Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #137

Destruction and Restoration

Amos 9

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 8) " 'Surely the eyes of the Sovereign LORD are on the sinful kingdom. I will destroy it from the face of the earth--yet I will not totally destroy the house of Jacob,' declares the LORD." (v. 10) "All the sinners will die by the sword, all those who say, 'Disaster will not overtake or meet us.' " (v. 15) "I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them,' declares the LORD your God."

My Thoughts

God says in Amos 9 that He will destroy the kingdom of Israel, but not completely the house of Jacob. He says that all the sinners will destroyed. In this case, I believe the sinners are those who continue in their sins and don't care to repent. We are all sinners, so it makes sense to me that it would be those who don't care to repent and think that their ways are totally alright.

Restoration will come after the destruction. God does not destroy His people and leave them there. He may allow them to fall on hard times, but He always restores them. Us. When we sin, it displeases God and that sin must be punished, but God doesn't leave us. He disciplines us and then restores us again in Him.

Sometimes the only way for us to learn from our mistakes to receive that discipline. Not always do we learn anyway, or at least not right away. Usually we do, eventually, even if it takes us a very long time.

Amos 9 is about Israel's destruction and restoration, right? And the house of Jacob is specifically mentioned. So what does Amos 9 mean for us today? I believe that it can relate to us by replacing 'Israel' with our own name, and also 'house of Jacob' and replacing kingdom with our heart.

It means the same thing, but it is talking to us instead of to Israel now. God's eyes are on our sinful heart and He will destroy it from the face of the earth, but not totally destroy Samantha. God will plant Joseph in his own place, never again to be uprooted from the place God has put him.

Those who continue in their sins and don't care to repent or refuse to give it up will not receive eternal life, but destruction in the end if they do not leave it and repent. That is not something anyone should ever want. Give everything to God and put all evil things behind you. Leave it and walk in God's grace instead.  All of us need to do this. It's not easy, especially if you struggle with something, but keep persevering.

Prayer Time

Now you talk to God about what you read, and you can even read this chapter of the Bible for yourself before you do.

Let me know your thoughts on this reading as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read, I pray that what you have read blesses and inspires you! Godbless!

Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #126

Confession

Psalm 51

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 4) "Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge." (v. 10) "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." (v. 12) "Restore me to the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me."

My Thoughts

David sinned against God by taking Bathsheba for himself and having her husband killed so that he could. Even David, who was a man after God's own heart,sinned. We all do. David acknowledged his sin though and gave it to God. He still had consequences, like losing his son who he had with Bathsheba. God restored David though, because he sincerely confessed his sin.

When you sin and you re overcome with guilt and you face the consequences of it, you need to forgive yourself and ten ask God for forgiveness. God will forgive you, you need only ask sincerely. If your heart is in the right place, then rest assured that God has forgiven you. Ask Him to restore you as well, and He will most definitely do that.

When David confessed, he did so publicly, I believe mainly because everyone knew about it. What he did affected may people, not just himself or a couple people. When you confess your sin, I don't believe you need to do so publicly. If it something just between you and God, you need only confess it to God. If your sin affected others, then it may be wise to confess to them as well and let them know that you are truly sorry for it and that you have given it to God. Even then, the most important thing is that you forgive yourself and confess it to God.

Confessing your sins is an important part of healing. If you keep it covered up or try to ignore it or pretend it didn't happen, you are lying to yourself and to God and to whoever else it affects. That is like keeping anger or a grudge or sadness bottled up inside. It will wreck you in the meantime and eventually it will erupt. When that happens, it will not be good at all.

To avoid all this, release yourself from sin's grasp and Satan's clutches by forgiving yourself and confessing to God. You really will feel so much better after doing so.

Prayer Time

Now you talk to God about what you read, and you can even read this chapter of the Bible for yourself before you do.

Let me know your thoughts on this reading as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read, I pray that what you have read blesses and inspires you! Godbless!

Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #40

Prayer and Perseverance

James 5

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 8) "You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near." (v. 11-12) "As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy. Above all, my brothers, do not swear--not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your "Yes" be yes, and your "No," no, or you will be condemned." (v. 16) "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective."

My Thoughts

James reminds us to be patient in the face of suffering. Take Job's example: Job literally lost everything. His children, his possessions, everything. God did not leave Job alone, He was with him the whole time and God restored Job in the end. Job's possessions were restored and he was blessed with even more children. Job very well could have cursed God, as his wife had suggested, but he did not. He persevered and stayed faithful to God and God stayed faithful to Job.

We should follow Job's example, as well as the other prophets of God who persevered in the face of their suffering for God. Do not let your circumstances overpower you. God is bigger than anything, and that includes bad situation you may be facing. Stay faithful to God and He will be faithful to you. He will restore you in the end and all will be well. Staying faithful to God means to trust in Him and not become angry with Him.

Speaking of not cursing God, that points me to something else that James says here: to not swear by anything. James says to let your "Yes" be yes and your "No," no. That means you don't say "I swear on my ______." Just be honest and say either "Yes," or "No." If you are honest and trustworthy, that is all you need, you don't need to swear on anything; you don't need to 'sweeten the deal.' You shouldn't anyway because that can be as binding as an oath. If you fail to keep it, you are not only jeopardizing whatever you swear on, but you are opening yourself up for a lot of spiritual and mental, and even physical stress.

We are also told to confess our sins to each other and to pray for each other so that we can be healed. I believe that James wants us to be willing to forgive each other and willing to accept forgiveness. As long as you have confessed your sins to God and you have forgiven yourself, I believe that God is happy with that. Also to pray for each other so that we may be healed. We should always be praying for each other, not just when bad things are happening, but even in joyful times and happiness. Prayer is such an amazing thing because it allows us to communicate with God and opens a way  for Him to act.

So, remember to pray for each other always, not to swear on anything and to persevere through everything, staying faithful to God. Any time you are felling down or going through any kind of a hard time, persevere through it, trust and know that God will restore you in the end.

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Prayer Time

Now you talk to God about what you read, and you can even read this chapter of the Bible for yourself before you do.

Let me know your thoughts on this reading as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read, I pray that what you have read blesses and inspires you! Godbless!

Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #22

God's Jealousy

Hosea 1-2

(2 v. 2) "Rebuke your mother, rebuke her, for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband..." (2 v. 16) "In that day, " declares the Lord, "you will call me 'my husband'; you will no longer call me 'my master.'

My Thoughts



Our God is a jealous God. God's jealousy is not the same as ours. We can become jealous of someone who is 'better' than us. Someone who does better in a particular subject than you in school may make you jealous, wishing that you were doing that well. God becomes jealous when we seek after other 'gods.' Other gods doesn't necessarily have to be another god, for example, Ares, the Greek god of war. Money, sex, love, family, possessions, appearance, and so on. These can also be gods in our lives. Again, this goes back to what you center your life on.

As Jesus has said, we cannot serve two masters. If you are going to follow God, you need to follow Him, you need to serve Him and give Him your life. You need to let go of everything else in your life, and give it all to God. When we are serving other gods instead our Father God, He becomes jealous because it is wrong for us to do so. God's jealousy comes from our disobedience. We are supposed to serve God with all our heart and soul, so when we serve other gods in this way, we are doing what God has told us, but not so with Him.

God will discipline us for our sins, but He will not leave us. If we learn from the mistakes we make, God will not leave us. God will restore us in Him. God will restore our soul and make us new in Him again. God restores us so that we are not overcome by guilt or any other negative feelings. Even when we disobey Him and seek after other gods. If you are overcome by negative feelings, you need to talk to God and ask for forgiveness. Ask Him to take away those feelings and to restore you. If we don't do this, we are giving Satan a foothold in our lives. You need to forgive yourself and accept God's forgiveness.

Jesus Christ has already paid the price for all our sins. When we are overcome by guilt and worry, especially when it concerns something that we have done, which we know to be wrong, that is Satan trying to make us believe that we still owe a price. That is a lie because Jesus' sacrifice paid that price long ago. Don't let Satan lie to you about this. Tell him to go away and that he does not belong. Talk to God and ask Him to restore you.

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Prayer Time

Now you talk to God about what you read, and you can even read this chapter of the Bible for yourself before you do. Thank you for taking the time to read, I pray that what you have read blesses and inspires you! Godbless!