can turn to God. i don't have answers right now and i'm not sure where things are gonna be going, but there's a master that's above everything in my small little world.

proverbs 4

the importance of wisdom reinforced over and over again.

what wisdom will do for you:

-protects and watches over you

-exalts and honors you

-give you grace

-give you a crown of splendor

what a life of wisdom looks like:

-straight path

-your steps will not be hampered

-you will not stumble

-"like the gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter til the full light of day" (what amazing imagery- love this)

what to do with it when you receive wisdom:

-guard it well

-do not let it go

-keep it deep within your heart

isaiah 48

man... reading isaiah can seem repetitive but the good thing is... it really reinforces the story of the Israelites. God knows how to deal with STUBBORN hearts (ahem hehe). the passage was even called "stubborn israel" or something. the Israelites: prime example of God's redemption for a very stubborn/wayward/sinful group of people. they sinned against God and had the worst attitudes... but yet, God shows them so much grace and saves them again and again.

WHY would he show grace? (from v.11)

-bc they are His chosen ones and He loves them as his own children

-for His name sake, He will not be defamed, He will not yield his glory to another

that's so encouraging! as God's chosen ones, HE WILL NEVER let you go - not only for your sake but HIS name sake. that's a serious promise. :)

proverbs 2

must seek wisdom like a hidden treasure- if you ask for it, you will receive it! and he promises to "guard the course of the just and protect the way of his faithful ones." need lots of wisdom during this time as i start out the new year and plan for things ahead with grad school, etc.

isaiah 46

God reminding Israelites that there are no other gods before him. none can compare to him. He is supreme and "His purpose will stand" and His plans will always work out no matter what. unlike the wicked, who chooses to control their own futures.. their plans will always fail and lead to destruction. there is so much safety and security when we choose to follow His will... His plan will never fail or fall through so we can trust He'll lead us on stable ground. He reminds his people that He created us and gave us our existence! so OF COURSE he will sustain us til the very end. Nothing will get in the way of His will. very reassuring. :)

the story ch 3 contd

the story of joseph and the technicolor dreamcoat (hehe) continues on... the rest of what happened is probably familiar to you too so i'll skip the summary today.
joseph forgives his brothers and says that he must have been sold/sent to egypt to prepare for a reason... so that he can become a high official and prepare for the future (giving his family food and a comfortable place to live during the famine). so nice of him to say that. i'm embarrassed b/c i have so much trouble forgiving my family for anything. and also joseph gives all credit to God- one more thing i have a hard time doing...

spent time writing a prayer for the new year and meditated on God's promises in the Word. i wanna cling to His promises this year, so it was really good going back and claiming His promises... even some of the most basic truths. i feel like i experienced the Gospel all over again... thinking about just who God is in my life. The last thing i wrote in my prayer is to have COURAGE this year - i decided that's my new theme for 2012.

i'm so glad i can start the new year claiming God's Truth in my life. wow, God is so good. seriously. He amazes me. :)

here are the verses i meditated on:

psalm 23

John 10:25-30

Psalm 136

Jeremiah 29:11

Ephesians 2:10

2 Corinth 12:9-10

Joshua 1:9

Matthew 28:20

John 15:15

John 16:33

Romans 5:18

Romans 6:18, 23

Galatians 5:1, 9

Romans 8: 28, 31-39

John 10:10

2 Corinth 5:17

John 4:13

Isaiah 55

John 6:35

Mathew 6:19

Romans 12:2

Matthew 7:9-11

Psalm 37:4

2 Timothy 4:7

Mathew 22:37-40

1 Thess 5:23-24