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It Takes A Team

2025-01-31 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 4:1-19.  As usual, I encourage you to open your Bible and read the passage yourself first.  See what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help. Then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go! 

1 Kings 4:1-19 (NIV)
1  So King Solomon ruled over all Israel.
2  And these were his chief officials: Azariah son of Zadok–the priest;
3  Elihoreph and Ahijah, sons of Shisha–secretaries; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud–recorder;
4  Benaiah son of Jehoiada–commander in chief; Zadok and Abiathar–priests;

On verses 1-19:  What can we learn from this list of officials in Solomon’s court?  Here we see that King Solomon “ruled over all Israel” (v1) by delegating different parts of the kingdom to various people whom he trusted to help him govern the kingdom well (v2-19).  What can we learn from this?

It’s Time To Use Your Sword

2025-01-30 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 3:16-28.  As usual, I encourage you to open your Bible and read the passage yourself first.  See what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help. Then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go! 

1 Kings 3:16-28 (NIV)
16  Now two prostitutes came to the king and stood before him.
17  One of them said, “My lord, this woman and I live in the same house. I had a baby while she was there with me.
18  The third day after my child was born, this woman also had a baby. We were alone; there was no one in the house but the two of us.

On verses 16-28:  As proof that God had answered Solomon’s prayer for a wise and discerning heart, here we see Solomon displaying superior wisdom in dealing with a difficult situation where two prostitutes argue over who is the true mother of a newborn baby boy.  Since neither side would budge, Solomon asks for a sword and orders that the child be cut in two.  One of the women cannot bear to see the baby boy cut in two and asks the king to give the baby to the other woman.

寧靜禱文

2025-01-30 in , /by

美國神學家尼布爾(Reinhold Niebuhr)於1934年寫下的無名祈禱文，後來被稱為「平靜禱文或寧靜禱文(Serenity Prayer)」：
God, grant me the serenity to accept things that I cannot change.
Grant me courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.

上帝啊！請賜予我寧靜，能接受我無法改變的事；
請賜予我勇氣，能改變我可以改變的事；
請賜予我智慧，讓我能分辨兩者的不同。

Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time,
accepting hardship as a pathway to peace.
Taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is,
not as I would have it, trusting that He will make all things right.

早晨的聲音

2025-01-29 in , /by

以賽亞書50:4  主耶和華賜我受教者的舌頭，使我知道怎樣用言語扶助疲乏的人。主每早晨提醒，提醒我的耳朵，使我能聽，像受教者一樣。

詩篇5:3 耶和華啊，早晨祢必聽我的聲音；早晨我必向祢陳明我的心意，並要警醒！

主每早晨提醒，提醒我的耳朵，使我能聽，像受教者一樣；我早晨的禱告也要達到祢面前，歌頌祢的力量，高唱祢的慈愛，向祢陳明我的心意，並要警醒！

主耶和華賜我受教者的舌頭，使我知道怎樣用言語扶助疲乏的人。主每早晨提醒，提醒我的耳朵，使我能聽，像受教者一樣。（以賽亞書50:4）

耶和華啊，我呼求祢；我早晨的禱告要達到祢面前。（詩篇88:13）

If You Want to Hear from God

2025-01-29 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 3:1-15.  As usual, I encourage you to open your Bible and read the passage yourself first.  See what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help. Then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go! 

1 Kings 3:1-3 (NIV)
1  Solomon made an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt and married his daughter. He brought her to the City of David until he finished building his palace and the temple of the LORD, and the wall around Jerusalem.
2  The people, however, were still sacrificing at the high places, because a temple had not yet been built for the Name of the LORD.
3  Solomon showed his love for the LORD by walking according to the statutes of his father David, except that he offered sacrifices and burned incense on the high places.
 
On verses 1-3:  It helps to read these verses with Deuteronomy 12:1-14 in mind.  There, Moses makes it clear that when the Israelites entered their promised land, they were not to sacrifice offerings to the LORD at the elevated places (known as “high places”) where the Canaanites would sacrifice to their gods. 

“I can get away with it.” Oh no, you can’t

2025-01-28 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 2:28-46.  As usual, I encourage you to open your Bible and read the passage yourself first.  See what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help. Then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go! 

1 Kings 2:28-35 (NIV)
28  When the news reached Joab, who had conspired with Adonijah though not with Absalom, he fled to the tent of the LORD and took hold of the horns of the altar.
29  King Solomon was told that Joab had fled to the tent of the LORD and was beside the altar. Then Solomon ordered Benaiah son of Jehoiada, “Go, strike him down!”

On verses 28-35:  For many years Joab was the ruthless commander of King David’s army.  Joab’s ruthlessness was never more manifest than when he unsuspectingly murdered two high ranking Israelite officials, Abner (in 2 Samuel 3) and Amasa (in 2 Samuel 20:9-10), possibly for fear that they would one day replace him.  Joab also killed Absalom, David’s son, specifically against David’s orders.  Yet for some reason David always spared Joab’s life.  David literally let Joab get away with murder.

每早晨都是新的

2025-01-28 in , /by

耶利米哀歌3:23  每早晨這都是新的，祢的誠實極其廣大。

詩篇30:5  因為祂的怒氣不過是轉眼之間，祂的恩典乃是一生之久，一宿雖然有哭泣，早晨便必歡呼。

早晨是神恩賜給每一個人新的一天的開始，昨夜的哭泣已然逝去，清晨的盼望讓我們歡呼，因為神的慈愛和信實何其廣大！

因為，祂的怒氣不過是轉眼之間；祂的恩典乃是一生之久。一宿雖然有哭泣，早晨便必歡呼。（詩篇30:5）

每早晨，這都是新的；祢的誠實極其廣大！（耶利米哀歌3:23）

To Love Jesus Is To Love His Family

2025-01-27 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 2:13-27.  As usual, I encourage you to open your Bible and read the passage yourself first.  See what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help. Then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go! 

1 Kings 2:13-18 (NIV)
13  Now Adonijah, the son of Haggith, went to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother. Bathsheba asked him, “Do you come peacefully?” He answered, “Yes, peacefully.”
14  Then he added, “I have something to say to you.” “You may say it,” she replied.
15  “As you know,” he said, “the kingdom was mine. All Israel looked to me as their king. But things changed, and the kingdom has gone to my brother; for it has come to him from the LORD.

n verses 13-18:  Here Adonijah goes to Bathsheba the king’s mother with a request: he asks Bathsheba to convince his son King Solomon to give him Abishag the Shunammite as his wife.  Why?  It’s not because Adonijah was in love with Abishag.  Rather it was a political move.  Remember that Abishag was effectively David’s last concubine.  Abishag lived with David, took care of David, slept in the same bed as David, though she never had sexual relations with David (see 1 Kings 1:3-4).

「八缺」與「八福」

2025-01-27 in , /by

馬太福音5:3-12

「虛心的人有福了！因為天國是他們的。 4 哀慟的人有福了！因為他們必得安慰。 5 溫柔的人有福了！因為他們必承受地土。 6 飢渴慕義的人有福了！因為他們必得飽足。 7 憐恤人的人有福了！因為他們必蒙憐恤。 8 清心的人有福了！因為他們必得見神。 9 使人和睦的人有福了！因為他們必稱為神的兒子。 10 為義受逼迫的人有福了！因為天國是他們的。 11 人若因我辱罵你們，逼迫你們，捏造各樣壞話毀謗你們，你們就有福了。 12 應當歡喜快樂，因為你們在天上的賞賜是大的。在你們以前的先知，人也是這樣逼迫他們。

馬太福音記載耶穌呼召門徒後，開始走遍加利利，在各會堂裡教訓人，傳天國的福音，醫治百姓各樣的病症。當下，有許多人從加利利、低加坡里、耶路撒冷、猶太、約旦河外來跟著他。（馬太福音4:23-25）接下來，從第五章到第七章記載了耶穌上了山，坐下教導跟隨祂的眾人，也就是大家耳熟能詳的「登山寶訓」。

登山寶訓的起頭是「八福」（馬太福音5:3-12），我們常聚焦在八個「有福」，強調：天國的得著、得安慰、承受地土、得飽足、蒙憐恤、得見神、得稱為神的兒子，卻忽略了耶穌教導眾人「有福」所需擁有的八個「屬天特質」：虛心、哀慟、溫柔、飢渴慕義、憐恤人、清心、使人和睦、為義受逼迫。

The Part You Play in God’s Plan

2025-01-26 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 2:1-12.  As usual, I encourage you to open your Bible and read the passage yourself first.  See what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help. Then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go! 

1 Kings 2:1-3 (NIV)
1  When the time drew near for David to die, he gave a charge to Solomon his son.
2  “I am about to go the way of all the earth,” he said. “So be strong, show yourself a man,
3  and observe what the LORD your God requires: Walk in his ways, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and requirements, as written in the Law of Moses, so that you may prosper in all you do and wherever you go,
 
On verses 1-3:  Here David is on his deathbed.  David’s last words to King Solomon his son are “be courageous, be a man, and obey God’s commands.” (v2-3)  After all the experiences David had accumulated over his lifetime — his unprecedented victories, his heartbreaking losses, and all the lessons he learned from both his successes and his mistakes —