1 "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2 In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going."
Had Jesus not said this,I would have been very much disappointed too if I was one of the disciples.But look,He assures them that He is going to PREPARE a place for them (me inclusive)but still they are not content and so He goes further to make them understand what He was talking about.I like the way Jesus answered then and you will agree with me that no one asked a second question since Jesus was very clear in his answers.
Many times we have troubled our hearts asking ourselves thousands of questions and in so doing we have ended up not trusting in God.We are afraid of who will take care of us when we get old? Who will provide for my family if I loose my job? Who will pay for my tuition? Where will I get money to buy a car? Who will take care of my family if I pass on today? Where will I get money to go on vacation? Where will I get money to donate to that charity is in great need? Jesus answers this in Verses 13 and 14.
13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
In Verse 31 Jesus says "but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me."Come now; let us leave". As Christians we should walk the same path by doing exactly what Our Father commands us to do. We have a task of taking His Word to others,We need to share His love with others,We need to open our doors for others, We need to give that extra shirt to someone who needs it more, We need to turn sorrows into smiles,etc. So Come now;let us FOLLOW HIS COMMANDS.
Be blessed.
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An eight week journey of seeking God as we read.think.pray.live our way through the gospel of John
An Invitation
Please join us during this lead up to Christmas 2009 by doing the four things listed below. Anyone can join at any time throughout this 8 week period although obviously it would be best if you can begin with us on the first of November 2009.
Requirements:
1. Commit to seeking God EVERY DAY in Nov & Dec '09 in a way that is more radical than anything you have ever done before.
2. Read.think.pray.live your way through the Gospel of John in seven weeks (3 chapters each week) and then 1 John, 2 John, 3 John in the final week.
3. Listen to the Holy Spirit and obey whatever he says to do!!
4. Contribute your insights and experiences to this blog.
May we all continue to seek the Kingdom of God before anything else!
Requirements:
1. Commit to seeking God EVERY DAY in Nov & Dec '09 in a way that is more radical than anything you have ever done before.
2. Read.think.pray.live your way through the Gospel of John in seven weeks (3 chapters each week) and then 1 John, 2 John, 3 John in the final week.
3. Listen to the Holy Spirit and obey whatever he says to do!!
4. Contribute your insights and experiences to this blog.
May we all continue to seek the Kingdom of God before anything else!
4 comments:
Last night as I hung out with Tine, Chris and Sara we talked about Jesus' promise that he will do ANYTHING we ask in his name!! We discussed the apparent conflict between this overwhelming promise and our experience of apparently unanswered prayer. We discussed the ways in which we try to resolve this apparent conflict.
It is easy for me to "water down" Jesus' promises so they match my (often faithless) reality and can then lead to me praying wishy washy prayers with little expectancy of a direct response. I want to continue to become more attuned to Jesus' will so that I can confidently bring my requests to him and KNOW that he will do it!! After all, this IS what he promises!!!
"Yes, ask me for ANYTHING IN MY NAME and I will do it!" v 14
Four times in chapters 14 and 15 He says that same thing--ask whatever you wish in my name, and I will do it for the glory of God the Father. I have contemplated the same thing, and have only figured so far that I can't put God in a box :) Is it completely lack of faith on my part? Is it that He answers in His own time? I don't know, but He does indeed say He will do what we ask in His name. These are my two favorite (and hard) chapters of John.
Have you wondered like me how to share your love of God with your neighbour? Thought about how you might approach it etc?
We share our love of God with our neighbour every day, often by our inaction....!
But seriously - our witness is strongest when trouble comes! That is the thing that I believe speaks most to those around us.
"Do not let your hearts be troubled"
A command - and repeated later..
SEGGY - you highlighted this so well, TRUST IN GOD.
Each time we first trust God with our troubles - it is a profound act of worship.
Each time we try and sort it out ourselves first - we deny his existence - we worship other gods....
To Andrew.
I have been thinking about this a lot lately. I am now thinking the following.
My boys pester the crap out of me most days. They can ask me daily (multiple times a day) for the same thing over many months, sometimes years. And Yet...
1) I am not a good Father...
2) I am inconsistent...
3) I do not love them as much I should...
4) I am not kind enough...
Despite this, they keep coming knowing I would never given them a stone...
And, they want what they want!
I am not wondering whether God is good or faithful. I am wondering why I give up so quickly...
This is not a criticism! ;-)
I find it fascinating that the syro-phonecian woman is commended for what most of us would call harassment...
Excuse me, I am off to harass Dad about something...
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