Feb 4
-
theresaguo added a text contribution psalm 40i think i always have this feeling like i need to make some sort of large sacrifice or offering to God before i can approach him. Usually after I've sinned, but also just on normal days. and in the end I think this feeling keeps me from God, b/c i say - well i can't approach God so i won't try. That is a great image - "my ears you have pierced," because sometimes it's so hard to actually LISTEN and HEAR what God is saying. It can so easily get muddled up into wh… Read more »
Jan 23
-
theresaguo added a text contribution silenceI dunno why I always think silence will be safer. I don't know what it is exactly that I'm afraid of. Silence w/ God. Silence when I have a problem in a friendship. Silence when I made a mistake, when I hurt somebody, when i put things off longer than i should have. Basically when i ever feel guilty about anything. Clearly, i'm am just causing myself to "waste away and groan all day long." sigh... God help me to pray, to speak; because of your grace I don't n… Read more »
-
theresaguo added a text contribution favoritismFavoritism seems to happen a lot in the bible. Not a very godly thing. or it can be pretty hurtful. But these old testament people do it a lot!! and i guess in the end it causes them a lot of strife too. Rebakah shows blatant favoritism for Jacob; Jacob shows favoritism towards Rachel over Leah. This both ends up causing them to lose their children. Do you think racism might be a variation (just commenting on what Rebekah says about the Hittite women that Esau married)? Read more »
Jan 20
-
theresaguo added a text contribution Issac's problem solvingIt's interesting how Issac solved these conflicts. He never really got angry, but since God kept blessing him it didn't matter. The Philistines filled in the wells, so he dug them out again and found water. Then other people fought over them, so he dug another one. Somebody else quarreled over the new one, so he moved on and dug another (and found water). He was rejected/kicked out by Abimelech and company, who then tried to make a treaty with him b/c they were afraid of him. And… Read more »
Jan 17
-
theresaguo added a text contribution death of a friendthat Jesus wanted to withdraw after he heard about John the Baptist's death makes me feel like Jesus is more human. Or maybe better understand what it means for him to love a friend. That Jesus took time to mourn as well, but he didn't let his own mourning stand in the way of serving other people. Read more »
-
theresaguo added a text contribution the goodness of the LordThis is one of the most encouraging verses. To know that the goodness of the Lord will be not just be present in heaven, but also here on earth. So be strong and wait, He's doing his good work here - on earth, in you. Read more »
-
theresaguo added a text contribution one thing i ask"One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life" if this was all i needed to feel safe/not afraid it would be soooo amazing. I find that I'm always paralyzed by fear of something; fear of failure, fear of my inability to do right, fear of the unknown, of everything....if dwelling with the Lord could be my one simple desire. it would take away so much strife in my life. What would be the point of being afraid a… Read more »
-
theresaguo added a text contribution Faith, fear, trustIt's astounding to me how much faith Abraham had in God. or how much fear of God he had, as it's put here. That that level of faith is even humanly possible is a bit mind blowing. I guess i'm just trying to imagine the kind of things that I have a hard time giving up. Some of them, I know are just not good. Even the things that are not that important to me - not like Issac was for Abraham, the son that he waited until he was 100 years old before he had. Anyway, Abraham, hopef… Read more »
Jan 14
-
theresaguo added a text contribution Living w/ weedsthis is sort of a weird image. normal gardens don't just leave the weeds in there. although you might hurt the main plants some by pulling out the weeds. it hurts the main plants in the long rung. i don't know if that is what this parable is actually talking about. but at least to remember that God planned for us to live among the weeds. Read more »
-
theresaguo added a text contribution God's motivesI don't remember reading this verse before. But it's an interesting concept. That Abimelek thinks that God is punishing him unfairly for sinning without knowing it (i wonder when is the last time I felt like this, when it applies in my life), but in fact God says that He knows. He knows Ambimelek's motives, and this bad threat that happens is to help him, to keep him from sinning. Read more »
Jan 11
-
theresaguo added a text contribution um wowthese people are crazy. i guess sodom and gommorrah really were pretty corrupt. but was what Lot and his daughters did okay? they didn't get reprimanded by God for these actions - Lot offering his virgin daughters to the crowds to protect his guests. His daughters getting him drunk so that they could sleep with him and get pregnant. Read more »
Jan 7
-
theresaguo added a text contribution by our tongues we prevailthose who say, "By our tongues we will prevail; our own lips will defend us - who is lord over us?" I feel like this is often how the world works. and this is how the world demands that i work too. That i must defend myself with my own lips, that i have no lord, it all depends on me. Read more »
-
theresaguo added a text contribution The Lord is my refuge"In the Lord I take refuge. How then can you say to me: 'Flee like a bird to your mountain." Just makes me think about how easy it is to want to escape. Especially for me. I feel like that's my default reaction to everything. Somehow escape feels safer than facing deadlines or failure or anger or my own sin and faults. But if God is with me, how can you say- the answer is to flee? Read more »
-
theresaguo added a text contribution babelit still baffles me how this happened. i know that people site this passage as God's creation of culture, proof that it was God ordained for us to be different. and don't get me wrong, I really value culture - i think it really helps to build and enrich our own identities of who God created us to be. But so much strife and misunderstanding, so much anger and death has occurred because of cultural differences. But maybe that's our fault and not God's. Read more »
Jan 6
-
theresaguo added a text contribution ham's mistakeIn this chapter, the command to Noah and his sons is again to be fruitful and populate the earth. They do that pretty well. It's interesting because a lot of their descendents end up being enemies of Israel - like the Philistines or the descendants of Canaan. No wait, I guess many of the enemies of the Israelites were the descendants of Ham (Philistines) and especially Canaan (Hittities, Jubsites, Amorites, etc.). Read more »