This Day With God – A Spiritual Journey | Share The Word

Noah’s Response

Posted on January 28, 2015 by Mark Shields

The rains finally stopped and the water started to recede from the highest mountain tops until the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. As explained in Genesis 8, Noah sent out a dove but it had no place to set its feet so it would come back to the ark (v. 9). After waiting seven more days, Noah sent out the dove again and this time it returned with a freshly plucked olive leaf in its beak (v.11) so he knew the water had begun to recede.

Imagine Noah’s thoughts about what had happened. No living person or creature that moves on the surface of the earth was left except those within the ark. Noah had followed God’s direction and had been spared from the catastrophe. The first activity Noah did was to build an altar to the Lord. Instead of gloating over surviving and having a feeling of superiority because God had delivered him and rejected everyone else, he did just the opposite. He gave all the glory to God for his deliverance.

Is there anything God has given you to do recently that you were able to carry out? Please explain some of the main reasons you were able to carry it out by sharing in the comment box.

God thinks you are AWESOME! You can use the skills you have, be happy with who you are, and God will work out the rest. He knows what each person is good at and what each is capable of doing for His glory but it is up to each of us to use His resources, to be patient, and to follow His plan.

Lord, we can do amazing things for You when we pray, listen for direction, and work patiently to carry out the plan. When it is accomplished, we ask that we respond in the right way by giving You all the credit. Let us praise You for the resources provided and for the path You have set as we step ahead.

Posted in Genesis, Good Common Sense | Tagged God, Noah’s Ark, Path, Patience, Planning, Praise, Prayer | 4 Comments

How Can We Carry Out Our Purpose?

Posted on January 27, 2015 by Mark Shields

Yesterday, I wrote in the post: Noah Carries out His Purpose; the account of the days leading up to the flood and then the flood itself. God gave Noah a purpose and he was self-disciplined so that it was carried out to its conclusion.

Upon reflection, one thought is the need to organize neighborhoods and to encourage each other. Neighbors should know each other’s name and know each other’s story. What if a facebook page or group was started for your neighborhood to help with encouragement or communication?

Right now on Facebook, all it would take is one person to take the lead in setting up a page or group for their neighborhood. That way they could keep up with important information in the neighborhood. They could fight crime together and encourage neighbors together. They could work together with new ideas and pass along these ideas to other neighborhoods.

What if the mission was to establish better neighborhoods? It begins with prayer so start a prayer list of things you can pray about in your neighborhood. Write about your community; local festivals, and things to see and do. Write about jobs in the area, share pictures of the surrounding region and write short descriptions of what it is like to live in your community so neighbors from other parts of the world are given the opportunity for a virtual visit.

Each day with You God can be amazing and with the help of technology today, we can organize with the mission of creating a better world; a world in which neighbors pull for each other and are concerned about each other. Here’s an inspirational video for today: One Day at a Time – Jeremy Camp.

Lord, we lift You up today and pray for our neighborhoods. Some are broken and we need help to build them up one day at time. We ask that You create a wave of neighbors that are concerned about their neighborhoods and this wave goes across the vast ocean of neighborhoods and around the world.

Posted in Genesis, Purpose | Tagged Communication, Community, Constitution, Corruption, Courage, Encouragement, God, Inspiration, Leadership, Morality, Nation, Neighborhoods, Noah’s Ark, Plan, Prayer, Purpose, Self Discipline, Society | 5 Comments

Noah Carries Out His Purpose

Posted on January 26, 2015 by Mark Shields

Image Source

Reading in Genesis 7, Noah did the job the Lord told him to do. It took 120 years to build the ark and people had the chance to repent during that whole time. Then the time came and Noah went into the ark along with his family. All male and female of every animal or bird was to enter into the ark to keep their kind alive while the earth was flooded.

For forty days and nights the rain came down but the ark floated on the water as it reached above the highest mountain. Every living thing on dry land was wiped out as the waters flooded the earth for a hundred and fifty days.

God gave Noah a purpose and he was self-disciplined so that it was carried out to its conclusion. What purpose has God given you? If you would like to share, please do so in the response/comment box.

To determine the purpose, it begins with prayer so start a prayer list of things you can pray about. Then listen and reflect. Each day with God can be amazing and with the help of technology today, we can organize with the purpose of changing the world for the better.

Lord, we lift you up today and pray for the purpose you have given to each of us. We ask that you provide a clear picture of this purpose and that we follow through with discipline in order to carry it out. Lord it took Noah 120 years to build the ark. We may not live that long but we can start building something for you today. Everything is not just on us; You will help us build it. We can start now and pass it on to future generations. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

Posted in Genesis, Purpose | Tagged Constitution, Corruption, Courage, God, Leadership, Morality, Nation, Noah’s Ark, Plan, Purpose, Society | 5 Comments

Inspiration to Step Ahead

Posted on January 24, 2015 by Mark Shields

Image Source

We are entering our last week of the first month of the New Year. For many, the resolutions for the New Year begin to fade. The mission we set out for as we began the New Year seems to no longer be obtainable or that important. Maybe the resolution didn’t fit with priorities. It’s so important to know our priorities and the thing God wants us to do.

If the resolution was not that important or didn’t fit a true priority for you, there is still time to rethink and plan out new ones. If the New Year resolutions were really important and you desire to keep trying to keep them, you may just need some inspiration. Here’s a link to a poem I wrote this week to inspire and motivate as you step ahead: On a Mission.

Posted in Poems, Purpose | Tagged Desire, Inspiration, Mission, Motivation, New Year Resolutions, Plan, poem, Priority, Purpose | Leave a comment

He is Supreme

Posted on January 23, 2015 by Mark Shields

Sometimes as a human race, we think we have all the answers. With technology the thought is we can do what we want and there are no limits. The feeling is that nothing or nobody can stop us when in reality there is ONE that can; God is to be feared just as I wrote in the post “Sticking to the Plan” about Him putting an end to the corruption on earth during the time of Noah.

While building the ark, there were probably many reservations, fears, doubts, and problems that Noah encountered but he responded to this incredible instruction from God with purpose and resolve. Then God made it rain and rain until mankind knew who truly reigns. Here’s a video to help keep our focus on this respect for our Creator: God You Reign – Lincoln Brewster.