Weekly Bible Study: Precious Memories October 22, 2006

Discussion in 'Your Religion & Spiritual Corner' started by rev, Oct 22, 2006.

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  1. rev

    rev New Member

    I encourage those that find strength in God to join this Bible study. We are brothers and sisters and need to study His Word for our own spiritual welfare and we need to share insights God opens to us so that we might be able to help one another to grow in faith and knowledge. One of us might glean a truth that others need. So feel free to join in and share as you sense God calling to your heart.

    PRECIOUS MEMORIES
    1 CORINTHIANS 11:23-26
    October 22, 2006


    Those that come from traditional protestant church backgrounds are probably familiar with an old hymn entitled “Precious Memories.” It is one of the songs that I remember singing while just a young boy in that little Baptist church that was just a little country church back then. That old hymn influenced this week's bible study.

    I have found memories from those days. I remember that we weren’t even a town or village. We lived in the country and the church was the center of most things that went on. The kids in my Sunday school class were the same kids that were in my public school, except for 3 or 4 Methodists. The elementary school had six grade levels and six classrooms. There weren’t any worries about which teacher you would get next year. (I'm not that old!! We just lived in the country) ;)

    My parents worked at jobs in town and we farmed to supplement our income. When the oil shortage happened in the early 70’s, both parents lost their jobs. We lived by cutting and selling firewood through that winter. It was hard work, but I now have fond memories of those days. Working side by side with my father to make enough to get the family through.

    Many of us have memories of people and events that are precious to us. How many of us have a favorite photograph of someone? Maybe it was a snapshot, maybe a portrait. Maybe it is one that the other person wishes you didn't have.

    Photographs and videos help us to remember and preserve our memory of our loved ones. They recall pleasant memories and bring delight to the heart. I have always wondered why the most memorable day for many women is the day of their marriage, yet they spend a fortune for pictures. When we open the Bible, we can see many different pictures of Jesus. Each book, sometimes each chapter, reveals something to us about God as revealed in His son, Jesus.

    As the disciples gathered around Jesus for what we call “The Lord’s Supper”, Jesus told them to remember Him. We are supposed to remember Him too. Many of us can’t regularly attend church and hence don’t get to participate in Communion. I want us to do so in our hearts today. We are not to remember Him as being dead and gone as our inspiration, like the movie portrayal of the life of George Gipp inspired the team to “win one for the Gipper.”

    WE ARE TO REMEMBER HIM:

    ON THE MOUNT: We can find Him seated near the crest of the Mountain with His disciples around Him. He taught the principles and characteristics of being ideal citizens of His kingdom in this life and the life that is to follow. Remember the Beatitudes, the call to be salt and light, the call to righteousness more than the Pharisees, the command to be reconciled to your Christian brother or sister, to love your enemies, to prayer, to help the needy.... let us remember and live by His teachings.

    ON THE BOAT: Remember on the ship with the disciples. The storm was beating down. They were afraid for their lives. When they went down and woke Jesus up, He came to the bow of the boat. He stood and rebuked the winds and commanded the waves to be still. We can rest assured and have peace in the midst of the storms of life when we remember who Jesus is, what He can do, and what He is doing.

    IN BETHANY: At the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. They treated Him as an honored guest. They were a blessing to Him and He was to them. When death invaded the family circle, we find Jesus with love and compassion, showing His Lordship over all. HE COMMANDED THE DEAD TO RISE AND LAZARUS CAME FORTH FROM THE TOMB. Death is the defeated foe and the grave will not have final victory over the one that is resting in Him.

    ON THE CROSS: This is the picture that would have us turn more than any other. Here we realize that when He was crucified, it was in our place. It was our sin that put Him there. He loved us so much that He took our punishment. He wants us to remember that we might keep our first love fresh. That we might never forget what He did. That we might keep our motivation (inspiration) sharp that we want others to share in the same blessing as we have. And that we might wet our appetites for what He has promised is to come.

    · (Sunday & Monday) What are some of your favorite “memories” of Jesus? Please share your favorite stories. They can be your favorite Bible stories or they can be about how He has changed your life.

    · (Tuesday & Wednesday) Did you used to be closer? Is your "first love" grown cold? Do you need to renew your relationship? What has separated you from where you used to be? How can you get back to that “first love”?

    · (Thursday & Friday) Maybe you realize your need to be obedient to His will. Are you seeking His will or your own? Maybe you need to commit something to Him that you have been trying to do on your own. Is something separating you from where you ought to be? What will you do?

    · Maybe you are discouraged and feel that God has given up on you. Maybe Meniere’s has stomped you and kicked you so that you can’t see that He still loves you and has a purpose for you. I pray that you will open your heart again, let it be soft so that you can hear His voice. Don’t let discouragement or anger or frustration rob you of the relationship He wants with you. Most of us go through a time when we want little to do with God. You can move past that and feel His abiding presence again.

    God loves you and gives eternal life and brings joy and forgiveness to those that open their hearts to Him. God Almighty wants to have a personal relationship with you! It is possible if you are willing to accept Him into your life. (Please contact any of the participants that share here if you make a decision to join God’s family of faith.)
     
  2. HeadNoise

    HeadNoise Invisible Me

    This may seem a little "off the wall" but it remains a comforting memory to me.

    When I was in college I was a Modern Language major, and I spend a summer in Paris taking classes at the Sorbonne. It was my first time really being away from familiar surroundings for an extended time (first time ever to fly - all the way to Paris!) and mostly I was alone. There was a small group in the same program, but they had other itineraries, so much of the time I was on my own...... a naive Midwestern girl in a very cosmopolitan City of Lights!

    One night I had a brief dream - Jesus was coming back. The sky was pink, the clouds rolled back and He was descending from heaven. That was the extent of the dream, & I'm not accustomed to dreams, visions or anything like that, and I awoke rather startled.

    But then I remember, (it was 33 years ago) like it was yesterday, how comforted I felt. It was as if Jesus was telling me He knew were I was, if no one else did. He was there with me, even if no one else was. He hadn't forgotten about little old hick Sherry, in a city of sin, and perversion and danger. I had been accosted by men at every outing, fondled, and chased by an old man with an ax, propositioned as a prostitute, cussed out and glared at, ignored and berated (Yes, the French didn't like Americans then either!). So this dream was so comforting to me. It remains one of my favorite memories of Jesus and His calming touch.
     
  3. charisse

    charisse Been hanging here for 8 years

    My favorite bible story is of Christ on the cross, I always get emotional when it is told. I remember when I was in a bar one night with my husband. We would go every weekend, ,we didn't get drunk, well maybe just alittle. But this one night I was having a great time with friends and all of a sudden, I didn't want to be there anymore. It was so strong in me that I had to leave, I never felt anything so strong before. It was something outside of me pulling me out of there. We left and went home, we lived with my inlaws at that time and they were christian.

    To make a long story short, I told my mother inlaw about it and she said she had been praying for me that night, her prayer was that I would not want to be there anymore. I was floored, that was the start of my christian walk for the rest of my life.
     
  4. Cathy

    Cathy New Member

    One of my favorite memories was during the time my husband and I were first saved. It was around eight months later, and we were driving home from church on a Sunday night. It was getting close to Easter, and the moon was very full and looked like it was closer to the earth than I have ever seen it. We were listening to Phil Keagy, Keith Green or Second Chapter of Acts (it was the late 70's). I remember the peace and love I felt from God. Even though later I fell away from Him, something inside me always craved that intimacy.
     
  5. Titus

    Titus New Member

    On the day after Thanksgiving my mother would bring down the Christmas decorations. The first thing she got out was an old wooden shoe box that her grandmother made into a stable for the nativity scene. The figures were worn but my mother touched them up with paint and put fresh branches on the stable. We arranged the scene together. She played Christmas music while we were setting it up. Back then I didn't understand the significance Jesus could make in my life. I took Him for granted, I guess. But I remember those times with my mother and the celebration of the birth of the person who would be my Savior.
     
  6. blessed

    blessed New Member

    One of my very first memories of "feeling" God working was three years ago and my husband and I were at the demolition derby at the county fair. We were sitting in lawn chairs in the back of his truck (No, we're not the Beverly Hillibillies:) ) Anyway, although I have been a christian for many years I had never really taken the time to have a relationship with the Lord up until around that time. There were some people parked next to our truck. A couple of very rough looking boys and a couple of older men. They had all obviously been drinking. With them was one older woman and a young lady who looked to be in her very early teens. These men were all over this young girl, all of them. They were foul mouthed and vulger. She was leading them all on and sitting on their laps and well, I'm sure you get the picture. I looked to my husband and told him that I was getting ready to come out of that truck and put a stop to it. Naturally, that would not have been a good move so I sat there and I prayed. Right there at the demo derby I asked for God to intervene so that this girl did not end up raped and abused by these men. I pleaded for him to protect her and to get her away from them. I knew that it was her choice to be there but I also knew that she was too young to make that choice.

    Well, I don't know how long I prayed, not more than a few minutes. I opened my eyes, looked back over toward these people and up walked three police officers and carted the four men away....in handcuffs...leaving just the girl and the older woman. Of course I don't know the reason why, but I do know that God answered my prayer right there on the spot and kept that young girl safe from them that night.

    I have since then saw many prayers answered not always immediately like that one was and not always what I think the answer will be, but answered just the same. I am also sure that many had been answered before that, I was just not tuned in to notice them.
     
  7. Cathy

    Cathy New Member

    My favorite Bible story is the one about Joseph. How his brothers tried to kill him, how he was put in prison (falsely accused), and how he interpreted dreams. I love how his brothers did not know him until later when they brought Benjamin back.
     
  8. Gwendelyn

    Gwendelyn New Member

    "What are some of your favorite “memories” of Jesus?"

    My favorite memory of Jesus is when my sister and I said the sinner's prayer and accepted Jesus into our hearts. We both said the prayer together and when we were done I looked up at my sister and her face was shining with light. It was so beautiful I can't even describe it.
     
  9. Titus

    Titus New Member

    Oh Gwen, your story brought tears to my eyes.

    I think when I first converted I felt closer. I think it was because God gets real close to "baby Christians". Having the Holy Spirit was new to me and I wasn't sure I understood His role in my life. Lately, I feel pulled back to Jesus. I don't like the way my life has been going for the past few years. I want more of Him. I feel like I need more of Him.
     
  10. Cathy

    Cathy New Member

    Did you used to be closer? Is your "first love" grown cold? Do you need to renew your relationship? What has separated you from where you used to be? How can you get back to that “first love”?

    When I was first saved in 1978, I was "on fire" for Jesus. Two to three years later, that fire started to burn low until it was just a simmer. February 16, 2006 changed my Christian walk, and I pray I will never be the same. My husband and I are so in love with our Savior. We feel the GRACE and LOVE of our Heavenly Daddy like never before. Since February, my husband (a smoker of 30+ years) quit smoking. We have no desire to watch secular TV or read anything not related to His Word. We crave Him like a junkie craves a fix. It is so wonderful! And the best part is the fruit. People can see Jesus in us (most of the time). My younger son has come back to the Lord. My sister has "caught the fire". My coworker has come back to the Lord. I prayed for Christian fellowship at work and a Christian was hired. I could go on and on. But the bottom line is that He never let go of me. I will thank Him and praise Him everyday of my life. Amen.
     
  11. rev

    rev New Member

    Someone mentioned the "new baby." It made me think that in our infancy, we are dependent on Christ as a new baby is to the parent. As I read other testimonies, as from my own experience, I recognize that like a child grows and becomes less dependent, we sometimes try to do the same thing. While our knowledge, wisdom, and faith have grown, we make a mistake to lose that first love sense of dependence. We can do all things though Christ who strengthens us. We need to remember that we are not our own, but now belong to Him. We need to make sure that we maintain that freshness.

    I remember talking with a young woman about her faith. She was deeply concerned over this very issue. She said she wanted what she had previously had in her relationship with the Lord. I suddenly realized that we don't need to go back to where we made the mistake- like a "system restore" - but we need to go back a little before the wayward choices, and then "reboot." To go back to just before the wayward step is too close to the "error." We need to go all the way back to the "new installation", before seeds of disobedience or self-reliance have taken root.
     
  12. Titus

    Titus New Member

    I think I'm seeking His will on my terms :( Or, maybe my will, under His approval. The only thing I know to do is ask Him to help me because I can't do it alone. And then allow Him to continue to shape me and work on me.
     
  13. Titus

    Titus New Member

    This week's study came at the perfect time for me. I know how much I need Jesus in my life. Salvation is the greatest gift I've ever received but Jesus offers even more than eternal life. He offers peace in and through Him while we're still on earth.
     
  14. charisse

    charisse Been hanging here for 8 years

    Titus,

    Your comment, or maybe my will under his approval, hit the nail for me. I also know that being sick has made me tolerate things much less. This is not me, I find myself saying things that are out of anger, I miss the old me. Like you Kim, I just throw myself on his mercy.
     
  15. charisse

    charisse Been hanging here for 8 years

    Tuesday-wed

    My illness has made it hard for me to be close to God at times. I can't fellowship like I use to and talking to other people about God really gets me focused. I do alot of praying as its the best way for me now.
     
  16. Titus

    Titus New Member

    Charisse, His mercy seat is plenty big enough for all of us to gather round. And the foot of the cross was strong enough to accommodate whosoever will.
     
  17. rev

    rev New Member

    amen
     
  18. Cathy

    Cathy New Member

    Father, am I seeking Your will or my own? Is something separating me from where I ought to be? What will I do?

    Cathy, I know in your head you feel you are seeking My will, but your actions sometimes say a different thing altogether. You feel hurt by people, then you react by talking about them or ignoring them. You put up defenses. Please soften your heart. People need to see My love through you.
    (two way journaling)
     
  19. charisse

    charisse Been hanging here for 8 years

    Cathy,

    Your post hit me big time. I am struggling big time with that one. Lets just say I was treated poorly by my step mother while they were here a few days ago. I think I'm still in shock over it all. I know I have to address it with her and want to have a kind spirit, but another part in me says I can't be around her anymore. I know too she looks at what I believe in nonsense, she has given me the same I can't believe you believe that stuff :'( I have found that I lose possible friendships due to my beliefs, folks see me as a bible thumper and think I'm one of those head slappers.

    It hurts real bad and tends to make me want to retreat. :'(
     
  20. Cathy

    Cathy New Member

    Charisse, I, too, have been struggling this week with hurts. I feel that God showed me in this to completely let go. My hurt comes from a church we were involved with last year. The greatest thing that came out of this church is that we were led to the conference that truly changed our lives. The worst thing that came out of this church was they pretty much have asked us not to come back. My husband spoke out about, as well as myself, some thing we didn't agree with (some teachings they were using) so now they see us as trouble makers and have even asked those attending there not to communicate with us. It hurts, and even more with your own family. I pray for you, Charisse. Even though it was just a few days ago, God is showing me to live in the present in His Spirit and let the past be the past. The best thing we can do is to pray for those who persecute us. Pray blessings on them. Pray that their hearts will soften towards Him. Be grounded in your beliefs. I know it is hard. My coworker was so on fire for Jesus until this week. Now she has "buddied up" with another coworker and is talking about haunted houses and haunted spirits, etc. With Halloween coming, I feel Satan's spirit being poured out. But we just have to remember we serve God who is our overcomer. God bless you, Charisse.
     

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