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

Questions for Reflection – 1 Chronicles 24-29

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Mark Shields

Over the last few weeks, the journey has taken me through 1 Chronicles 20–23. I studied how David began to trust in his own powers rather than trusting God. He felt he could do it himself instead of relying on God. Faith is something we can’t see but the invisible and intangible can be so powerful. We can’t see air yet our life depends on it. We can’t see faith yet it can help us through anything and is the key to life eternal.

Because David’s pride got in his way, God sent an angel to make the numbers smaller so the angel caused a plague that killed 70 thousand of David’s fighting men. David had humility and after he prayed, God showed mercy and allowed healing to take place. There are things we can learn from history and our own experiences that will help in making decisions. The problems we go through in life are not stop signs; they are guidelines and it is during tough times that He provides sure signs of a brighter future.

God spoke to David and He listened. He paid attention to the stop signs and used them as guidelines to help make decisions. David had the ability to step back and prepare for the day for someone to take over the leadership. He began assembling materials for the building of the temple because He knew that it was the next generation who would carry out the work. We may not always see the fruit of our labors but our hard work will set up success for the future as we prepare the next generation to carry out God’s work.

Over the next few weeks, I will be posting about the journey through 1 Chronicles 24-27 and will use the questions below to help focus on each passage. Feel free to respond with a short note or a comment about any of these questions. Also, I welcome any other thoughts or ideas, favorite inspirational videos, photos, or favorite Bible verses. Just add them to the comments or to a Facebook page I’ve set up at this link: This Day With God.

1 Chronicles 24-25
Passage Lookup
What can be learned from the organizational planning described in these chapters? How can I help cultivate the characteristics of real community with other believers?

1 Chronicles 26-27
Passage Lookup
List the jobs mentioned in this section. What characteristic did the gatekeepers and stewards possess (26:6-9, 14, 30-32)? Note all the helpers necessary for what David had to do. What tasks has God given you, and what resources has he provided for their completion?

1 Chronicles 28
Passage Lookup
What are the conditions for success taught here (vv. 7-8)? What resources are provided for Solomon (vv. 11-21)?

1 Chronicles 29
Passage Lookup
As David’s reign draws to a close, what do you think are his top three or four priorities in life? What is the evidence? What is your attitude about giving of your substance? Of your time and skills?

The above reading plan will be used as I share over the next few posts. It’s important to have a plan. I’m thankful that Jesus is God’s plan for us and by accepting Him as Savior; we have taken the steps necessary to make this day with Him amazing! At this link: God’s Plan for Us, is a post about accepting God’s plan or reaffirming our “YES” for Christ.

__________________________________________

Resources and Supplementary Helps Used in Posts
Adeney, Carol. This Morning with God. Downer Grove Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1978
First United Methodist Waco Podcast
Christ Notes

Posted in 1 Chronicles | Tagged Chapters and verses of the Bible, Christ, David, God, Jesus, United Methodist Church | 5 Comments

Building Up the Kingdom

Posted on March 19, 2013 by Mark Shields

The Word of God is very important to us as we learn how we should live. God spoke to David and He listened. We too should listen and prepare for the future. God will give instructions on what we can do for the Kingdom.

As we write about faith and artistically share about faith in the written word, music, and pictures, we are a big part of the continuous building up of God’s Kingdom. There are great videos that build up our faith as we worship God. Here’s one video as an example: Word of God Speak – MercyMe. May God bless your day! 🙂

For the Lord gives wisdom, and from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. – Proverbs 2:6

Audio Readings March 19, 2013 5th Week of Lent (sacredheartcatholicchurchcrosbytexas.wordpress.com)
Advance the Kingdom (thepopeys.wordpress.com)
Faithful Delight (faithfuldelight.wordpress.com)
Price of Kingdom Building (iamchasewordz.wordpress.com)

Posted in 1 Chronicles | Tagged Christ, Christianity, Church, David, example word, Faith, God, God’s Kingdom, Instructions, Kingdom, Lord, MercyMe, Prepare, proverbs, religion, word music, Word of God, Worship, www youtube | 4 Comments

Preparation for Excellence

Posted on March 18, 2013 by Mark Shields

The Journey now takes us to 1 Chronicles 22-23. Let us examine David’s conversation with Solomon. The instructions are to follow God’s will, be strong and courageous. David explains that the resources will be given but Solomon needs to use these resources wisely.

David had the ability to step back and prepare for the day for someone to take over the leadership. He began assembling materials for the building of the temple because He knew that it was the next generation who would carry out the work. We will not always see the fruit of our labors but our hard work will set up success for the future as we prepare the next generation to carry out God’s work.

Reading in 1 Chronicles 22:2-4, plenty of resources were gathered by David. He provided a large amount of iron to make nails for the doors of the gateways and for the fittings, and more bronze than could be weighed. He also provided more cedar logs than could be counted, for the Sidonians and Tyrians had brought large numbers of them to David.

When David was up in age, he went ahead and handed off the leadership to Solomon and set up the duties of Levites who would manage the methods of the temple service; helping all that brought an offering and in all the ways that the worship of God would be carried out.

The lesson for me in today’s passage is that things just don’t happen. They need to be prayed about and planned for. A lot of work has to be put into preparing for the future. In reflection, one example is the church I attend. About twelve years ago it was struggling but put in place was a vision for the future. A multi-million dollar building project was planned out and there was a goal to gather the financial resources up front so there was not any debt for future generations. Today First United Methodist of Waco, has a tremendous impact on not only the community but throughout the world.

Questions for Reflection – 1 Chronicles 20-23 (thisdaywithgod.wordpress.com)

Posted in 1 Chronicles | Tagged Courageous, David, God, God’s Work, Jesus, Levite, Plan, Prayer, Prepare, religion, Solomon, United Methodist Church | Leave a comment

Unstoppable Life

Posted on March 17, 2013 by Mark Shields

The next message of the series called “Unstoppable” at First United Methodist Church Waco was presented today. It is titled “Unstoppable Life” and can be watched at this link.

1. LIFE REQUIRES KINGDOM LIVING.

“Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” – Matthew 6:9b-10 (KJV)

2. LIFE REQUIRES SURRENDER AND REDEMPTION.

“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.” – Matthew 13:44 (NIV)

3. LIFE REQUIRES AUTHENTIC TRANSFORMATION.

“On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, ‘If you are thirsty, come to Me! If you believe in Me, come and drink!’ For the scriptures declare that rivers of living water will flow out from within.” – John 7:37-38 (NLT)

4. LIFE REQUIRES A LIFE GIVER.

“I live by the power of the living Father Who sent Me; in the same way, those who partake of Me will live because of Me.” I am the true bread from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever….” – John 6:57-58a (NLT)

5. LIFE REQUIRES GOD LIVING IN US.

This is real love. It is not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us,….” – 1 John 4:10-12a (NLT)

6. THE JESUS LIFE IS THE UNSTOPPABLE LIFE.

“You have shown me the way of life, and You will give me wonderful joy in Your presence.” – Acts 2:28 (NLT)

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Christianity, first united methodist, first united methodist church, God, religion, rivers of living water | 2 Comments

Traits to Emulate

Posted on March 16, 2013 by Mark Shields

I’ve been studying recently about personality traits and many characters in the Bible demonstrated traits we can try to emulate. From a person named Esther in the Bible, we learn about openness and its benefits. Being open and letting people know who you are creates trust. She told the king about her Jewish background and rather than being destroyed, her openness helped her people receive protection (Esther 7-8).

Depiction of the separation of Abraham and Lot by Wenceslaus Hollar. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Throughout the Bible, we notice how God uses those who are humble. How can we begin to demonstrate humility toward God? One way is by being comfortable in our own skin; by having a calm soul and feeling that we have a purpose in life. Abraham demonstrates these qualities when he was willing to work out problems head on without deception. He humbly sought unity and peace with Lot (Genesis 13).

We can also learn about personality traits to emulate from the stories of others and personal experiences. To read some of these examples, take a few minutes to read the post at my other blog titled People We Enjoy Being Around.