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Are You Feeling Depressed?

2025-03-17 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Do you struggle with feeling depressed?  In today’s passage we learn four powerful steps you can take to help you when you are depressed.  Let’s go!

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 19:1-21.  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 19:1-3 (NIV) 
1 Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 
2 So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, “May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.” 
3 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life…

On verses 1-3a:  Elijah has just been used by God to accomplish one of the most impressive miracles ever recorded in the Bible: fire from heaven has come down upon Elijah’s sacrifice (1 Kings 18:38-39).  The prophets of Baal are seized, silenced and killed, and Elijah is riding a spiritual high, literally outrunning King Ahab’s chariot (1 Kings 18:40-46). 

與神相處/怒氣不成就義

2025-03-17 in , /by

民數記20:1-13 

正月間，以色列全會眾到了尋的曠野，就住在加低斯。米利暗死在那裡，就葬在那裡。

2 會眾沒有水喝，就聚集攻擊摩西、亞倫。 3 百姓向摩西爭鬧說：「我們的弟兄曾死在耶和華面前，我們恨不得與他們同死。 4 你們為何把耶和華的會眾領到這曠野，使我們和牲畜都死在這裡呢？ 5 你們為何逼著我們出埃及，領我們到這壞地方呢？這地方不好撒種，也沒有無花果樹、葡萄樹、石榴樹，又沒有水喝。」 6 摩西、亞倫離開會眾，到會幕門口，俯伏在地。耶和華的榮光向他們顯現。

摩西帶領以色列人出埃及約三個月，經過汛的曠野到達利非訂安營，百姓因沒水喝向摩西發怨言，耶和華囑咐摩西拿杖擊打磐石，磐石必有水流出，使百姓可以喝。摩西就在以色列的長老眼前這樣行了。（出埃及記17:1-7）

出埃及兩年後，以色列人來到尋曠野的加低斯，派遣探子去窺探迦南地。由於他們不信神的應許，引起民眾的恐慌和叛亂，因此，神宣布那一代的以色列人（二十歲以上的）不得進入迦南地。（民數記14:20-35）於是，以色列人在曠野中漂泊38年，大部分時間在加低斯附近度過，舊一代以色列人逐漸過世。

新一代以色列人在加低斯，再次因沒有水喝，聚集攻擊摩西、亞倫。耶和華曉諭摩西拿杖，和亞倫招聚會眾，吩咐磐石出水，給會眾和他們的牲畜喝。摩西、亞倫就招聚會眾，摩西說：「你們這些背叛的人聽我說：我為你們使水從這磐石中流出來嗎？」摩西舉手，用杖擊打磐石兩下，就有許多水流出來，會眾和牲畜都喝了。那時，耶和華對摩西、亞倫說：「因為你們不信我，不在以色列人眼前尊我為聖，所以你們必不得領這會眾進我所賜給他們的地去。」（民數記20:1-13）

與神相處/謙卑的僕人

2025-03-16 in , /by

哥林多後書12:9    祂對我說：「我的恩典夠你用的，因為我的能力是在人的軟弱上顯得完全。」所以，我更喜歡誇自己的軟弱，好叫基督的能力覆庇我。

摩西的一生，年少在埃及法老王宮享受富貴40年，接著因殺人而避難到米甸曠野牧羊忍受艱辛40年，最後蒙神選召領導以色列民出埃及，在西乃沙漠中幫助看顧以色列人40年，耶和華稱摩西爲「我的僕人」（民數記12∶7-8）。我們看這位神的僕人在曠野荊棘中，如何面對神的呼召？（出埃及記3∶1-4:18）

神從荊棘裡呼叫說：「摩西！摩西！」他說：「我在這裡。」

神說：「以色列人的哀聲達到我耳中，我要打發你將我的百姓從埃及領出來。」

摩西說：「我是甚麼人，竟能去見法老，將以色列人從埃及領出來呢？」

神說：「我必與你同在，這就是我打發你去的證據。」

摩西說：「我到以色列人那裡，要對他們說祢是谁？」

神說：「你要對以色列人這樣說：『那自有永有的打發我到你們這裡來。』」

接著，神細說了祂與以色列人的立約，以色列人當時的光景和祂所要施行的拯救。（出埃及記3∶15-22）

摩西說：「他們必不信我，也不聽我的話。」

How To Experience the Fire of the Holy Spirit

2025-03-16 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 18:30-46.  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 18:30 (NIV) 
30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come here to me.” They came to him, and he repaired the altar of the LORD, which was in ruins. 

On verse 30:  What does the writer of 1 Kings mean when writing that Elijah “repaired the altar of the Lord, which was in ruins”?  It means that Elijah was re-establishing a culture of worshiping the Lord, a culture that had disappeared in the face of rampant and ongoing idolatry in Israel.  

與神相處/成為祂的朋友

2025-03-14 in , /by

創世記18:16-19    三人就從那裡起行，向所多瑪觀看，亞伯拉罕也與他們同行，要送他們一程。 17 耶和華說：「我所要做的事，豈可瞞著亞伯拉罕呢？ 18 亞伯拉罕必要成為強大的國，地上的萬國都必因他得福。 19 我眷顧他，為要叫他吩咐他的眾子和他的眷屬，遵守我的道，秉公行義，使我所應許亞伯拉罕的話都成就了。」

亞伯拉罕在幔利橡樹接待天使，天使即將啟程離開，望向所多瑪，神說：「我所要做的事豈可瞞著亞伯拉罕呢？…所多瑪和蛾摩拉的罪惡甚重，聲聞於我。…」（創世記18:16-21）

亞伯拉罕近前來，說：「無論善惡，你都要剿滅嗎？假若那城裡有五十個義人，你還剿滅那地方嗎？不為城裡這五十個義人饒恕其中的人嗎？將義人與惡人同殺，將義人與惡人一樣看待，這斷不是你所行的。審判全地的主豈不行公義嗎？」耶和華說：「我若在所多瑪城裡見有五十個義人，我就為他們的緣故饒恕那地方的眾人。」（創世記18:23-26）

Don’t Play the Blame Game + When Sincerity Is Not Enough

2025-03-14 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 18:16-29.  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 18:17-18 (NIV) 
17 When he saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you, you troubler of Israel?” 
18 “I have not made trouble for Israel,” Elijah replied. “But you and your father’s family have. You have abandoned the LORD’s commands and have followed the Baals. 

On verses 16-18:  Ahab meets Elijah and contemptuously calls him “you troubler of Israel”.  Ahab was blaming the famine on Elijah, thinking, “This famine is all your fault, all because you prayed.”  Elijah retorts the root cause of the famine was not Elijah but rather Ahab and his family, and how they had led Israel to abandon the LORD’s commands and fall headlong into idolatry.

與神相處/小信也無妨

2025-03-13 in , /by

創世記18:9-15 他們問亞伯拉罕說：「你妻子撒拉在哪裡？」他說：「在帳篷裡。」 10 三人中有一位說：「到明年這時候，我必要回到你這裡，你的妻子撒拉必生一個兒子。」撒拉在那人後邊的帳篷門口也聽見了這話。 11 亞伯拉罕和撒拉年紀老邁，撒拉的月經已斷絕了。 12 撒拉心裡暗笑，說：「我既已衰敗，我主也老邁，豈能有這喜事呢？」 13 耶和華對亞伯拉罕說：「撒拉為什麼暗笑，說：『我既已年老，果真能生養嗎？』 14 耶和華豈有難成的事嗎？到了日期，明年這時候，我必回到你這裡，撒拉必生一個兒子。」 15 撒拉就害怕，不承認，說：「我沒有笑。」那位說：「不然，你實在笑了。」

希伯來書11章談到古人在信心上得到美好的證據，這許多見證人如同雲彩圍繞著我們；然而想到自己，就有點擔憂自己的小信，甚至有些時候的不信，不禁會問：「神啊，祢能悅納小信的我嗎？」

撒拉聽到天使對她丈夫亞伯拉罕說，明年，撒拉會生一個兒子！她面對現實：亞伯拉罕已經99歲，她也89歲，而且月經已斷絕了；於是心裡暗笑，說：「我既已衰敗，我主也老邁，豈能有這喜事呢？」撒拉的小舉動，當場被天使抓包，她害怕，不敢承認，但天使沒有責備，只堅定地告訴他們：在神豈有難成的事嗎？（創世記18:9-15）結果，神改變現實成為真實：亞伯拉罕100歲，撒拉90歲，生了以撒。

Do THIS if you want God to move powerfully in your life

2025-03-13 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 18:1-15.  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 18:1-2 (NIV) 
1 After a long time, in the third year, the word of the LORD came to Elijah: “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land.” 
2 So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab…

On verses 1-2a:  God used Elijah to perform some of the most incredible miracles you will read about in the Bible.  Why Elijah?  I believe Elijah’s secret is not just that he was gifted, but that he was obedient.  Whenever God told him to do something, in faith he would obey.  As verse 2 says, “So Elijah went…”.  Remember that in this case God is telling Elijah to present himself to King Ahab, the very person who had been trying to kill Elijah for years.  Yet Elijah goes in faith and obeys God’s Word.  

How’s Your “Miracles Memory”?

2025-03-12 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 17:17-24.  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 17:17-18 (NIV)
17  Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. He grew worse and worse, and finally stopped breathing.
18  She said to Elijah, “What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?”

On verses 17-18:  A mother experiences her worst nightmare: the death of her child.  In this case it wasn’t a sudden death but an illness which took her son’s life, one where his sickness got worse and worse until he was gone.  It’s not clear why the woman would blame her son’s death on Elijah, the prophet who was staying as a guest in her house.  Sometimes when we can’t understand why something is happening to us, we can be tempted to blame God for what we’re going through. 

勇於承認犯錯

2025-03-12 in , /by

創世記3:14-19    耶和華神對蛇說：「你既做了這事，就必受咒詛，比一切的牲畜野獸更甚！你必用肚子行走，終身吃土。 15 我又要叫你和女人彼此為仇，你的後裔和女人的後裔也彼此為仇，女人的後裔要傷你的頭，你要傷他的腳跟。」 16 又對女人說：「我必多多加增你懷胎的苦楚，你生產兒女必多受苦楚。你必戀慕你丈夫，你丈夫必管轄你。」 17 又對亞當說：「你既聽從妻子的話，吃了我所吩咐你不可吃的那樹上的果子，地必為你的緣故受咒詛，你必終身勞苦，才能從地裡得吃的。 18 地必給你長出荊棘和蒺藜來，你也要吃田間的菜蔬。 19 你必汗流滿面才得糊口，直到你歸了土，因為你是從土而出的。你本是塵土，仍要歸於塵土。」  

面對神的詢問，亞當將罪責推給夏娃，夏娃又推卸給蛇，這就是我們常經歷的犯罪三部曲：人犯罪、逃避神、推諉卸責。人犯罪違背神，人與神間有了裂痕，逃避神和推諉卸責更加深人神間的鴻溝，使得人離神愈來愈遠，因此，神的懲罰隨即依序臨到蛇、夏娃、亞當（創世記3:14-19）。

耶和華說：「誰告訴你赤身露體呢？莫非你吃了我吩咐你不可吃的那樹上的果子嗎？」那人說：「你所賜給我、與我同居的女人，她把那樹上的果子給我，我就吃了。」耶和華神對女人說：「你做的是甚麼事呢？」女人說：「那蛇引誘我，我就吃了。」（創世記3:11-13）