Daily Bible Study for Monday July 4,
2016
By: Hanny Lynn Stearns
Fish N
Loaves Ministries, Inc.
“Multiplying
God’s Word Around The Globe”
Chapter Reading
for Today: Please read in
your Bible before proceeding. Note that most translations are considered
paraphrases. The Young’s Literal Translation provides a more accurate
translation since he is the one who authored a concordance. Others are helpful
for seeing a different perspective, but we cannot always depend on their
wording. I hope this is helpful to you. If you are studying in another version,
that is fine. I am studying from the KJV, but for the purpose of this study, I
will keep it with the New King James Version.
One final note: I will put the scripture in italics to differentiate from my
own writing. I am adding red to the letters when
it is Jesus talking – just like the Bible. Thank you.
Bible Gateway Verse of the Day
Psalm 33:12
Great blessings belong to those who have the Lord as their God! He chose them to be his
own special people.
Psalm
100:4
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
and into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless
His name.
Song: Peace Like A River
Psalm 4
Perfect Peace
We begin in Psalm 4 with David
calling upon the Lord – again. He asks to hear him twice in this Psalm and
remembers that God has set him apart as His very own. He knows that the Lord
will hear him when he prays. He is expressing real confidence in God here,
isn’t He saints? Let’s pray…
Heavenly Father,
Thank You for setting us apart
to be Your own chosen people. We are the people You love. Father, we know from
Your word that when we call on you in prayer, You will hear us. When we are in
right standing with You and call out for Your aid, You never fail to help us.
Thank You for Your faithfulness to the sons of God. Father, I ask You to use my
mind, my heart and my hands to stir up and bring out Your message to Your
children today. Lord I ask for every person who will ever read this to get a
fresh revelation for themselves to bring them up higher in their faith and
trust in You more. Anoint Your holy word Father as it goes out today. Release
it through me Lord, unhindered and unchecked by any outside force or my flesh.
Make Your plan and purpose known to all of us in this study today. Father, we
will purpose to be doers of Your precious word and not forgetful hearers. Bring
glory to Yourself Lord and thank You in advance for always watching over Your
word to perform it in Jesus name. Amen.
David knew where his help
would come from – each and every time he needed it – amen! This short but
powerful set of verses displays the peace and trust that this man of God had
even when outsiders were pushing against him, going after useless things. Yesterday
we looked at how David cried to the Lord. He knew beyond any doubt that God
would answer. We saw how gracious God is when anyone would cry out to Him.
Today we see a focus on David’s trust – in his God, and in ours. He had people
coming at him from every side. I wonder if any of us have ever been hounded
like David was. After all, he was a king. So instead of having a few people
against him, he had entire armies charging after his back.
In his prayer here, he is
letting God know that he understood who God was, and who he was in God. That’s
a big deal saints. Approaching God with faith, knowing that we are His children
is highly important. If we go to Him and do not have faith in Him, we are
asking amiss. Here is what the Bible says about asking of God. In the following
verse we are given the example of asking God for wisdom. Here’s what it says…
James 1:5-8
If any of you
lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without
reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for
he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the
Lord; he is a double-minded
man, unstable in all his ways.
There are many people who may go to God with
halfhearted prayers, hoping upon hope that they will get some sort of an
answer, all the while not really trusting in their hearts that He will come
through for them. I have heard some of the craziest stories from people about
their prayer requests to God. Maybe you have to. Some think He is too busy to
answer their small petty problem requests. They think He is too busy with the
bigger things and can’t be bothered with the little stuff. That is a lie from
the pit. Of course the devil wants folks thinking like this. It renders them
helpless in the spiritual realm and ineffective for the kingdom of God.
Others think they need to pray to Mary, the
mother of Jesus and she will help them, and possibly take their request to God.
People have no clue who He is or what He can do for them, while all the while
professing to “know God.” They are
deceived and they walk in darkness. They put more trust in their car starting
when they insert the key into the ignition than they do in God to answer their
prayers. David is telling the Lord as he is talking about the people that
surround him to avoid sin and think about their ways as they lay in their beds
at night. He is saying to the people from his heart to live right. He is
emphatic. And he tells people here to trust God.
But how many people in this world today really do
trust God? Sadly, there are a very few who take Him at His word and believe
that He is who He says He is or that He can do what He says He can do.
Throughout the ages, God has always had a remnant in every generation of people
who knew Him and trusted in Him. No generation was left without people whom the
Lord has set apart as His own special people.
The Lord makes a way for every
man, woman and child to make a decision to trust in Him, as their Lord and as
their Helper in every need, both large and small. Yesterday we talked about
remembering things that God has done for us in the past. In doing that, our
faith is increased to trust Him to help us in the future. That is why He had
the Israelite's build a memorial after He brought them out of the wilderness…
Joshua 4:1-9
And it came to pass, when all the people had completely crossed
over the Jordan, that the Lord spoke
to Joshua, saying:2 “Take for yourselves twelve men from
the people, one man from every tribe, 3 and command
them, saying, ‘Take for yourselves twelve stones from here, out of the midst of
the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet stood firm. You shall carry
them over with you and leave them in the lodging place where you lodge
tonight.’”
4 Then Joshua called the twelve men whom he had
appointed from the children of Israel, one man from every tribe; 5 and
Joshua said to them: “Cross over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the
Jordan, and each one of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the
number of the tribes of the children of Israel, 6 that
this may be a sign among you when your children ask in time to come, saying,
‘What do these stones mean to
you?’ 7 Then you shall answer them that the waters
of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed over the Jordan,
the waters of the Jordan were cut off. And these stones shall be for a memorial to the children of
Israel forever.”
8 And the children of Israel did so, just as
Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones from the midst of the Jordan, as
the Lord had spoken to
Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and
carried them over with them to the place where they lodged, and laid them down
there. 9 Then Joshua set up twelve stones in the
midst of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests who bore the
ark of the covenant stood; and they are there to this day.
We are never to forget the mighty things that God
did for us in the past. Each step of our journey in life is intended to
continue to build our faith in the Lord as we see His help for us over and over
and over again. Can you imagine what it must have been like for over 1 million
people to cross the Red Sea on dry land (see the book of Exodus) and then after
many years, 40 to be exact, they crossed over to the Promised Land, going
through the Jordan River on dry land. Friends, we serve a mighty and powerful
God! How can we see the Lord do such marvelous things and yet find ourselves still
wavering like the tossing waves of the sea or the river? It makes no logical
sense whatsoever.
After coming to Florida, I saw the Lord do one
amazing thing for me after another. When I arrived I had very few clothes. I
had lost weight and gained some back, so my wardrobe was well, slightly
“underweight.” The Lord had me connect with some very lovely women who were a
few years older than me. They were friendly and nurturing, and very
understanding when I told them about the crisis I had been through. One day,
one of these precious ladies (still friends today) came to my house with a
shopping cart filled with a trunk load of clothes that she wanted to give me.
They were her clothes she had used in business and no longer needed them. She
informed me that it was about $5,000 worth of clothes, along with belts, jewelry
purses and shoes. And these clothes were exactly the size I was wearing at the
time.
I was overwhelmed. I knew the Lord was
responsible for this. Friends, we have to remember that God works through
people to bless us. If someone is waiting for a hand to reach down out of the
sky (though He could certainly do that) they are going to wait a really long
time. God does not work that way. He works through people. He puts it on a
person’s heart to do something for someone, and if they listen and obey, they
are getting rewarded for their obedience, and the person they are giving to is
rewarded with a much needed blessing. Hallelujah! I love the Lord! He is so
good!
Another time I was going to meet one of them for
dinner at a restaurant. Before meeting her I decided to go to the mall to get a
dress for an upcoming event. While looking through the clothing racks, a lady
came by and said, “Have you heard that there is a bomb threat here at the mall
today?” I replied, “No.” She said, “We better get out of here right now.” I
just dismissed her and kept on shopping. I figured there would be an alarm or something
that would tell us if we really needed to leave. What I didn’t realize fully
until later was that this lady was being used by the Lord to get me to leave
the mall. But I hadn’t listened. I
bought a dress and a pair of matching shoes. Once I left and went across the
street to meet my friend for dinner, I found out why the Lord had tried to get
me out of the store.
My friend opened her trunk and pulled out a large
bag filled with clothes. By then I was a smaller size and you guessed it; they
were just the right size. Not only that, but they were just my style. I really
liked everything she gave me. God had already provided. He had done the
shopping for me. As far as clothing goes, I lost count after the 7th
time that the Lord brought me clothes – nice stuff too. It was awesome.
One
lady from work who had given me a hard time when I started working with her
brought me so many bags of clothes that it took me days to go through them all
and decide which ones would to keep and which ones I would give away to another
gal who was in a tough way for clothes. After that I gave them to others in
need. It was glorious! God is a “more than enough” God, and He is trustworthy.
I have watched Him pay for multiple car repairs,
totaling well over $1,500. I have seen Him provide when I needed the money to
have not one, but two root canals done back to back. I have seen Him provide my
places to live, exactly where I was to go at exactly the right time. I have
witnessed Him bringing me food, gas and personal needs as I walked with Him
more closely these past 10+ years. Just today I was reminded about a man who
had a tailoring shop in Ft. Myers. My husband had done a lot of business with
him and we really liked his work. He was a fine man. When it was time to have
my wedding dress altered, I took it to him and his lovely wife. They ran the
shop as a team and they were a lovely couple.
I didn’t expect the alteration to cost more than
maybe $50. What did I know? I never had that done before. When I went to pick
up the dress, they had me try it on and everything was just right! They had
done an exemplary job and the hemline was as straight as a tight rope. When I
asked them how much I owed them, they told me it had been a lot of work –
wedding dresses usually are. The cost would be $250. I was floored! That was
more than I had spent on purchasing the dress!
It was all I could do not to cry out loud. I
wondered what my fiancé would say about such an expense. We were really trying
to watch our spending. I began to cry and escaped to the dressing room to get
back into my regular clothes. As soon as the curtain was closed, I looked up to
heaven and I told the Lord my dilemma. Of course He already knew it, but I had
to ask Him for help. And I did! All I had on me was about $90. in cash. After I
prayed I walked out of the dressing room confident that no matter how I felt at
the moment, or how things looked, God would work it out for me somehow. I
apologized to the man and explained that I only had the $90. with me. I asked
him if I could make payments. I told him what a wonderful job they had done. I
let him know that I really appreciated it and wanted him to get every penny he
deserved for his fine work.
He looked at me as I gave him the $90. and said,
“That’s all you need to pay – you are all set.” I was not surprised but my
heart was overflowing with thanks to the Lord! He had come through for me
again! Give Him a shout of praise. Every time I have called on the Lord in
faith, trusting Him for the answer, He has provided – every time. Saints, He
never fails. It is usually our faith the fails before He gets a chance to bring
us the answer. While people are running around trying to find something good in
their miserable lives, David knew that God was good.
He looked around and saw many people who searched
for anything that could make their lives better. But he knew the only one who
could. In his prayer today, we see how he looked to the Lord for his continual
help. The Bible is full of scriptures – literally, that tell us to trust in
God. So why don’t we? I even have to look at myself when it comes to following
my eating plan that the Lord provided for me, as just one example. As a former
food and sugar addict, I have to follow a very strict eating plan. If I didn’t,
I would gain the 80+ pounds I lost back in a real hurry. My walk with the Lord
would be severely hampered and my effectiveness to help others would be void.
That would be very SADD-U-CEE!
The reason this is coming up is to show you an
example. You can see how I trusted God to help me with clothing, finances,
work, my children, and several other things. One day I even asked the Lord to
help in a work situation where a client was going to have to pay $90,000 more
in premium to the insurance company, even though it was the insurance company’s
fault. They had misquoted their renewal premium. I went to the Lord at lunch. I
was very concerned about it. I thought we would lose the client and they were a
very valuable part of our business.
By the time I got back from my “not eating/only
praying” lunch, my boss told me that he had received a very strange phone call
from the insurance company. He said they completely changed their mind and they
decided they would “eat” the cost for that year. The client (and us) was off
the hook – glory to God. I told my boss I had prayed to God and that is why it
had happened. He just looked at me said, “It must be God, because they never do
that.” I walked away rejoicing in the Lord and hoping that this would be
something that would help my boss to see how real and good God is. Here’s the
thing. All of us have been dealt a measure of faith by the Lord – equal
portions. Look at this…
Romans 12:3
For I say, through the grace
given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more
highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each
one a measure of faith.
Here’s the kicker. While we may believe Him to fix our car, our teeth
and our wardrobe, many times we do not trust Him to fix an addiction among
other things. Why? Because it is the hardest thing to let go of. It is that
thing we have held on to for comfort. And that my friends, as most of you know,
is idolatry. It is sin and God despises it. Why do we hesitate then? Lack of
faith. Lack of trust. It is that simple – yet we make it ever so complicated.
Many Christians are willing to trust God for certain things, but the things that
matter most, like a person’s bank account, their place of work or their
addiction – well, they think, “that’s another thing.”
I have wanted to trust God more
with my eating ever since He started me down the “clean eating” path – but I
didn’t. My flesh would scream when I would try to take the things away that it
longed for. It was a lot easier to give up the drugs and alcohol in my life.
Those things made me sick to my stomach and while the high was great for a
brief moment, it always left me feeling terrible when it wore off. But the food
had become a comfort to me.
I had always liked food and eating, but growing up it never meant
anything more to me than something to stop me from feeling hungry. Over time I
would have to learn (the hard way) to trust God - even with my food plan. I
have had to learn to let go and jump into His arms. It’s like those commercials
we used to see on TV. They would show a person on a diving board and an empty
pool below. Who would want to dive off onto a concrete floor 20 feet below?
But
picture this. You are a young child. You are standing on that same diving
board. In the water below, you have your loving daddy there floating and
calling out your name, saying, “Come on honey, you can do it. I will catch you.
You have nothing to be afraid of.” As you look down, you tremble, wondering if
it really will be alright? You ask yourself, “Ya, but what if he misses me and
I go under and drown?”
Now let’s think of our Abba Father in heaven. You remember, the one who
parted the Red Sea and the Jordan River so His people could walk over on dry
ground? The ones who placed the stones there by the edge of the river so they
would never forget what God had done for them? Ya, them. Now picture yourself
looking down into that deep pool of refreshing water. Oh, it looks so pretty.
The sunlight is hitting the tips of the moving water like a host of dancing
diamonds.
And the One who loves you the most in all of heaven and earth is looking
up at you smiling. His eyes are filled with love and light, waiting for you to
take that jump. He is calling again and again, “Come on honey, I will catch
you. I will not let anything bad happen to you.” But you turned and ran back
down the steps of the diving board and grabbed your little “floaty” that you
had always depended on for safety. He is looking over at you with that some
love and light in His eyes. He looks at you and smiles, saying, “Ok honey,
that’s OK. Maybe next time.”
Fortunately for us, our heavenly Father knows exactly how long it is
going to take before we finally make that faith climb up the pool’s ladder and
walk to the edge with confidence, knowing that ‘now is the time.’ You know you
are ready to take that leap of faith right off the board into His loving arms.
You realize that even if there is a tidbit of pain as your feet leave the board
and your body slaps into that water, it is going to be OK. He is there for you.
He is waiting faithfully to catch you. By now you have seen Him do so many
marvelous things for you that you know - that you know - that you know, He
would never let you down.
You begin to trust Him and let go of your ‘floaty’, and you see how
really great it feels to swim freely through the water with Him. Moses never
saw those waters part until he did what God said. Until he lifted up that rod
and they placed their feet in the water, nothing would happen. But once in,
even though they didn’t have a clue what would happen next – the miracle
occurred. Obedience always brings blessings.
David knew God this way. He called on Him. He knew God was love. He
asked the Lord to make the light of His countenance, aka, His face, shine upon
His people. David also knew that God had given Him more joy than any lost
person could ever have found in their prosperity on their best day! He had put
his hope and trust in God. And God had always come through.
Friends, I believe that when we hear testimonies of how the Lord has
helped others, it will encourage us to trust Him more. He is so good. The Bible
says that we overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony.
If we say what God’s word says, as we walk covered in the blood of Jesus, we
will get victory in our lives. We will be free of bondage. And like those
Israelites, we will come out of the wilderness and truly walk into our Promised
Lands.
Can you see Him? He is standing on the other side of that big river. He
is calling your name and mine. He is saying, “Come to Me. Just stick your toes
in and watch me work. I have got you covered – with love that is.” He knows
what we each struggle with letting go of. He knows it hurts, but He has the
cure. Just look at how this Psalm closes. David says…
Psalm 4:8
I will both lie
down in peace, and sleep; for You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in
safety.
Saints, how many of are going to bed at night
with this statement of faith on our lips? How many of us are carrying our
burdens to bed like a great big tote bag that takes up all the room, rather
than taking our faith to bed? How many people are sleeping in anything but
peace these days? It is unfortunate to know that professing Christians are
still carrying their cares on their own, leaving their heavenly Father just
floating there in the water below?
When we really trust someone, it shows up in
our behavior. When we really trust them, even our blood pressure and other body
functions return to normal. The cortisol (stress hormone) levels, subside. Let’s
look at what Isaiah was used to pen about trust and peace…
Isaiah 26:3
You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts
in You.
This has been one of my personal favorites in the
Bible. But how much have I really lived it? That really is the question, isn’t
it saints? It is not head knowledge that gets us to come up in our walk with
God. It is revelation knowledge. When the Lord speaks to us each day about our
concerns, and we grab a hold of that word, we can learn to really do what the
word says, and not just be a ‘hearer of the word” like so many are today.
We can learn the verses and rattle them off like
a machine gun, thinking we can impress others with our knowledge of the
scriptures. Yes, we can get prideful about that. We think the more we know and where
the verses are located, the better. And don’t get me wrong here. We should be
so familiar with our Bible that we know where to find things quickly. But we
have to be living it from the bottom of our hearts. Otherwise, we are like
waves tossed upon the sea…
James 1:6
But let him ask in faith, with
no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by
the wind.
Whenever we stop to consider the “waves on the
sea” in our lives, why not remember that our heavenly Father is in that sea?
Think of it like Jesus, walking on the water. He told Peter not to fear. Can
you imagine how the story would have changed if he would have continued to
trust the Lord as he walked toward Him?
That experience would have sent Peter’s
faith to the moon and back! After that, there would be nothing that would stop
him. Well, as it turns out, Peter did fail miserably in his trust in the
Savior. But Jesus was patient with him. He prayed for him and when Peter finally
“got it”, he was really willing to die for the Lord – and he did.
This is the 4th of July. It is a day
in America that we celebrate freedom. Many of those freedoms have been taken
away, little by little as we have allowed to the enemy to infiltrate our
boundary lines with his lies. But it doesn’t have to stay that way. This
country can rise up like never before and place their faith and trust in the
One true God who can calm the storms this land is experiencing.
God can part the waters of a corrupt government
and oppressed people can be set free. Saints, real freedom comes when we place
our full trust in God, even when we can’t see our way through or out of something.
Real peace comes when that trust is actively working in our lives. In fact,
trust and peace go together like a hand in a glove. Wouldn’t it be great to go
to sleep every night in perfect peace, just like David did? You can you know.
Go ahead! Jump! He’s waiting!
Questions:
Do you know really know who God is and who you are in Him?
Explain your answer and take it to prayer.
Do you trust Him to jump on into the waters? If not, what is
holding you back?
Do you really have faith that God will catch you?
If you were brutally honest with yourself, what areas of your
life are you holding back in trusting God with?
What do you believe will help you to let go and take that
final plunge?
Are you currently sleeping in peace at night? If not, why?
John
14:27
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give
to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
There are three main points to
consider from today’s study…
Knowing God and who we are in Him
brings true peace
Letting go of baggage is a good
place to start
Trust and peace go hand in hand –
like a perfect partner
Heavenly Father,
Thank You for being faithful every time I jump
into Your arms – even when it can look scary. Lord, I know in You I do not have
to fear. Even the most difficult thing for me to let go of is an easy thing for
You. Father, help to see the ways I have not been trusting You. Show me what I
need to change. Heavenly Father, work in my heart to lead me in Your paths of
perfect peace as I put all my faith and trust in You. Lord, I know the water is
great – even the really deep water, because You are there. Father, forgive me
for not trusting You, our faithful and true God as much as I should have in the
past. Help me change into a person like David Sir, so I can lay down every
night to sleep in perfect peace with You in Jesus name.
Wouldn’t you like to truly experience His perfect peace?
And God Said… You fill in the blanks.
Psalm
55:18
He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me,
for there were many against me.
for there were many against me.
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