April 2021 Week 3

Friday

Why Pray?

Scripture:  2 Kings 20:  1-11

Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, ³ “Remember, Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

⁴ Before Isaiah had left the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him: ⁵ “Go back and tell Hezekiah, the ruler of my people, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer

Sometimes I am asked why pray for God has already decided my fate. My response is as follows:  God always answers prayer.  He gives us one of three answers. 1) yes 2) no 3) not now I have something better. This scripture shows that it is not enough to just pray but to live a life in such a manner that God will listen to our please when there is special needs. Why should God only listen to us when we only go to him in time of need?

 

Thought for the day— Pray without ceasing does not mean only pray when you are in need but also in thanks and praise

 

Thursday

Scripture: Jeremiah 18:6

“O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the Lord. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel!

 

Lesson Objective:

To understand that God is our creator and we are formed by him to meet his purpose.

 

A Potter takes a lump of clay and molds it until it meets the desired results. Furthermore, each lump of clay is different and while the results may be similar they are never the same. It is also important to note that the clay does not tell the potter what it wants to be, but accepts the hands of the potter. So should it be with us. God loves us and has demonstrated that love in molding us as unique individuals with God given talents to be used to make a difference in the lives of others.

 

Thought for today:

Are you like clay and willing to be molded daily by God or are you stiff necked and one that tells God what you will and will not do?

 

Wednesday April 21

Scripture: Matthew 25:23

His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’

Lesson Objective: To understand that we must use what we have if we want to have more.

Many of us go through life aspiring for more. We look around us and see people who may have more materially then we have and then we begin to complain, begin to covert and cease to be content. One of the primary reasons for one not to have more is that we refuse to use what we have. We complain of hunger but we leave food on our plates. We have a job but we refuse to work hard because we have decided that we do not get paid enough money even though we agreed to the salary when we were hired. So when it is time for promotions we are not considered for promotion because we have not shown diligence in the present position. We have to learn how to use what we have no matter how limited we may think it is.

Thought for the day: Are you using what you have or are you just looking for more

 

 

Tuesday April 20

Scripture: Exodus 2: 6

And when she had opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the baby wept. So she had compassion on him, and said, “This is one of the Hebrews’ children.”

 

Lesson Objective: To understand that the love of God always has its protective arms around us.

 

I like to say that God watches over fools and babies and I am no baby. I look back over my life and look at many of the bad decisions that I have made and how God has protected me from harm and dangers. While I have suffered consequences as a result of these actions, things could have been much worst. I think God for protecting me from myself. I am often my worst enemy. We must understand that God helps those who are helpless. We are sometimes like a drowning man who fights the one who is trying to save him from certain death. We must understand that we are powerless and must rely totally on Christ just as a baby relies on his/her parents for nourishments.

 

Thought for today: When will you stop fighting the love of God and accept his saving Grace?

 

 

Monday April 19

 

Scripture: John 3:16

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Lesson Objective:

To understand that we have the opportunity for eternal life with Christ.

The four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all are an historical account of the life of Christ while he was here on earth. While all are similar they are also different in the perspective of Christ that the writer tried to present. John’s perspective was clearly that Christ was the Savior. There are many verses in John that records that but none better than John 3:16. This verse says it all. 1) God loved the world 2) to demonstrate that love he gave all- his son 3) For the purpose of man not being condemned to death but have opportunity for eternal life. However all of this is for naught if one does not believe.

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Thought for today:

that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9