Verse of the day - Ephesians 1:4

"Even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him."

It's an interesting and convicting thing to examine to purpose of God's will. For the most part, as Christians, we know a lot about the moral will of God (i.e what we should and should not do), but we often neglected to look at the purpose of His sovereign will. In this case the will of God in terms of our calling before the foundation of the world. God not only knew who would come to repentance, but He specifically called/chose those who would. Now I've never really had a dilemma in my mind with election; to know that God chose me is a very humbling and awesome thing, it brings about the knowledge that there couldn't possibly have been anything I've done in order to get it, even though I so often act like there is and I try to do it. But recently, as in today, as I read this verse, I was reminded of the purpose of this choice by God. It is again a humbling thing to know that the purpose God has for me is really again nothing to do with me. The verse simply states that the purpose of the who God called is that we should be holy and blameless before Him.
With all of my aspirations and goals to accomplish, I am reminded that my purpose needs to be nothing but the process of sanctification which is glorifying to God, He will use me as He will, but I must forget the idea that I have any ability of my own to make the will of God happen

Verse of the day - Malachi 1:11

"For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name will be great among the nations, and in every place incense will be offered to my name, and a pure offering. For my name will be great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts."

The people of Israel had been giving sacrifices to God as He required, but instead of the first born and the best of the flock, they were giving the blind and the runts of the flock.
From this practice God speaks to the people through Malachi in a way that would make them all realize how stupid and prideful it what they were doing was. Honestly how hard is it, you've got tones of animals all God is asking for is your best, you'll still have lots left over
But in our lives today we don't give sacrifices so this passage doesn't really apply...
oh wait its pretty obvious and incredibly convicting that it does
God stood before the foundation of the world, His name is great and He is worthy of all praise, and we struggle as we follow Him to give our first. The first moments of our day, the first thoughts and conversations, the first of our possessions, the best of everything He has given to us.
Do I really think that giving some of my day to God right in the middle and getting right back at the rest of the things I need to get done will cut it. Am I studying my school work alongside with God's word or am I taking a specific set time to come before God and lean on His word alone? Am I praying constantly or just when I come across something I can't face and need God's help?

God is the Lord of Hosts. He deserves all of my life and the sacrifices of my life to Him need to be the best and the first, if they are not it is a mockery of God and all He has done for me

Verse of the day - Romans 15:22

"This is the reason why I have so often been hindered from coming to you"

Context: well clearly a context is need - who is it that Paul wants to go to...well that one is pretty easy because he is writing to the church in Rome, but what is the reason that he has been hindered?
The verse previous Paul quotes from Isaiah 52: 15 concluding that his only aim is to preach the gospel so that "those who have never been told of him will see"
If anyone needed a vacation it was Paul, he never stopped sharing the gospel, and he was kept from going to help the church and be helped by the church in Rome in order that he might continue to preach Christ
Talk about a lifestyle
Do I think and act like that? I would say hardly
My life of following Christ so often consists of serving in areas that I want to be in, the places where my friends are or where I know I will do well
Paul could have easily gone to Rome and been serving God there with the church he so desperately wanted to be with, but he didn't
God was calling him to something else and Paul chose to be where God needed him most
In our own service to the Lord we need to be willing to work where He calls us, no matter where it is, or who is or isn't there along side us, God will provide us with our needs the only thing that should matter to us is that we are where the Lord has put us and are serving Him with our whole hearts such that we too may be hindered in our return to our friends, family, or any place we desire to be.

Verse of the Day - Job 42:2

"I know you can do all things;
no plans of yours can be thwarted"

So today I went back at it
University is a tough place and I've put a lot of hard work into it so discovering today that I had apparently failed a class did not exactly make me smile
I didn't know what to do but with a few reminders ;) I quickly realized how God is sovereign over all things and there is nothing He lets out of His sight
Me freaking out about it and worrying till I get sick isn't helping, but coming before a God who's plans can not be thwarted is what I am called to do and is what brings Him glory
I am lacking in faith and in my understanding as to what is going on, but I know that He has always provided for me before and He will continue too as long as I continue to follow what He has called me to.
I will remember to pray this verse in the days to come and as I am continually faced with challenges in my live that God allows into my life
with all of this in mind I am sure that a mistake has been made and my final exam was not included in the mark so I believe everything will work out according to the purpose of God
Remember He can not be thwarted

Verse of the day Romans 15: 13

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope"

Context: Paul is once again stating the inclusion of the gentiles in salvation, quoting from several passages of scripture including Isaiah 11:10 "The root of Jesse will come, even he who arises to rule the gentiles; in him the Gentiles hope." The hope then that Paul states in verse 13 is a hope for all who believe, not just for the Jews. After laying on such an extensive passage of what it means to follow Christ, this verse serves as an encouragement of how this is possible

Why this passage: I liked this verse because of how easy is is to break down, but how powerful and convicting it is.
May the God of hope - our God is not one who, as many people have thought, created the universe and then backed away to let us figure it out. He is always present as Paul characterizes Him as one who's nature is Hope. It is quite impossible to fully explain or understand God, but the idea that He is "of hope" is amazing. Hope, not in the sense like I hope the Leafs will win the stanley cup, but hope as in Jesus Christ died for me and saved me from the sin that lived within me. It is an absolute assurance and God is full of it. Amazing thing...He wants to fill us
"fill you with all joy and peace in believing" - for the race set before us in Christ, God has chosen to fill us so that we may be able to stand. When asked about my life in Christ it's pretty hard not to look at my situation and see blessings, but I am convicted, and rightly so, that this is not how I should esteem my relationship with Christ. If I were in a third world country with no possessions and no food would I still be loving God and loving to others. This verse reminds me that I am filled with joy and peace because of my belief in Christ regardless of whatever situation I am in, whether well fed or hungry.
"so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope" - this is where the conviction really kicks in. It is necessary to understand and believe that the joy and peace will only come by the power of the Holy Spirit and not by human means. We can not get this joy or peace by wealth or friends or good deeds, it is only coming from a belief in the God of Hope THROUGH the power of the Holy Spirit. What is so powerful about this verse I believe is that it ends with an abounding hope. Similar to the start of verse one where God is stated as being hope Himself, we, as followers of Him are going to be completely filled, overflowing, etc with the assured hope of what God has promised: The joy and peace of believing in Jesus Christ

Verse of the day - Romans 15: 7

"Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God"

Context: Paul is speaking to the Romans about the obligation for the stronger brother to help the weaker brother as Christ did not care for himself but for others.

Important point: 15:5 is a prayer from Paul that God would grant harmony. It is important to see that the unity of believers that is so often addressed in scripture is not one that is self made. God is the one who brings unity and without faith in Him there will be none.

Why this verse: So what is so important about this verse.
Well to start of it is a command. Suggestions are not really a part of scripture and so every time a command is given, a follower of Jesus needs to examine it and see how it applies to there own life. Am I welcoming to those around me? Other translations have accept or receive so the real question is am I loving everyone?
Secondly, Christ is the example. "As Christ has welcomed you". We are not commanded to welcome/receive/accept/love one another because it makes us feel good, we are to do these things because Christ has first shown this to us. The strength that Paul addresses in 15:1 is not one of human strength in superiority but one of God at work in the believers life because "Christ has welcomed you"
Finally, the purpose of it all is to glorify God. God has created all things to bring Him glory and the pinnacle of this is the life death, resurrection and saving power of Jesus Christ. No matter what we do God will always be glorified, and as this verse commands that we welcome one another, we must do so with the example of Christ in mind and for the ultimate purpose of glorifying God as "they may see your good works and glorify your Father, who is in Heaven"

Learning

Sometimes in university I'm in a class and I already know what the prof is talking about. I think to myself "how lame is this that I have to sit through another lecture on something I learned last year". I get distracted counting ceiling tiles or something like that and I barely hear the prof say something that I'm totally unprepared for and I suddenly realize there is a whole lot more to the topic then what I had previously learned. Now instead of being completely on top of the subject, I need to spend extra time understanding how all the new concepts fit in. If I had of just paid attention from the start everything would have made sense and I could move onto to writing this blog earlier.
This aspect of thinking I know something can often carry into my life with God and reading His word. I find myself reading a passage of scripture that I memorized in 5th grade and it having no impact on me as my mind is somewhere else. My approach to scripture becomes similar to that of my biochemistry class: I know the basics already so all the little details should just be easy to pick up along the way.
It doesn't take long however before I realize how completely lost I am in trying to understand what God is teaching me. Clearly if I think I have it all together and know everything there is to know, then I won't be putting a whole lot of effort into "going to class" to see what God has for me today. This leads to a putting aside of God's word for other things which have no benefit whatsoever. If I am going to be changed by the knowledge in God's word I need to be focused in my reading and realizing how very little I know of God
The solution for my classes is one of intentionality. I need to focus on what the prof is saying and make notes on the concepts he is teaching, even if I already know some of it. This way I won't miss any of the new ideas and I'll have complete notes to come back to.
With God's word it is the same. I need to intentionally read his word, study it, regardless of how I feel, in a structured way and not random bits here and there. At university my schedule of activities is based off of my schedule of my classes because I can't miss any of them. My schedule can not be determined from what I want to do or specific plans but it should be determined by the times I have set to read God's word.