8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
We can have the awareness that God is with us, and I would add that when we do see where God has worked in our lives, we can give Him praise for His faithfulness. He has provided wonderful tools through which we can walk in Him, and our hearts can be filled with joy in His presence. As we think more deeply about the birth of Christ, we can also consider the power of the new birth, and how He wants to express Himself through us in the new year.
We're just about there - we are about to arrive at our destination of 25: A Christmas Advent-ure, the 2018 Faith Radio Advent Guide; with the title this year, Sing Unto the Lord! And, I hope you have enjoyed our journey through these Christmas songs this year.
Today, we come to Good Christian Men, Rejoice. And, we recognize that this is certainly a season
for rejoicing because Christ has come! A corresponding Scripture verse can be found in Isaiah 61:
10 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
That's who we are - in Christ! Certainly a cause for rejoicing. And, our entry into salvation through Christ begins a journey of discovery and spiritual growth as we learn what it means to be a disciple.
There is a rather well-known rapper who apparently wants to go deeper in a spiritual journey. His name is Chance the Rapper. A piece on Crosswalk.com announced:
Chance is quoted as saying: "I’m going away to learn the Word of God which I am admittedly very unfamiliar with. I’ve been brought up by my family to know Christ but I haven’t taken it upon myself to really just take a couple days and read my Bible..." He said that he wanted to read five or more books of the Bible and to quit smoking. Apparently, his young nephew was "somewhat of an inspiration" for this sabbatical.
Apparently, he is on his way to reach that goal. The Christian Post reported earlier this week:
There has been the criticism that Chance's work product doesn't line up with His profession of faith. But, that is a daily struggle for all of us, and we can acknowledge the availability of the power of God. He wants to infuse us with His strength, and once we've absorbed His Word into our consciousness, we have to allow the Word to work through us, to permeate us, to empower us - so that we can be more than hearers, but doers, as well. And, we can rejoice in what God is doing through us.
John Stonestreet, on a recent edition of The Point, said, regarding Chance's announcement:
+++++
We're just about there - we are about to arrive at our destination of 25: A Christmas Advent-ure, the 2018 Faith Radio Advent Guide; with the title this year, Sing Unto the Lord! And, I hope you have enjoyed our journey through these Christmas songs this year.
Today, we come to Good Christian Men, Rejoice. And, we recognize that this is certainly a season
for rejoicing because Christ has come! A corresponding Scripture verse can be found in Isaiah 61:
10 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
That's who we are - in Christ! Certainly a cause for rejoicing. And, our entry into salvation through Christ begins a journey of discovery and spiritual growth as we learn what it means to be a disciple.
There is a rather well-known rapper who apparently wants to go deeper in a spiritual journey. His name is Chance the Rapper. A piece on Crosswalk.com announced:
Grammy award-winning hip-hop artist Chance the Rapper has taken some time off from music to make studying and meditating on God’s Word his main focus.The article references a Christianity Today article. The report says, "The prayer in the picture is titled 'Continued Dependence Upon You,' and it speaks of one rededicating their life to Christ."
On Monday, the 25-year-old took to Instagram to give his 9.2 million followers a peek into his morning devotions. He posted a photo showing a page from Scottish theologian John Baillie’s A Diary of Private Prayer.
Chance is quoted as saying: "I’m going away to learn the Word of God which I am admittedly very unfamiliar with. I’ve been brought up by my family to know Christ but I haven’t taken it upon myself to really just take a couple days and read my Bible..." He said that he wanted to read five or more books of the Bible and to quit smoking. Apparently, his young nephew was "somewhat of an inspiration" for this sabbatical.
Apparently, he is on his way to reach that goal. The Christian Post reported earlier this week:
The Chicago-based rapper made the announcement on Instagram, writing: “Today is my 7th day ZERO CIGARETTES #leaveitatthealter.” The 25-year-old artist also shared a screenshot of Ephesians 3:20: “Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.”Crosswalk.com also stated:
Many Christian fans have welcomed the rapper’s musical references to God—not to mention the millions donated to various schools and services in his hometown. Some listeners, on the other hand, have concerns about Chance’s Christian walk and wonder if the content of his music should shift as he grows in his faith.That's a good starting point for all of us, isn't it? None of us has arrived in our spiritual life, and we can always improve in our time in the Word and our acting on that Word. That's something especially good to remember at the beginning of a new year. And, perhaps God is calling us to do something different to grow in our walk with Him. It may be a sabbatical, it may be a time of prayer and fasting, it may be additional study time, or a change in our daily routine; we can be challenged to set ourselves apart so that we can become more like Jesus, so that we can be more set apart.
“For the last few years, we’ve covered Chance the Rapper with bated breath,” noted the Christian hip hop news site Rapzilla. “We’ve seen him toe the line between making impactful gospel-infused rap, and then follow up with sexual/drug laden raps. It’s frustrating to watch, but at the same time a bit endearing in the sense that Chance is ALWAYS proclaiming his love for Christ, but like many of us, falls short.”
There has been the criticism that Chance's work product doesn't line up with His profession of faith. But, that is a daily struggle for all of us, and we can acknowledge the availability of the power of God. He wants to infuse us with His strength, and once we've absorbed His Word into our consciousness, we have to allow the Word to work through us, to permeate us, to empower us - so that we can be more than hearers, but doers, as well. And, we can rejoice in what God is doing through us.
John Stonestreet, on a recent edition of The Point, said, regarding Chance's announcement:
He went on, “…how much time do we spend as followers of Jesus to really just read and KNOW His Word?”
That’s a good question for all of us.
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