Examining the Scriptures Daily - 2017

[Tbs77]

Always Trust Jehovah

[GrumpysWife]

Saturday, March 4

What is the source of the wars and fights among you?—Jas. 4:1.

Pride can disrupt the peace of a congregation. Deep-seated feelings of animosity and superiority can affect our speech and actions, causing untold pain to others. (Prov. 12:18) If we personally have a tendency to feel superior to others, we need to remember that “everyone proud in heart is detestable to Jehovah.” (Prov. 16:5) We would also do well to examine our view of those who belong to another race, nationality, or culture. If we harbor feelings of racial or national pride, we ignore the fact that God “made out of one man every nation of men.” (Acts 17:26) In that sense, there is just one race because all mankind has a common ancestor, Adam. Therefore, how absurd it is to believe that some races are inherently superior or inferior. Such thinking would suit Satan’s scheme to disrupt our Christian love and unity. (John 13:35) To fight Satan and win, we must resist all forms of improper pride.—Prov. 16:18. w15 5/15 2:8, 9

[katielou]

Root out pride

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[LeslieDean]

Our SDA is today.  I will be carpooling with my African American sister and her daughter ( plus her fleshly  sister who recently died ) two children,  my  Native American sister and me , the mut.  We will share in a day full of laughter, tears, hearts full of gratitude to our God, Jehovah for making this all possible!  Without Him,  his unselfish love for all mankind and his pure teachings, He has been able to unite us in a common bond of love and faith that is not possible with any other organization of imperfect people.  His generosity, love and wisdom is staggering!

[rbrown1205]

I really appreciate this text because usually when this part of James is quoted, it is applied to the world - after all, there is where the literal wars are, right?  But this text shows that the way that we treat one another could be war-like and in conflict, if we are not careful.  I can understand that because I usually view the time that I spend with my brothers and sisters as a respite from the world, where people argue and bully one another, and you are not sure where they are coming from in terms of motives when they say or do things.  But we can bring some of that into the congregation if we are not careful.  

 

I value our spiritual paradise.  We have to maintain it, and each of us has an obligation to do so by the way that we treat our brothers and sisters.  The elders need to be commended, because the work that they do, they don't get paid for it.  The pioneers need to be commended regularly, because they are taking away time that they could spend in a job, or if they have an income already, they could be spend that ministry time on their own pursuits or in having fun.  And we don't know, or we may know, what some of our friends have to go through just to make it to the meetings and service - health problems, family problems, depression, stresses, and they may have to beg Jehovah for strength to get through another day, every single day.  The meetings can be an important refreshment for them, and we must try to keep it that way by what we say and how we treat one another.

 

 Wars and fights.  Superiority and animosity.  We must not let these demons in through the door that leads to our spiritual paradise.

[GrumpysWife]

Sunday, March 5

Become imitators of God.—Eph. 5:1.

Undoubtedly, we rejoice that God has promised immortality in heaven to faithful anointed ones and everlasting life on earth to Jesus’ loyal “other sheep.” (John 10:16;17:3; 1 Cor. 15:53) Of course, neither immortal life in heaven nor eternal life on earth will be plagued by the suffering common today. Jehovah is aware of the pain we experience, even as he knew how the Israelites suffered as slaves in Egypt. Indeed, “during all their distress it was distressing to him.” (Isa. 63:9) Centuries later, the Jews were afraid because of enemy opposition to the rebuilding of the temple, but God said: “Whoever touches you touches the pupil of my eye.” (Zech. 2:8) Just as a mother has tender feelings for her baby, Jehovah is moved to act lovingly in behalf of his people. (Isa. 49:15) In a sense, Jehovah can put himself in the place of others, and he has given us that ability.—Ps. 103:13, 14. w15 5/15 4:2

[katielou]

Imitate Jehovah's empathy

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[GrumpysWife]

Monday, March 6

You always have the poor with you.—Matt. 26:11.

Did Jesus mean that there would always be poor people on the earth? No, he meant that there would be poor people as long as this corrupt system of things lasts. Today the basic needs of hundreds of millions of people go unmet because of unjust human rule. Yet, relief is in sight! (Ps. 72:16) Jesus’ miracles give us confidence in his ability and his desire soon to use his authority for our good. (Matt. 14:14-21) Though we cannot perform miracles, we can enthusiastically draw people’s attention to God’s inspired Word. Bible prophecies guarantee better times ahead. As dedicated Witnesses of Jehovah who possess this precious knowledge about the future, do we not sense that we have a debt toward others? (Rom. 1:14, 15) May meditating on this move us to tell others the good news of God’s Kingdom.—Ps. 45:1; 49:3. w15 6/15 1:7, 10, 11

[Miss Bea]

Pay debt, preach!

[katielou]

Relief ahead!

[dilip kumar]

Preaching removes debt

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[dove]

Who is Grumpy?

[Alexa]

Jesus gives relief  

[GrumpysWife]

Tuesday, March 7

Cleanse your hands, . . . and purify your hearts.—Jas. 4:8.

When we treasure our friendship with Jehovah, we strive to please him in every aspect of our life, including our thoughts. We desire to have “a pure heart” by focusing our minds on what is chaste, virtuous, and praiseworthy. (Ps. 24:3, 4; 51:6; Phil. 4:8) Granted, Jehovah makes allowances for our imperfect nature. He knows that we are prone to improper desires. But we recognize that it saddens him when we nurture wrong thoughts instead of doing all we can to reject them. (Gen. 6:5, 6) Reflecting on this fact makes us ever more determined to keep our thoughts chaste. An important way to show our complete reliance on Jehovah is by making our fight against unclean thoughts a matter of prayer. When we draw close to Jehovah in prayer, he draws close to us. He generously gives us his holy spirit, thus strengthening our resolve to resist immoral thoughts and remain chaste. w15 6/15 3:4, 5

[Miss Bea]

4 hours ago, morningdove said:

Who is Grumpy?

I think Grumpy might be grumpy, sometimes. But we love him! And, especially his dear wife!

[katielou]

Pray, fight, resolve

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[Miss Bea]

Thoughts matter. Caution! 

[Saralee]

Yes we must put all our effort in changing now.May We put our complete trust in Jehovah for everything change we got to make....

[GrumpysWife]

Wednesday, March 8

Give us today our bread for this day.—Matt. 6:11.

Notice that this is a personal request not purely for “my” bread for the day but for “our” bread for the day. Victor, a circuit overseer in Africa, explains: “I often sincerely thank Jehovah that my wife and I don’t have to be seriously concerned about where our next meal will come from, nor do we have to worry about who will pay the rent. Our brothers kindly look after us every day. But I do pray that those helping us will manage to handle the economic pressures they face.” If we have sufficient food for many days, we can think of brothers who live in poverty or who are affected by disasters. We should not only pray for them but also act in harmony with our prayers. For example, we can share what we have with fellow worshippers in need. We can also regularly contribute to the worldwide work, knowing that such funds are used wisely.—1 John 3:17. w15 6/15 5:4-6

[Alexa]

Praying economically pressured  

[katielou]

Just the necessities

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[Simmons83]

It's a good reminder to not just read because we may overlook the value in the Bible...here Jesus said to  request not for "myself" but to request for others/ pray for others who may be less fortunate. We definitely should be cognizant of our brothers around the world

[GrumpysWife]

Thursday, March 9

God is our God forever and ever. He will guide us forevermore.—Ps. 48:14.

A marvelous work of transformation in connection with the earthly part of Jehovah’s organization was foretold at Isaiah 60:17. Those who are young or comparatively new in the truth have read about the evidences of this transformation or have heard about it from others. But how privileged the brothers and sisters are who have personally experienced it! No wonder they are convinced that by means of his enthroned King, Jehovah is guiding and directing His organization! They know that their confidence is well-founded, a confidence all of us share. Hearing their heartfelt expressions will fortify your faith and strengthen your trust in Jehovah. Regardless of how long we have been in the truth, we must tell others about Jehovah’s organization. The existence of a spiritual paradise in the midst of a wicked, corrupt, and loveless world is a modern-day miracle! w15 7/15 1:12, 13

[Miss Bea]

Trust, marvelous gift!

[katielou]

Rejoice in Jehovah

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