Just added to my profile
Where I sometimes shop for groceries at Natural Grocers, they had a sale on Death Wish Coffee so I bought it. I love the name and was interested in whether the coffee was worth drinking. After a month, it has become a favorite. The taste of the coffee is not bitter and considering the name, the taste is mild. Whether I make a strong cup with two (2) heaping teaspoons or weak cup with one (1) heaping teaspoon, the taste is just amazing. And the coffee does not need a sweetener and I hate not having sweetener in my coffee.
If you see it on sale or if you really just like a great cup
of coffee, try Death Wish Coffee.
Joshua 3-4, Joshua 5: 1-12, Luke 22: 1-38, Psalm 65
Joshua 4: 20-24 (ESV)
“And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan,
Joshua set up at Gilgal. And he said to the people of Israel, “When your
children ask their fathers in times to come, ‘What do these stones mean?’ then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel
passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’ For the Lord your God dried up the
waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the Lord your God did to
the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over, so that all the
peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, that you may
fear the Lord your God forever.”
Verses 20 through 24 from Joshua 4 show us the important of
memorializing and remembering the good things God has done in your life. Science
tells us that we are more likely to remember events that have a high emotional significance
for us, and that sadly often includes memories of pains and losses. God understands
us more than we seem to do ourselves, so he told Joshua to make a memorial out
of the 12 stones from the river Jordan so the Hebrews would always be reminded
of the miracle God performed when they left Egypt.
My daily practice this year has been to write down every
night 10 miracles that I’ve experienced that day. I received the inspiration to
do this from the Holy Spirit, so I would be always conscious of God’s miracles
in my life no matter how small. Some days it’s easy to remember 10 miracles,
and other days it’s hard and I end up writing down that “getting up in the
morning” is a miracle. What I love about this practice is that I am reminded
daily of God’s presence in my life. For example, I was not having a very good
day today. Something that I thought was going to be a very process turned out
to be a much harder process than I realized. That experience bummed me out and
I really did not want to go to the midweek service. I wanted to say home and
sulk, but I made myself go to church. When I was sitting in the garden of the
prayer chapel before the service, I saw two bunnies. I absolutely love seeing
cotton-tail bunnies hopping around the desert. I didn’t think I was going to
see any bunnies because the temperature was in the mid-90’s, and seeing the bunnies
touched my heart because I was so sure I wasn’t going to see them since it was
so hot. Seeing the bunnies seemed so miraculous to me because I was having such
a bad day. It’s like God knew what I was going through and sent the bunnies to
cheer me up. I’m going to “memorialize” this experience by writing it down, and
have a record of all the small things God does to keep me happy.
Joshua 1 and 2, Luke 21: 5-38, Psalm 64
Luke 21: 34-36 (ESV)
“But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with
dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you
suddenly like a trap. For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the
whole earth. But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to
escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the
Son of Man.”
Verses 34 through 36 from Luke 21 reminds us we need always
be ready for the return on Christ. It seems like with event going on in the world
today, many people are saying we are the crest of the end times warned about in
the bible and especially in Revelations. Are we going through end times? It
seems to me whenever there were problems in the world, I picture pastors preaching
about the end times in their churches. I can imagine it happened in World War 1
and World War 2, especially in Europe. A study of history shows us that Christians
have been persecuted since the death of Christ, and the persecution of
Christians continues today. But are we in end times? I don’t know. I think of
people who have lost their jobs and are going through a difficult time
financially. Do they think they are in end times? Or are they just going
through a season of distress? What about people who are suffering from an
illness who are suffering? Do they think they are in end times?
Even Jesus says the end times will come as a surprise like a
trap. I think the only thing we can do is watch what is happening in the world,
and as always strengthen our relationship with God. We need think every night
before we go to sleep, am I right in my relationship with God? Am I right in my
relationship with my family and friends? If the world ended tonight, am I ready
to stand before God with confidence? And if we’re not, what is our action plan
to do something about it?
Deuteronomy 33 and 34, Luke 20: 27-47, Luke 21: 1-4, Psalm 63
Luke 21: 1-4 (ESV)
“Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into
the offering box, and he saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. And he
said, “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. For they all contributed out of their
abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”
Verses 1 to 4 from Luke 21 is the well-known story of the
widow’s offering. This year I am reading bible commentaries from well-known
scholars on my bible readings, and many of them have said it was the “spirit of
giving” that determined the worthiness of the widow’s gift more than the
amount. God doesn’t want us give money grudgingly or guilt money. God wants a
cheerful giver. God doesn’t need our money. God values the gift on what it
costs the giver. If this is true, I wonder how much a very rich person needs to
give in order for God to be pleased? Would the person need to give their wealth
all away? I started tithing 10% to my church last year. Tithing made me feel so
abundant and wealthy and made me wonder why I didn’t tithe 10% in the past. I
knew previously I always thought tithing that much money would make feel so
poor, but I was so wrong. Is it a stretch to tithe? Yes, it is given the
current state of our economy. But like any bill you get used to that money
coming out your account. And I do like the feeling of wealth and abundance that
comes to me when I think about how much I tithe. That feeling is priceless!
