Refreshing Our Spirits With Scripture

2.23- Be a generous giver. Proverbs 19. Wealth adds many friends, But a poor man is separated from his friend. 5  A false witness will not go unpunished, And he who [ d ] tells lies will not escape. 6  Many will seek the favor of a [ e ] generous man, And every man is a friend to him who gives gifts. 7  All the brothers of a poor man hate him; Sowing and Reaping Luke 6. 37  “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; [ v ] pardon, and you will be pardoned. 38  Give, and it will be given to you. They will [ w ] pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.” Galations 6. 7  Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. 8  For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.

2.22- We get to choose. Do we Want to be a child of a merciful God or A normal human operating by natural intinct, loving friends and hating enemies. God help us to choose your path today. Luke 6. “If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.

2.21- We need something in addition to our daily bread.   The Holy Spirit who gives self-control regarding how much and how often we need to eat and drink.   God created us with a spiritual hunger in our hearts.    Humans by their nature are rebellious and foolish.   Those who follow in the footsteps of Jesus are always reaching out to the poor, the prisoners and the oppressed.     Jesus was placed into the home of Jewish parents who made it the family habit to gather with their community of faith to worship the Father in heaven together.   The congregation would listen to reading from the scrolls and these reminded them that God’s work was not simply gathering for worship, but scattering out to serve those in need.   Sometimes the insiders to religion get so into the insider work, that they don’t serve those in need.   When they get corrected for their religion being off the rails, they respond by getting rid of the messenger and His message.    Jesus was focus

2.20- Doctors or nurses or midwives or husbands or first responders deliver babies. Babies deliver joy and love to those who raise them well. Luke 2. 2  Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all [ a ] the inhabited earth. 2  [ b ] This was the first census taken while [ c ] Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3  And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city. 4  Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, 5  in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. 6  While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. 7  And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a [ d ] manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. 8  In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the

2.19- People I have met who are spiritually mature do not waste time on long, selfish prayers. They get right to the point. They honor God and all people, especially their family. They are vulnerable and candid. They have a system of remembering you and your prayer requests and goals for years. Matthew 23. 13  “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven [ c ] from [ d ] people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. 14  [ [ e ] Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation. ]

2.18- Shaquem Griffin, a Seattle Seahawk, shares something in common with little Joseph. Lester Holt shared this story on his, NBC, Nightly News, 2.12.19. The gospel is that God became flesh. Jesus birth was of a virgin who had conceived by the Holy Spirit. God’s own Son would allow the purity of heaven to come into this broken world. When we approach our Father in heaven through Jesus, He sympathizes with our weaknesses. Jesus was made like us in all things. He is merciful to pay for our sins, the cross showing how serious they are to a Holy God. We can approach our Holy God with confidence because He learned through the things that He suffered about our need for mercy and grace. John 1. 1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 [ a ] He was in the beginning with God. 3  All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. 14  And the Word became fle

2.17- I read in one my mother's journals that I was taken to church for worship and for my mother to have the Lord's Supper when I was only a month old.  Now I am 72 and have been going to church each Sunday for 72 years and the body of Christ and the blood of Christ were shared at all the Sunday morning services I attended. Here is the body of Jesus.  The bread. Here is the blood of Jesus. The juice. This supper had been going on for about 2019 years. It is a memory of the Passover when the blood of a lamb without defect was put on the doorpost of Jewish homes to save the life of the first born. It is a memory of  the last Supper of Jesus with His disciples. It is a memory of times having this supper with my parents who are not in heaven with the Lord as well as my in laws. Mark 14. 22  While they were eating, He took some bread, and [ j ] after a blessing He broke it , and gave it to them, and said, “Take it ; this is My body.” 23  And when He had taken a