Happy Feet

If we focus on the individual verse, the Holy Spirit may be wanting us to hear that we need to cooperate with God

We are to humble before our Lord and God. That is all that is important on our part. Anything else that results from that is God's buisness. We get impatient anytime we don't have control. When we humble, we give up control. Impatience ussually leads us to places we don't often enjoy.

God has given Paul the faith to see that what HE began in the Phillipian church (perhaps their spiritual growth, maturing in accepting responsibility to evangelize or simply by giving in ways that supported Paul

We participate, so give and take. We give time, talents, spiritual gifts, and/or resources. We receive much more. We gain growth and edification in our spiritual communication process responding to God

It is hard to see or feel the effects of our own thoughts, words or actions because we are not always sensitive to the ways we bump into others with all the baggage we carry as insulation. We are easily fooled into seeing only the robe of Christ

As an emerging seed we are given spiritual birth. The word of truth is God

God may havecreated this world and people in it to have a bride for Christ. We go thru the trials and learn to love and trust God, to become the child He conceived of His own desire to complete HIS plan. We are loved so tenderly, and He patiently allows us to grow and learn to choose. If we didn

Trials and struggles have been resisted thru much of my life. When I was younger, a challenge was boldly overcome in my clumsy ways. Then, when relationships became more important than establishing myself, I focused more on being a peace maker and avoiding conflict. Finding my way to accept the obstacles and live with them rather than to conquer them became the path of least resistance. Pain and sadness, disappointment and even dispair have motivated many choices, I would have liked to have changed in hind sight. But, God has used them to teach me, gently, the ways HE speaks to me, arranges situations for me, and wants me to trust and obey HIM.I am sure there are many opportunities I have missed to build faith, many times I have rushed into something before HE called me to action. There are also many things I didn

I know Sarah is human, and not responding as we outsiders who judge her can wisely control. I think of the times I had to stop nursing my children. It was a sad time for me to lose that connection to them. It was a relief for my husband to not have them so dependent on me. I struggled with it, tho I knew it was in everyones best interest. It ment the end of my physical part of the mothering process. Now it was more the decisions and modeling. We have no righteousness of our own. If she was making a decision to keep only Isaac at home, then, because God honored it this time and kept them out of the home of Abraham, it was of God's righteousness then. Yes, I have compromised what I think is right in marrage, but, that doesn't mean I was forced or even right myself. I thought I was basing my decision on God's word, but His plan seemed different than my understanding, and he has honored me with blessings for being obediant.

I know I am behind on the lesson, and as I was trying to catch up, I was reading in my Bible instead of the text and saw that Chapter 22 has Abraham and Sarah moving away from the stinky area after the destruction of Sodem and Gomorrah. He told the local king they were bro and sis so God closed up the wombs of all the women until God revealed to the king in a dream that Sarah was a wife already. Claiming inocence before God having not touched her God also said I kept you from her because her husband is a prophet, then he released Sarah to her husband and offered anyplace they wanted to live with gifts and the LOrd opened all the wombs again so they bore children, as he did to Sarah as well. So, she had to be there with the grand womb reopening to Glorify God in the whole process. AB wasn't so aweful for the deception because it really did give glory to God in the process. Many were in fear and reverent then in this process. Surprise to me. this should be inculded back with the other discussions we had on Ab being chicken about other kings decieving them as being sister and bro, not married.

Fear is the lack of faith. Fear is why she looked back. Unknown or suspicions create a breeding ground for fear. Lot

I don't know about Abraham, but I do know about me. I was driven to my knees to plead for my 2 daughters and their tendency to sinful "fun" after being raised to avoid that like the plague. I prayed for their safe travel and their vehicle and for others on the road. I pleaded as Job did for his children. I prayed with peace in my heart on the 2 hour drive to meet up with them last spring break after not seeing them since Christmas as they went back to separte colleges. I was bold to approach the throne of grace I was welcomed to as never before. So the drive there was not intense pleading, but calm assurance he was in control. Another driver hit them, about 10 miles from our meet point. The car rolled and killed the older daughter instantly. The younger was not badly injured physically, but her broken heart was serious. Three hours later, the police informed me of their envolment in the accident, tho I had called them and contacted the ambulance drivers that had returned empty from the scene. They cell phones never worked as the accident had just happened when I arrived at the meet point. We have prayed that the lose and pain would bring glory to our wise Father, and many have looked harder at HIM as the source of comfort. God does want us to be ernest in our prayers and not be afraid of him. He does honor our willingness to trust him, need him and love.

We are all human and make many mistakes. Finding the workable balance is only realistically and practically possible when we seek God

If we ask for miracles, that would be a start to believing God to provide them. There is only affirmation in words from Jesus and the apostles that the Holy Spirit will allow all with faith that trust in the name of Jesus to do God

Fear is the lack of faith. Fear is why she looked back. Unknown or suspicions create a breeding ground for fear. Lot

We can only keep balance by keeping out of the way. We are so culturated to take a stand and defend our cause, in our own strength. We need to keep control of our external obviouse response by applying God

What is the significance of Hagar's name for God -- El Roi, the God Who Sees? To know that God is real, not just the visions heard about from Abraham or Sarah, but to know that he sees me as part of HIS plan and seeks me out when I am not lovely or worshipping or serving HIM. He is the God with eyes, not the idols of the day. His eyes see me and have compassion on my misery. Likely it was scary to be away from the food and shelter source of the last few years when she was pregnant, so going back to perhaps more harsh treatment may not seem so bad if God who sees me is watching and promising me some of the same things her master was promised. What does it mean to a person who is discouraged and losing hope? It is hopeful to be watched to hold those unfair to be accountable What does it mean to you personally? This is one of the first names I recognized in the Bible for my Lord, beyond the regulars we hear. It meant alot to me in my distress of some similar predicaments as Hagars when I first found this name. To know that he watches me, is with me and loves and cares for me as a name others see not just my hoped for ways, grew my hope and faith in difficult times. And often, it is being in difficulties that allow us to look to HIM instead of ourselves, even if we don't seek HIM, he reveals to us that he is watching. Halleluiah, He is God and in control, and loving me with HIS strength.

What is the significance of Hagar's name for God -- El Roi, the God Who Sees? To know that God is real, not just the visions heard about from Abraham or Sarah, but to know that he sees me as part of HIS plan and seeks me out when I am not lovely or worshipping or serving HIM. He is the God with eyes, not the idols of the day. His eyes see me and have compassion on my misery. Likely it was scary to be away from the food and shelter source of the last few years when she was pregnant, so going back to perhaps more harsh treatment may not seem so bad if God who sees me is watching and promising me some of the same things her master was promised. What does it mean to a person who is discouraged and losing hope? It is hopeful to be watched to hold those unfair to be accountable What does it mean to you personally?This is one of the first names I recognized in the Bible for my Lord, beyond the regulars we hear. It meant alot to me in my distress of some similar predicaments as Hagars when I first found this name. To know that he watches me, is with me and loves and cares for me as a name others see not just my hoped for ways, grew my hope and faith in difficult times. And often, it is being in diffuculties that allow us to look to HIM instead of ourselves, even if we don't seek HIM, he reveals to us that he is watching. Halaluiah, He is God and in control, and loving me with HIS strength.

To be able to trust in power beyond mine as my protection is to allow for the sheilding I can not provide. But, to know that HE is capable and willing to shield me is not effective unless I hold onto the shield and stay behind or under HIS covering. I have to know to listen to HIS guidance to know where the shield ends so I don't get on the wronge side of it. My safe keeping and promise of eternal worship in HIS presence is such an unimaginable reward as a catapiller can not image being a butterfly. Having my Lord Suzerain, is not something we find in our independent culture. But, Knowing HE is HOLY and worthy of being Lord and I am not is a great reward in itself to be called HIS child, then all the other benefits are extra.

Jehovah-Jireh gave us our life, our body, mind and soul. He gave us our purpose and the way to fullfill it in this world to live in with his loving companiohship HIMSELF to lead us and love us and strengthen and bless us. We have nothing we can sacrifice to HIM, he already owns all and lends it to us. He made the greatest sacrifice to endure our penalty for our sin natures draw to defile HIS cherished loved one. A tithe is acknowledging HIS Lordship over our life and our economic status. He provides for all our needs, and we can utilize what he has provided for our best interest when we honor him by seeking to know HIM and obeying his will for us, thru worship, offerings and being soft clay to be molded into HIS service, taking on HIS image imprinted on us when we accepted HIS call to be adopted into HIS eternal family. To give of your time, talents and wealth from the whole he gives you is the only way to honor HIM. Anything less is a demonstration of faithlessness that HE will not continure to provide for your needs, or a selfishness to seek more for yourself than HE has intended for you to be satisfied with. This is easier to live out as truth when single, but families often loose site of how to be honorable to God from the beginging of what it recieved, especially if families members have different spiritual maturity, and faith to be able to humble.

God did not just allow Abraham and Sarah to go thru these ordeals to learn about HIM. He also revealed HIMSELF to Pharoh and the other Egyptians by speaking to them and demonstrating HIS power and authority to them. He got their attention by making them sick and closing wombs, then again by healing them when they had done what pleased HIM. He was feared and obeyed. Glory to God.

For Abraham, being a new light of God shining among those who had no clue Abraham followed a different God, life sustaining abundance or wealth was the obvious way to show HIS blessing. This was a time of famine, so to beable to have little fear of food and animals to work with, this was a sign of blessing. For us, material wealth often becomes a burden to our relationship with God. We must become spiritually wise managers of it to honor HIM first and to use it wisely for our loved ones to benefit most from it, not to hoard it for ourselves as not to trust the source to supply all our needs. It may not be placed in our care for our purpose, but to give it to others in need. Most of us that recieve more than we need to live by, tend to take pride in our accomplishments and lose sight of the source as being God that provided the abilities and opportunities and strength to obtain that which we have. It becomes our reward for own work, not a blessing sent from above. I prefer to seek my security for today and tomorrow in knowing I am in God's will for he will provide all that I need if I am there. I can suffer many distractions and difficulties when I am not there and instead, working on my own. I treasure my relationship with my Father, and the relationships of my family and friends more than material wealth. These will grow to be the better rewards in eternal living than any earthly gain. I struggle so with managing and wisely utilizing the worldly blessings our culture has come to take for granted. This position frustrates many around me.

This is a valid question, but, I'm afraid my answer my not be typical. I agree with others that take the perspective that Abraham was not as equipped with knowledge of God as we are. Only God is the judge of people, tho it is our responsibilities to learn from our mistakes, I wonder how much we can learn from others. Only God knows the purpose of those positions we find ourselves in and what looks like mistakes to others may be just what God needed to happen to shape our faith. Abraham was still in faith building mode when he allowed Sarah to become so vulnerable in our eyes. I build my faith by spending time with my Lord. and learning to listen and distiguish HIS in-planted ideas from my own. When an opportunity for action has passed, whether I took it or not- the results helps me know whose vice it was that revealed the idea. Perhaps these were some of Abrahams lessons to build his faith and teach him to listen and trust. We all learn from mistakes- and are blessed by God each time we seek His ways to correct our own actions and consequiences, as HE accpets and forgive our confessions. Do we accept HIS gift of loving forgiveness? Sorry I am behind on the lessons, I need prayer for our 2 computers. The more I use them to study God's word while perpetually traveling, the more they break down. I have walked an hour to get to a library today to get to the lesson while the truck is being repaired.