John 12:1-11

Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead.  Here a dinner was given in Jesus' honor.  Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him.  Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume;  she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair.  And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, "Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages."  He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag he used to help himself to what was put in it.

"Leave her alone," Jesus replied.  "It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial.  You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me."

Meanwhile a large crowd of Jews found out that Jesus was there and came, not only because of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead.  So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well, for on account of him many Jews were going over to Jesus and putting their faith in him.

My Word From God:

• Jesus deserves my best, the things and times that are most valuable, regardless of what others think I should do with my things and my time.
  
• Both Mary and Martha were still acting in their respective roles, according to their personality.  One was sitting with Jesus, while the other was serving Jesus.  Both roles are appropriate and acceptable.  It seems as though this time, Martha is less hurried and uptight, and more able to enjoy Jesus' company.
  

Psalm 113

"Praise the Lord.

Praise, O Servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord. 

Let the name of the Lord be praised, both now and forevermore.

From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.

The Lord is exalted over all the nations, his glory is above the heavens. 

Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high,

who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth?

he raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap;

he seats them with princes, with the princes of their people.  He settles the barren woman in her home as a happy mother of children.

Praise the Lord."

My Word from God:

• I am to praise God all day long, regardless of whether I'm cleaning the toilets or enjoying time with my family.
  
• God sees everything in every nation.  He is watching as things happen on his earth.  He sees the good and the evil.  What does he see in me?
  
• He can change the circumstances of our lives.  The needy and poor are seated with princes and the barren woman becomes a happy mother.  From experience, I know that God sometimes does this by changing people, their hearts, and their desires.
  

Psalm 27

What the Bible says:

The Lord is my light and my salvation--whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life--of whom shall I be afraid?

When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh,

when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall.

Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear;

though was break our against me, even then I will be confident.

One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek:

that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all my life,

to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.

For in the day of trouble he will keep me sage in his dwelling;

he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock.

Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me;

at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord.

Hear my voice when I call, O Lord, be merciful to me and answer me.

My heart says of you, "Seek his face!" Your face, Lord, I will seek.

Do not hide your face from me, do not turn away your servant in anger; you have been my helper.

Do not reject of forsake me, O God my Savior.

Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me.

Reach me your way, O Lord; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors.

Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,for false witnesses rise up against me, breathing out violence.

I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

My Word from God:

1. A secret: We can dwell at ease in this world because God is for us, that is, he wants what's good and perfect for our lives.  He awaits our prayers and praises.  He has the power to save us from earthly and supernatural powers.  He provides us with a dwelling place that is abounding in love and peace.  All he asks is that we seek him.  Seek him, that is all.
   
2. In verse 4, "to behold the beauty of the Lord."  John Wesley defines the beauty of the Lord as "amiable and glorious majesty," "infinite wisdom, holiness, justice, truth, and mercy."
   
3. In verse 5, "set me high upon a rock."  Back to what I said about God's power to save us from earthly and supernatural powers.  High upon a rock refers to a place that is inaccessible, a place that cannot be reached, a place that is safe.

I Kings 14:1-20

What the Bible says:

 

At that time Abijah son of Jeroboam became ill, and Jeroboam said to his wife, "Go, disguise yourself, so you won't be recognized as the wide of Jeroboam.  Then go to Shiloh.  Ahijah the prophet is there--the one who told me I would be king over this people.  Take ten loaves of bread with you, some cakes and a jar of honey, and go to him.  He will tell you what will happen to the boy."  So Jeroboam's wife did what he said and went to Ahijah's house in Shiloh.

Now Ahijah could not see; his sight was gone because of his age.  But the Lord had told Ahijah, "Jeroboam's wife is coming to ask you about her son for he is ill, and you are to give her such and such an answer.  When she arrives, she will pretend to be someone else."

So when Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps at the door, he said "Come in, wife of Jeroboam.  Why this pretense?  I have been sent to you with bad news.  Go, tell Jeroboam that this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says:  'I raised you up from among the people and made you a leader over my people Israel.  I tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you, but you have not been like my servant David, who kept my commands and followed me with all his heart, doing only what was right in my eyes.  You have done more evil than all who lived before you.  You have made for yourself other gods, idols made of metal; you have provoked me to anger and thrust me behind your back.

Because of this, I am going to bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam.  I will cut off from Jeroboam every last male in Israel--slave or free.  I will burn up the house of Jeroboam as one who burns dung, until it is all gone.  Dogs will eat those belonging to Jeroboam who die in the city, and the birds of the air will feed on those who die in the country.  The Lord has spoken!'

"As for you, go back home.  When you set foot in your city, the boy will die.  All Israel will mourn for him and bury him.  He is the only one belonging to Jeroboam who will be buried, because he is the only one in the house of Jeroboam in whom the Lord, the God of Israel, has found anything good.

"The Lord will raise up for himself a king over Israel who will cut off the family of Jeroboam.  This is the day!  What?  Yes, even now.  And the Lord will strike Israel, so that it will be like a reed swaying in the water.  He will uproot Israel from this good land that he gave to their forefathers and scatter them beyond the River, because they provoked the Lord to anger by making Asherah poles.  And he will give Israel up because of the sins Jeroboam has committed and has caused Israel to commit."

Then Jeroboam's wife got up and left and went to Tirzah.  As soon as she stepped over the threshold of the house, the boy died.  They buried him, and all Israel mourned for him, as the Lord had said through his servant the prophet Ahijah.

The other events of Jeroboam's reign, his wars and how he ruled, are written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel.  He reigned for twenty-two years and then rested with his fathers.  And Nadab his son succeeded him as king.

My Word From God:

• You cannot disguise who you are from God.  Jeroboam's wife tried to disguise herself so that the prophet would not recognize her, but God knew who she was and informed the prophet.  
• Worship of gods and idols makes God jealous and angry.  Confession:  I have placed other things as priority in my life.  Things like my house, my child, and material things.  I hope that through my choice to study his word daily, my priority will shift two Jesus.
• When I seek counsel, I should share the "whole" story with the person I'm seeking advice from.  It is deceptive to tell only one side of the story in search of a certain answer.  And many times, it's also not very helpful advice if the advisor only knows half of he story.
• When something painful or difficult enters my life, I will first examine my own self to look for the source of the problem.  Sometimes, the situation is the result of my doing.
• As Bible commentator Matthew Henry said, "Families and kingdoms are ruined by sin."  I seek to do the opposite.  I will strove to provide a holy example to my family and those I come in contact with.  I will one day answer to God himself for the things I do and say today.  I would much rather have hundreds of people who were positively affected by me than to have to answer for hundreds of people who were "ruined" because of my sin.

John 1:29-34

This morning I almost let Satan have the victory.  He almost kept me from digging into God's word.  But almost is as close as he came.  After hitting the snooze button about 5 times, getting distracted by a pile of mail I needed to get in the mailbox, hearing the phone ring as I walked back into the house, and then hearing Caleb's tiny little knock on his bedroom door, begging to get out...I finally sat down and dug in!

I began this morning's dig with a prayer.  I asked for the Spirit to guide me to a passage, help me decipher it, and then apply it to my own life.  It was after this prayer that I succumbed to the last 3 distractions I mentioned before.  Satan sure does have good timing for his purposes!

So, I embarked on my randomly chosen passage.

" The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!  This is the one I meant when I said, 'A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.'  I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel."

Then John gave this testimony: "I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him.  I would not have known him, except that the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, 'The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.'  I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God."

My Word from God:

1. I will testify to the secrets of God that have been revealed to me.  Things I learn through studying the Bible or through experience in life.
   
2. I will confess my sins on a daily basis. Taken from "Lamb of God" (vs. 29)--Before Christ, sins were atoned twice daily, once in the morning, and once in the evening.  This was done by the sacrifice of a pure lamb.  With Christ as my pure lamb, I too should confess my sin on a daily basis because Christ is my daily sacrifice for sin.