Bible Study - James

 
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything” –James 1:2-4

I can’t do it she said as she buried her head in her hands and wept. “I just don’t have the energy to take one more step, and then they asked me to take on a whole new project at work.  This is not the life I signed up for”, she said to no-one in particular, but whoever might be listening.  Just then a little girl, no more than 4 years old walked up to the woman seated on the park bench and handed her a small yellow dandelion.  “It’s going to be okay.  Maybe they’ll still let you sign up for a new one at church.  Mommy just signed me up for soccer, it’s really easy.”


This life is not easy, and no-one promised us that it would be.  The complications, fears, sorrows, and disappointments we face on a daily basis are all part of a process of making us stronger.  The challenge comes in how we react to the challenges that we face each day.  Through focusing on God and His perspective, it is easy to reduce the complexities into manageable simple steps.  God’s strengthening your faith in Him by allowing these complexities to happen in your life.  He doesn’t create them, but He does allow them, because He knows exactly who He created you to be.  With this knowledge, He knows exactly what you need to become all that He desires for you in this life.

Acknowledge His presence in your problem and realize that He will see you through it, but you have to allow Him too.  This means that sometimes you do things you don’t want to do, simply because it’s the right thing to do.  This means that sometimes you have to work a little harder and push yourself a little farther than you have ever pushed yourself before.  What is waiting for you on the other side though is the joy, peace and courage found only by following God’s plan.

ACTION for Growth: Take 10 minutes to sit quietly and tell the Lord the things that are pressing down upon your heart and soul right now.  Then, thank Him for helping you grow and become stronger through these trials.  Ask God to help you become the person He created you to be.


© Sondove Enterprises, 2019
For more Daily Thoughts go to: http://sondove.blogspot.com
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Study is Encouraged

You Owe it to Yourself and Your Family - Study as if Your Life Depended on it

I love mathematics and statistics.  I've reviewed the work of Peter Stoner numerous times over the last 10 years and still find it amazing to fathom the simple impossibility of any other person in all of history to be declared the Messiah, Anointed One, Χριστός (Greek), מָשִׁיחַ (Hebrew), Son of God, God's Only Son, Savior.

Consider there are over 300 Messianic Prophecies written in the Old Testament; over the course of 900+ years, by no less than 20 authors.  There have been an estimated 88 Billion people since these writings.  The chances of 1 person from this group of 88 Billion fulfilling only 8 of these 300 prophecies is greater than 1 x 10 to the 17th power (17 zero's behind the one).

As an analogy; cover the state of Texas, two feet deep with silver dollars.  Put a single red dot on one of those dollars.  Blindfold a person, and place them at a random place within the State of Texas. Ask them to walk as long, and far as they would like and then pick up one silver dollar.  The odds of that one dollar have a red dot are equal to the odds of one person fulfilling 8 Messianic prophecies.

What the chart below shows though is that Jesus of Nazareth, is that 1 person.  Jesus Christ is the Son of God, Read the scriptures and judge for yourself.  If you are making a judgment on His deity or existence without actually doing research into the topic, then I can assure you the outcome of your assessment is questionable.  Because this is, without question, the most important issue in one's existence, I implore you to spend the next 2 weeks leading up to Christmas to truly evaluate the evidence that is laid out in the Scriptures.  

Bible Study - James

Read It, Learn It, Live It, Share It

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything” –James 1:2-4

I can’t do it she said as she buried her head in her hands and wept. “ I just don’t have the energy to take one more step, and then they asked me to take on a whole new project at work.  This is not the life I signed up for”, she said to no-one in particular, but whoever might be listening.  Just then a little girl, no more than 4 years old walked up to the woman seated on the park bench and handed her a small yellow dandelion.  “It’s going to be okay.  Maybe they’ll still let you sign up for a new one at church.  Mommy just took me there and signed me up for soccer, it’s really easy.”
This life is not easy, and no-one promised us that it would be.  The complications, fears, sorrows, and disappointments we face on a daily basis are all part of a process of making us stronger.  The challenge comes in how we react to the difficulties that we face each day.  Through focusing on God and His perspective, it is easy to reduce the complexities into manageable simple steps.  God’s strengthening your faith in Him by allowing these complexities to happen in your life.  He doesn’t create them, but He does allow them, because He knows exactly who He created you to be.  With this knowledge, He knows exactly what you need to become all that He desires for you in this life.

Acknowledge His presence in your problem and realize that He will see you through it, but you have to allow Him too.  This means that sometimes you do things you don’t want to do, simply because it’s the right thing to do.  This means that sometimes you have to work a little harder and push yourself a little farther than you have ever pushed yourself before.  What is waiting for you on the other side though is the joy, peace and courage found only by following God’s plan.

ACTION: Take 10 minutes to sit quietly and tell the Lord the things that are pressing down upon your heart and soul right now.  Then, thank Him for helping you grow and become stronger through these trials.  Ask God to help you become the person He created you to be.

© Sondove Enterprises, 2012
For more Daily Thoughts go to: http://www.10minutereader.com