Daily Bible Reading with DragoNate #109

Listen to Truth

1 Kings 22

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 16) "The King said to him, 'How many times must I make you swear to tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord?' " (v. 18) "The king said to Jehoshaphat, 'Didn't I tell you that he never prophesies anything good about me, but only bad?' " (v. 20) "And the Lord said, 'Who will entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?' "

My Thoughts

Sometimes it's hard to hear the truth. No one wants to hear that something bad is going to happen to them or that they shouldn't do something that they want to do. I mean, it's your choice isn't it? No one has a right to tell you what you can or can't do, right? But wouldn't you rather hear the truth than hear just what you want to hear?

Ahab wanted to attack Ramoth Gilead and Jehoshaphat said that they should inquire of the Lord first. So Ahab got a bunch of prophets of Baal and they told him what he wanted to hear, that he should go because he would be victorious. Micaiah said otherwise, that Ahab was going to die if he went. But Ahab didn't listen. He wanted to do what he wanted to do and he just thought that Micaiah was saying bad things about him again.

Micaiah was telling the truth. Ahab died in battle by the random drawing of a bow. The truth may be hard to hear, but it is so much better than hearing lies that will make you happy until you realize you've been deceived. If people only lied to you, you would constantly be deceived by them and, while you may never really know, once it comes out, you are going to feel so betrayed.

However hard the truth is to hear, you should be listening to it rather the lies that make you feel good temporarily. lies will break you down in so many ways. Deception, betrayal, hurt, false hope, false confidence. The list could go on.

Lies build you up on an unstable foundation. Eventually, you will crumble and fall down and you will be left in ruins. Truth may break you down to begin with, but it rebuilds you on a much stronger and more stable foundation. That's the difference between lies and truth and what they do to us. Lies destroy, truth constructs and repairs.

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 #58

Asking for a Sign

Isaiah 7

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 10-12) "Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, 'Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.' But Ahaz said, 'I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.' "

My Thoughts

Ahaz said no to asking God for a sign because he did not want to put the Lord to the test. This whole passage is a little bit confusing to me because Ahaz said no, then Isaiah seems angry, asking "Will you try the patience of my God also?" That's the part I am confused about. Unless it is because God told Ahaz to ask for a sign and he didn't, otherwise I thought that would be a good thing.

What I take away from this is that we that we need to stand firm in our faith. Faith is relying on God, trusting that Him and believing in Him without question and without a need or affirmation. Asking for a sign that what God says is true is like saying, "God, I hear what you're saying, but I need proof that that it is true." That is not at all how faith works.

Now, this isn't to say that affirmation of your faith is a bad thing. There are things that happen all the time that affirm and strengthen my faith in God. It becomes bad when we have to constantly seek affirmation. Again, that is not how faith works. If you have to keep searching for a reason to keep faith in God, then obviously a part of you wants to stop believing. Faith means what I said above, whether you see God or not or when you think He isn't there. God is always with us by the way, He will never leave us or forsake us.

We can't go constantly searching after signs of God's presence and truth and promises. That is not at all pleasing to Him. If you are ever unsure, pray and ask God to strengthen you. Turn to the Bible. It is normal to have doubting thoughts and weak moments. In fact, these things can strengthen us similar to how the flu shot does. It builds up immunity, or rather resistance, to it. If you don't let them persist and overwhelm you, but you take it to God, you will only grow stronger.

So, don't go chasing after affirmation of your faith. If that is something that you do often, stop and reevaluate. Think on why you 'need' that affirmation and think on all the behind-the-scenes stuff. Take it to God in prayer and ask Him for strength and clarity.

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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 #48

False Prophets

Jeremiah 23

I pray blessings on you as you read.

(v. 25) "I have  heard what the prophets say who prophesy lies in my name. They say, 'I had a dream! I had a dream!' " (v. 28) " 'Let the prophet who has a dream tell his dream, but let the one who has my word speak it faithfully. For what has straw to do with grain?' declares the Lord." (v. 30-32) " 'Therefore,' declares the Lord, 'I am against the prophets who steal from one another words supposedly from me... who wag their own tongues and yet declare, 'The Lord declares.' ...who prophesy false dreams." (v. 36) "But you must not mention 'the oracle of the Lord' again, because every man's own word becomes his oracle and so you distort the words of the living God, the Lord Almighty, our God."

My Thoughts

There will be people who will lie about what God says. They will prophesy lies in order to try and deceive you. Do not listen to them. Especially when someone says the words 'oracle of the Lord,' because God was very clear on what would happen to those who use these words. He said that He would forsake them; that He would forget them and cast them away.

Ask for wisdom from God so that you can discern between those who speak God's word faithfully and those who tell lie, speaking words that they claim are from God. Be very careful of who you listen to, and make sure that you listen to their words. If you are ever unsure, then talk to God about it. He will not deceive you. Be careful also of those who prophesy their dreams and visions. As God has said, let them tell their dreams, but that does not mean that they have received word from God.

The words of these false prophets will lead you only to destruction and separation from God. Do not allow this to happen to you. You do not want to be far from God, especially if you are already close to Him. Let yourself grow closer to Him and take advantage of opportunities that allow you to.

God will not lead you astray and neither does He want you to be led astray. If you choose to listen to the lies, it will be detrimental. Listen instead to the voice of truth that comes from God. Even if it isn't people who we hear lies from, it can be Satan. Satan speaks to us and tempts us and tries to lie to us. Don't listen to him, but listen to the truth that God has for us. God's truth is powerful and utterly destroys the lies of Satan.

So again, listen to God's words, not the words of Satan or the words of men. If you are ever unsure of something that someone has said, then you need to pray about it. Until you do, do not consider it. You may be taking a chance on it, which is not a good thing when it comes to your spiritual well-being. Just be careful of what people speak over you. Their words may not be of God and you need to talk to God about it before you listen to them.

Previous PostNext Post

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!