Living only two miles from work has been great. Yet the last two days I have traded the walking to work thing for the riding a bike to work thing. A woman who attends our church decided to let me borrow her bike so that I can get to work alittle faster. The difference for me between walking to work and riding a bike is the difference between a stroll and a sprint. There are some serious hills I must contend with between my house and the church. The only other challenge with this bike is it is entirely too small. This will work for a temporary period of time, once I am sold on biking to work I will actually have to invest in a bike I can ride without ruining my knees.
Tuesdays begin with out Men's Bible Study. 6:30 AM at the church and we generally have four or five men from our church who come out to study the Bible. Today we were looking at the fact that it is Christ alone who we find our salvation in...we can add nothing. The main passage we were looking at was Hebrews 10:19-25. What strikes me about this passage are two great ideas.
First that we hold fast to God's promises though we waver. (v.23) not because it is the "good" thing to do, or not because we are so smart, but because God is faithful. He is the one who did the work necessary for our salvation and he is the one who follows through with it. Outside of our house here in Oakland we have these sixty foot palm trees that line the street. Some of the kids who attend our church from our neighborhood call it the pretty street. Anyway when we have a storm you see these huge palm trees sway. The wind pushes them around and it is absolutely amazing to watch the tall thin trees still make it through the winds. The reason they make it is because for as tall as the trees are their roots are equal distance down into the ground. As the trees grow up tall visibly, underneath the ground the grow down so that they are able to withstand mighty winds. God's promises are those roots for us. How often I feel like I am being knocked around but it is His promise that keeps me from falling.
The second thing that amazes me is that we are to consider how we can stir up one another to love and good works. For me this can only happen because of my root. The trees on my street may wish they were somewhere else when the winds get rough, they may just want to fall down and give up. But their root allows them to stand and I am able to look at them in amazement. As those who trust in Christ that is what we are for people around us. Whether it is sharing Christ with someone, or inviting them to church, or talking about the weather, or just smiling when you walk past someone, because God is our root we are not defeated by our circumstances and we can be an encouragement to others.
The guys who were at the study today, two are out of work and another may lose his job. Yet they are exactly where they are supposed to be, and God is sure to take care of them tomorrow.
Tuesdays begin with out Men's Bible Study. 6:30 AM at the church and we generally have four or five men from our church who come out to study the Bible. Today we were looking at the fact that it is Christ alone who we find our salvation in...we can add nothing. The main passage we were looking at was Hebrews 10:19-25. What strikes me about this passage are two great ideas.
First that we hold fast to God's promises though we waver. (v.23) not because it is the "good" thing to do, or not because we are so smart, but because God is faithful. He is the one who did the work necessary for our salvation and he is the one who follows through with it. Outside of our house here in Oakland we have these sixty foot palm trees that line the street. Some of the kids who attend our church from our neighborhood call it the pretty street. Anyway when we have a storm you see these huge palm trees sway. The wind pushes them around and it is absolutely amazing to watch the tall thin trees still make it through the winds. The reason they make it is because for as tall as the trees are their roots are equal distance down into the ground. As the trees grow up tall visibly, underneath the ground the grow down so that they are able to withstand mighty winds. God's promises are those roots for us. How often I feel like I am being knocked around but it is His promise that keeps me from falling.
The second thing that amazes me is that we are to consider how we can stir up one another to love and good works. For me this can only happen because of my root. The trees on my street may wish they were somewhere else when the winds get rough, they may just want to fall down and give up. But their root allows them to stand and I am able to look at them in amazement. As those who trust in Christ that is what we are for people around us. Whether it is sharing Christ with someone, or inviting them to church, or talking about the weather, or just smiling when you walk past someone, because God is our root we are not defeated by our circumstances and we can be an encouragement to others.
The guys who were at the study today, two are out of work and another may lose his job. Yet they are exactly where they are supposed to be, and God is sure to take care of them tomorrow.
posted by michaelstevensrev at 9:33 AM
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