We're finishing Amos this week. This has been a pretty tough, hard hitting book. Yet, as we come to chapter 7 tomorrow (Friday), once again we see that God is incredibly patient, not to mention kind and loving. Three times in this chapter God shows Amos a vision of terrible things to come. Amos responds by appealing to God with "please forgive us" and "please stop." Now you might be inclined to think God would just go on because enough is enough. But He doesn't, He listens to Amos and responds two times by saying He won't do these things. See what I mean about being incredibly patient and loving. There's no question the people deserve all the judgment God shows Amos, but when Amos petitions Him by laying out his heart before God, God relents.
So can you relate to this scenario? Has there been a time in your life when you deserved correction or judgment, but God was patient and loving? Or maybe a time when God said enough is enough and disciplined? As I look back over my life I see time and time again, particularly in my early college years, when I deserved correction and judgment but God kept giving me second chances. I can also think of a couple of times when God didn't withhold his discipline. It wasn't fun to go through, but it was exactly what I needed. So if you're up for it, tell me your story. Tami W.
Amos has been a very good study for me. It is easy to see things in other people or in the culture but not realize how I have been influenced. So this week I have asked God to show me about me and how I need to change. I know I have experienced God's grace and mercy through Jesus in salvation but there are so many other ways as a believer that I don't think about. I am thankful for P4 and the open honesty Tami encourages us with. Your are making a difference!!
Hi Tami,
I wrote the other day about a time when God disciplined me. During that time of discipline I spent several months living alone and I spent a lot of time reading the scriptures. I learned so much about what God wanted for me, I saw how he was discipling me and leading me back to Him and to right-living. When I look through the Bible I was using then, I see all the scriptures that He "gave" me, that spoke directly to me and I highlighted them all in yellow. I still have that Bible and sometimes get it out and look at it. It reminds me of how far I had fallen, it shows me how God used His Word to discipline me and restore me. I had a hard time believing that God would truly forgive me. My sin was so "big," so public. Now five years later I am just in the process of forgiving myself. One Sunday in church while I lived alone, a song touched my heart so deeply and it spoke of God's loving forgiveness. I knew that morning that God had forgiven me. What a weight was lifted. On the way home from church, the only way I can put it is that God gave me this poem. I ran into my apartment to write it down before I forgot the words. I hope this poem will help others to know that God does discipline, yet He forgives us our sins and in his eyes, no sin is any bigger than another. Here is the poem:
At the foot of the Cross
Weary, bent low with shame and loss,
My heavy burden to Him I gave.
To praise Him I raised my voice in song,
Thinking of the words as I sang along.
They touched my heart and tears did flow,
As His Spirit within me began to glow.
He wants to restore me, has been waiting there for me
At the foot of the Cross, feeling my loss,
He took my pain and all of my shame,
All to give glory to His holy name.
He forgave me and raised me from bended knee,
And lead me away from the foot of the Cross -
Straight and tall, bearing no shame at all.
For He took it away and replaced it that day,
By cleansing and filling my heart with joy,
Telling me, "go and sin no more,"
And to glorify His name forever and ever more!
I've come a long way from that day, but those words are etched in my heart. I pray that someone will be touched by these words and realize that no matter what we've done, God is the God of many chances, He's always waiting for us to return to Him. As in Amos, he gave His people so many warnings, so much time to return to Him. The centuries seem to show us that mankind is still making the same mistakes, but what is constant and good - the only few things we can rely on at all times, is God and His Word and that He is always present with us, He is all powerful and all knowing. Praise Him!
Thanks, Tami, for giving us a safe Christian place to blog our thoughts and share our experiences and what we are learning from God's wonderful Word. It's so helpful to know where others are in their Christian walk and what things they are working on. The blogs give inspiration and encouragement to keep on keeping on, as they say! Your blogs are thoughtful and thought provoking. Thank you.
Hi Tami:
Today’s reading was very refreshing and at the same time very sobering. God is merciful and slow to anger. And as your blog points out He did not give the Israelites what they deserved – He gave them mercy, time and again.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m always grateful when God does give me His mercy. The problem that I have is when I receive mercy it becomes so easy for me to begin to view it as my right. I need the reminder that mercy, be definition is a gift, not a right. But it becomes easy for me to forget that. When I start to actually feel that it is my right to be a recipient of God’s mercy I forget how terrible my sin is and how much it cost God to deal with it. To draw from Dietrich Bonhoeffer I forget that God’s grace and mercy are not cheap, they are costly.
Thanks to you all.
Mary, Thanks for give us your Poem to read. It is so true. Believe me, I read it in tears.
That's awesome.
Praise God for that. Also Tami, Amos has been very though, but I Love to see all the storys in the old Testament, they are very deep to me. I think (I) we can learn so much from it, it seems to never have an end. I always can't wait for the next Day, to see farder.
My Personal reading is in Job right now, it's also very interesting.
Talk to later. God Bless all of you.
Hi All;
Mary your poem is beautiful. Thank you for sharing.
A year ago through God's persistance I dealt with a sin as a young adult. He put circumstances in front of me and brought a person into my life who was very patient and understanding. Through her I signed up for a class called "Forgiven and Set Free"...WOW!! This was a six week class with homework and a weekly meeting that lasted for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. It was very difficult. I had to dig deep and face my sin head on and many other deep heart wounds. Each week we had to share and our counselors held us accountable. By the end of the class I knew the Lord had forgiven me and truly set me free. I have no doubt He will do more work in which will be painful; however, I know at the end of my discipline I will be closer to my Lord.
Just as Amos is trying to get Isreal to turn from there sin and face it, we must do the same. It is not easy, but, He never tells it will be, He promises to never leave or forsake us.
Where ever the Lord has you at this moment trust Him to take you through and I promise in the end you will be thankful and grateful.
May the Lord bless all who are involved with P4. May the Lord receive all the glory and honor.
In Christ Service
As a born again Christian it's amazing to me how stubborn the Israelites were. Here is God in their presence, through the prophets showing them their errors and reminding them not to stray - yet they constantly yoyo between obedience and disobedience. I often wondered how God could be so patient. Then it dawned on me (or maybe it was God who reminded me) that I am just like the Israelites. I love the Lord and profess that I want nothing more in my life than a closer relationship with Him, yet I often find myself getting caught up in worldy pursuits until He reminds me that I've strayed yet again. If this lesson in Amos has taught me anything, it's that the God is incredibly patient, loving and just. He understands that we will struggle, and his correction of our ways while sometimes painful, simply demonstrates His unending love for His children.
Thanks to you all, for sharing your Faith.
I strongly identify with the Israelites, with Paul, and with all other's of Faith, because we are all the same in so many ways. We know what we should do and how we should think, and we know that we should cling to these things stubbornly, and yet, often when we are most blessed, we let the things of the world come between us and our relationship with our Lord. If it weren't for the Word, I might think there were something wrong with me, because I know the wages of sin, but sometimes fall into sin anyway, in spite of my best intentions; That seems so wrong and so stupid that I'd find it inexcusable. Thankfully, when I go to the Word, it is always made clear to me that this is all perfectly normal. We are all corrupt flesh, and of this world, and we will all fall short of the Glory of God, but God knew this from the beginning, and did not make us this way without having a plan for our Salvation.
Praise be to God.