Talk Tuesday- I Will Live to Bring You Praise

The video posted this week for Movie Monday is a worship song by the Australian group Hillsongs. The song, Til' I See You, speaks of the immense love of God and our response to His great love. This song struck a deep chord in my own heart. The words of the chorus are:

I will live to love You

I will live to bring You praise

I will live a child in awe of You

You alone are God of all

You alone are worthy Lord

And with all I am my soul will bless Your name

Such bold, passionate declarations of worship and adoration to the Almighty GOD! The heart who knows Him, should desire to live entirely for Him. Brothers and Sisters, a great challenge is on the horizon for us all. The Prophet Isaiah warns:

"Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!" Isaiah 5:20

We have become a more liberal society, endorsing sin and calling it 'acceptance'.

The Apostle Peter reminds us:

"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light." 1 Peter 2:9

We are chosen by God to be salt and light to a lost and dying world. We are called to walk in LOVE, sacrificially helping and loving others in need. We are also called to HOLINESS as GOD is Holy, rejecting sin.

The Apostle John warns us:

"Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world-the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does-comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever." 1 John 2:15-17

We must guard our hearts, minds and thoughts so as to honour God.

Jesus instructs us:

"Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." John 4:23-24

Of the Holy Spirit:

"When He comes, He will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: in regard to sin, because men do not believe me; in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned." John 16:8-11

The Apostle John's vision of GOD's judgment:

"And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books." Revelations 20:12

Please, let us join our hearts together in the name of Jesus Christ to live righteous, holy, lives, set apart from the world yet rooted in love. Let us remember to honour God in our thoughts, words, deeds and actions. We have the POWER of the HOLY SPIRIT to enable us, the WORD of GOD to protect and instruct us, and the BLOOD of JESUS CHRIST to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Let us spur each other on to the finish line, and remove from our lives those 'IDOLS' which cause us to stumble.

Blessings in love!

Movie Monday-Till I See You - With Subtitles/Lyrics (Hillsong)

Bible Study Weekend - John 8:12-20

John 8:12-20

12When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."
13The Pharisees challenged him, "Here you are, appearing as your own witness; your testimony is not valid."

14Jesus answered, "Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid, for I know where I came from and where I am going. But you have no idea where I come from or where I am going. 15You judge by human standards; I pass judgment on no one. 16But if I do judge, my decisions are right, because I am not alone. I stand with the Father, who sent me. 17In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two men is valid. 18I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me."

19Then they asked him, "Where is your father?"

"You do not know me or my Father," Jesus replied. "If you knew me, you would know my Father also." 20He spoke these words while teaching in the temple area near the place where the offerings were put. Yet no one seized him, because his time had not yet come.

Questions

1. What message do you think Jesus means to convey when He states, "I am the light of the world"?

2. What is the 'darkness' that Jesus is alluding to?

3. How does knowing the Son correlate to knowing the Father?

Talk Tuesday-Martha's Way

I don't like an unclean living space. It really aggravates me. I could remember coming home from work, feeling exhausted after a day of meetings, decisions, project issues and high stress, thinking how much I'd love to spend time with Jesus. I remember turning the key in the door and immediately noticing the shoes that were not packed away, the dishes in the sink and the living room in disarray. Naturally, the first thing I would do is SIGH (yes, I did), take off my shoes and coat, and immediately begin cleaning. Dinner needed to be cooked and after all the chores were completed, I would plop myself in front of the television, too exhausted to do anything else except 'veg'. Too many times, my good intentions would go awry, lost in the myriad of useless programs on t.v.

What occupies your time? What do you urgently rush around doing with such an intensity that you become irritable, impatient and anxious until it gets accomplished? When all is said and done, was it REALLY worth it? How many of us have taken Martha's way?

When Jesus and his disciples came to Martha's village, she opened her home to them. She was consumed with preparing the place for her guests, while Mary simply sat at Jesus' feet. I can relate to Martha as if she were a mirror image of myself. I could literally see her rushing around, busying herself with frantic intensity as she purposefully set out to make everything perfect for her guests.

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" Luke 10:38-40

I could literally hear the gentleness in Jesus' voice as He responds to Martha's frustration:

"Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." Luke 10:38-42

What was it that Mary chose? She chose to sit at the feet of the LORD Jesus Christ-listening attentively to what He had to say, basking in His presence and getting to know Him.

When Lazarus died, Mary was able to say to Jesus with utmost confidence that if He (Jesus) had been there, her brother would not have died (see John 11:32). It was the time that Mary spent at the feet of Jesus in which she began to know Him in His power and His might. Eventually, Mary, Martha and their friends beheld one of Jesus' greatest miracles-the raising of Lazarus from the grave.

After I got sick, I learned to stop, be still and listen by spending time with Jesus-in His Word and in prayer. I abandoned Martha's way and while I still have the tendency to slip back into old habits, I thank the LORD for His gentle reminders. Spiritual readiness is better than physical preparedness. Jesus states:

"I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" John 11:25-26

Do YOU believe this? What do we need to do as Christ-followers, so that we don't get caught up in Martha's way? We, at BGO, look forward to hearing from you. Please click on the comments link below to share your thoughts. Remember, as you share, you encourage others too!

Talk Tuesday-Dark Before the Morning

In the search for a clip for Movie Monday I came across the video for the song, ”Before the Morning” by Josh Wilson. There is an amazing testimony by the father of the boy who the song is written about.  The father is told that the boy will not live past four days from his birth. If you do anything today, look at the video I posted for Movie Monday.

The song talks about the ‘dark before the morning’ or the ‘hurt before the healing’. As I looked at the video tears began to run down my face as I recalled what Tash and I had to go through the last two years. I remembered trying to be strong when the doctor told us the news that she had to do surgery. Then when we were told that we had to do it a second time in less than a year, I was more than upset. That was definitely the 'dark before the morning'.

Maybe you are going through something right now and you can’t even think about the morning, but God WILL take you through this. God IS faithful. The song also has a line in it that says, ‘life is not a snapshot.’ If I believed that our future was dependant on the snapshot after the 2nd surgery or even the first, I would not have the hope I have now. God has done an awesome thing in my life and in my wife’s life that might not have happened any other way. God has allowed us to bless people we would not have ever met if it wasn’t for this storm. So you might be going through a storm now but hold on for this is the ‘dark before the morning.’

"...weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." Psalm 30:5


If you are going through a difficult time and need prayer, let us pray for you. Please feel free to post your requests on this month's Prayer Wall, here in the comments section or you can email us at joinus@biblegrouponline.com

Movie Monday - Before the Morning - MUST SEE

Prayer Wall - August

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Bible Study Weekend - John 7:53-8:11

John 7:53-8:11


⁵³Then each went to his own home.

John 8

 ¹But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. ²At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. ³The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group ⁴and said to Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. ⁵In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" ⁶They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.
   But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. ⁷When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." ⁸Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.
 ⁹At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. ¹⁰Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"
 ¹¹"No one, sir," she said.
      "Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin."

 Questions


1. What is Jesus saying about our attitudes toward sin?


a) In our lives?


b) In the lives of others?


2. What does Jesus, the Only Sinless One, teach us about forgiveness? 


3. What kind of lives are we called to live as Christians? 

Talk Tuesday-A Word of Encouragement

I remember when, as a young woman, I completely committed myself to the LORD Jesus Christ. I asked Him into my heart, surrendered to His will, sought His face and repented of my sins. I confessed that He died for the remission of my sins and was raised from the dead. I discovered no greater joy in my entire life, than that of knowing Jesus Christ as LORD. All the partying, 'friends', money and other worldly pleasures were INCOMPARABLE. I remember having a vision of a fountain of water shooting upwards, ever-flowing from within me-rivers of living water. Just this week I realized that both the Old and New Testaments referred to God as 'living waters' (Jeremiah 2:13 & John 4:10, 7:38).

Yet, as I began this journey of faith I was unaware of the perils and trials that would come. The LORD had delivered me from so many worldly desires. He caused me to withdraw from people and situations that would hinder my early walk with Him. It was a time where He instructed, grew and moulded me. As a newborn believer my eyes saw through the lens of a different reality, my heart became tender to suffering and He began to peel away the many layers of selfishness within. My mouth became filled with songs of praise-I began to sing, play the guitar and worship God with passion. I found PURPOSE and PEACE. Yes, the joy of the LORD infused my very being.

Then the TRIAL came. Now I know in life we all have trials but then we have TRIALS. You know, the BIGGIES?! I can remember feeling devastated, coming home from choir practise at church, laying in bed asking God 'Why?' when the Holy Spirit directed me to a portion of scripture I was unfamiliar with:

Jeremiah's Complaint

"You are always righteous, O LORD, when I bring a case before You. Yet I would speak with You about your justice: Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the faithless live at ease? You have planted them, and they have taken root; they grow and bear fruit. You are always on their lips but far from their hearts. Yet you know me, O LORD; You see me and test my thoughts about You."

Jeremiah 12:1-3

God's Answer

"If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?" Jeremiah 12:5

Immediately the Holy Spirit brought revelation to my heart. God was strengthening me, instructing me and preparing me for the future. When a man or woman goes off to war, they undergo extensive training to be able to stand in the day of battle. When we surrender our lives to the Lordship of Christ, we take a side in the spiritual battle being waged. As soldiers, we must stand in faith, be a people of prayer and be the voice of the collective 'one' crying out in the wilderness "Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord".

Our TRIALS and trials serve a greater purpose. As we share in the suffering of Jesus Christ, remember to stand firmly on His Word and cling to Him through the storm. God is cultivating fruit in you that will bear even more fruit in your life and in the lives of those around you. If your actions minister and bring others to salvation in Jesus Christ, then isn't it worth it?

And remember...Jesus is coming back soon!

By the way, God is so awesome! Do you remember the last post, the one about the income tax? Well, after all of that, God gave us a refund!!! To Him be all the glory...but that is a 'talk' for another day (*smilez*)