Nahum_1

Scripture  Nahum 1:7 

The Lord is good, A stronghold in the day of trouble, And He knows those who take refuge in Him. Observation-What does it say?  The book of Nahum was written by Nahum.  The name Nahum means “comfort”, which relates to the major theme of the book, namely the fall of Nineveh.  Nineveh had become the capital of the Assyrian kingdom.  The Assyrian kingdom was brutal to Judah and Israel, as well as the other nations they conquered.  They were known to gruesomely punish the people of the nations they conquered and uproot them from their homes, sending them to far off places within the Assyrian kingdom.  Often the conquered rulers were beaten and mutilated before being executed.  We know from the book of Jonah that the people of Jonah had once turned to the Lord, but have since gone back to their sinful ways.  Nahum prophesied to the destruction of Nineveh and the redemption of His people.  God, we learn is slow to anger, but does not leave the guilty unpunished (1:3). Understanding-What does it mean?  Across the street, around the corner and up the hill in the open space, that’s where my fort was as a kid.  And it was an awesome fort.  We dug out a little flat spot to sit for about four of us.  We built up a frame from yucca plants and covered it with fairly thick walls of brush.  We would pretend to have wars and battles with imaginary forces.  It was there for years, and even when the older kids abandoned the place I would go to the same spot.  At the fort I could be wild and it allowed me to feel creative, yet I still felt safe.  However, my fort was no match for the rain or the cold.  Had I ever encountered anything really dangerous, I would not have run to the fort, I would have run home to the safety of four solid walls and my parents.All too often, I think we build up “forts” in our lives, places of false security that do not compare to the real deal.  Our forts can be things that look healthy, like exercising, or they can be something that is perceived as detrimental, like alcohol or food.  Whatever it is, our forts are the things we run to in place of God when the world around us seems to be falling apart.  Throughout scripture, we see examples of what happened when Israel ran to their forts, also called idols.  Spending 40 years in the desert, for example, when they created an idol while waiting for Moses (Exodus 32).  This happens repeatedly in the story of Israel, they see adversity, they rely on something other than God and then they fall flat on their face.  It’s not until they return to Him, repent of their sin and renew their trust in Him that he wipes out their enemy.As we have faced adversity in this last year, let us heed the warning to draw closer to God.  When we draw close to God, we are running toward our true place of security, our stronghold.  
Life Application 

Jesus, give me strength and courage to answer the call in my life.  Help me to learn from Jonah, who wanted to run towards his fort instead of to the people he was called to bring Your love to.  Jesus, help me to bring your love to a world that has set itself against you.  For you are truly patient with us, wanting all to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).  

 

-Tyler Galloway

Micah_7

Scripture - What stood out?Micah 7What misery is mine!...2 The faithful have been swept from the land;    not one upright person remains.7 But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord,    I wait for God my Savior;    my God will hear me.Observation - What does it say?

Micah 7 is another moving, powerful and passion filled chapter regarding the nation of Israel at that time. The chapter is divided into 3 sections, the first describing the state of the nation (miserable), the second describing God’s favor on Israel which will lead the nation to rise again, and the third praising God for His character and for what He will do. Understanding - What does it mean?What poetic chapter of the bible. I love reading about the nation of Israel, God’s people, because they are a depiction of all of us today, God’s people. I learned this week that yet another christian hero of mine has fallen from grace, albeit posthumously. So it wasn’t a stretch for me to understand how a nation of God’s people could be filled with “not one upright person” as dramatic as that sounds. It is so hard when we watch Christian leaders fall. Isn’t it? And yet as a once christian nation we are filled with the fallen, leaders and all. Isn’t it so important therefore that we have hope for the Lord? The alternative is to stay in our misery. And while many of us do in fact choose that, I choose to turn to my Savior instead. I choose to hope in  a Lord that hears me. I love how the rest of this chapter takes us up and down this roller coaster ride of emotions: 9 Because I have sinned against him,    I will bear the Lord’s wrath,until he pleads my case    and upholds my cause…18 Who is a God like you,    who pardons sin and forgives the transgression    of the remnant of his inheritance?You do not stay angry forever    but delight to show mercy.20 You will be faithful to Jacob,    and show love to Abraham,as you pledged on oath to our ancestors    in days long ago.Life Application - How can I apply this to my life today?Doesn’t our relationship with God seem turbulent?? We are miserable people stuck in our own muck. God is required to discipline us, yet in His desire to show mercy, out of love for us, he pardons our sins. In verse 20 I believe Micah is not reminding God of His oath, he is reminding the rest of Israel. The rest of us. In Genesis 22 God speaks to Abraham, “18 and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.” So here I am, Lord. I am a mixed bag, probably just as bad as the original Israelites were. Help me to not stay stuck in the mire. Continue to remind me of your mercy. Continue to show me your faithfulness, though I am unworthy of it. And continue to bring me into your light in spite of myself. My hope is in you, who pleads my case and upholds my cause. In the name of Jesus do I pray. Amen.-kenneth lee 

Proverbs__28

Scripture

Proverbs 28:13

Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.

 

Observation

King Solomon continues to give some phrases that wise people live by, and in this verse he somewhat speaks to community. More than that, he offers accountability as a viable solution for an area that a person may be struggling in, rather than keeping it to ourselves.

 

Understanding

Recently my mom, dad, and I decided to watch all of the Star Wars movies in chronological order. I’ve never seen them all the way through and I thought it would be a fun experience to go through together. We have gotten to the fourth movie, so by this time (MAJOR SPOILER IF YOU DON’T KNOW, but y’all should know because it’s Star Wars) Anakin had turned to the Dark Side and become Darth Vader. When he first decides to go on the path of Dark Side he’s given an assignment from his new Sith Master (Darth Sidious aka Chancellor Palpatine). Eventually, his Jedi Master (Obi Wan Kenobi) finds out and is heartbroken, but something I realized about Anakin the minute he choose a path of destruction. He hid from the Jedi Masters, the ones who were previously holding him accountable and in an upright regard. Almost as if he knew that he would be challenged in his decision, and that he didn’t want to face the consequences that awaited him. Ironically, the consequences find him and he is then resigned to a robotic body for the rest of his life, just to await the real “chosen one.”

I give this long-winded example because I think that’s the tendency of most of us when we sin or do something we know we aren’t supposed to: we hide. Rather than going to the ones that have invested so much of their lives in us, we would much rather sit with the guilt ourselves. In the end, as Anakin’s story shows we end up hurting everyone involved that much more. Anakin lost everything he cared about in one split second decision, and although our life doesn’t go to ruins, holding onto sin doesn’t help us much. There is one word in the verse above that makes confession of sin worth it: mercy. Simply put mercy holds the a powerful meaning; it means to show a person compassion especially when you have the power to punish. God grants us grace and mercy in that He sent His Son, the least we can do is confess our sins to those He’s placed around us.

 

Life Application

I fully understand that accountability is scary. But do not misplace accountability for judgement. As humans we can not pass (final) judgement on people, only God can do that. The people that God has placed around you are meant to keep you grounded no matter what you may have done. If admitting fault and sin still seems scary just remember:

Romans 3:23

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…

But that’s not where the story ends :)

-Allison Khan