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Q5. Response to the Birth of Christ


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Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

Of those listed, great joy, praise, amazement, telling others, and thoughtful meditation are the reponses to the Good News that are present in my life. I am an ordained minister of the Gospel, so all of these responses are especially shown when I stand before a congregation and preach the Word of God. However, I also try to live during my everyday life the joy, praise, & amazement that I display when I preach. I also have to find time for thoughtful meditation so that I can stay focused on God and what He wants me to do for Him. After all, He has already done it ALL for us!!

To anyone who is missing some of these responses, I say to you, stay focused on God. Study His Word and learn exactly what all He has done for us. Do this on a daily basis and practice living according to the example that Jesus set when He walked this earth. By the grace of God, I truly believe that if you do this, those 'missing responses' to the Good News will begin to flow in your life and you will never be the same! TO GOD BE ALL THE GLORY!

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Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

The responses to the Good News that are present in my life are praise, curiosity, amazement, and thoughtful meditation

They show themselves in manner as follows: praise by praising him through pray, the songs of praise done alone or together with my family; curiosity by finding out what I do not fully understand yet through Bible Study; amazement by the hardships that Joseph and Mary experienced for his child Jesus; thoughtful meditation by meditating that news in my Bible Study.

Those that are missing are great joy, telling others. The reasons are s follows: great joy because I probably have already known the Good News before, so the joy I feel now is not great; telling others because I do not have an opportunity yet these days.

That I can do to recover these responses are as follows: to have great joy I will try to understand more deeply about what the meaning of the Good News for me and thank Lord for this; about telling others If I have an opportunity I will tell the Good News to people I meet around me.

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Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

I think that they all do to some extent but most assuredly not enough. I would liketo bebetter at telling others. I am not a talking person by nature usually only speak when spoken to so there is a hendrance there that I hope to someday ove come. Meditation could improve also as my mind often seems to wander to trivial stuff instead of scripture.

I think that they show themselves in our actions and attitude. As we live our daily lives if they are a real and living part of our lives then when we deal with other they show through.

The ones that are missing are probably due to the sinful nature that lives us. As we learn to give up control to the Holy Spirit then they can become more real in our dealings with others.

To recover them I think remains like I said above the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We need to turn control over to Him and as we study toshow our selves approved thenthe outward sign will become apparent.

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Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life?

Praise, curiosity, and thoughtful meditation are present.

In what manner do they show themselves?

They are shown through my bible studies, in church activities, in personal testimonies I give to people, through my art and contemplation of nature, and in my daily job activities. I believe these three attributes are implied more through action, and less through words.

If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

I feel great joy and telling others needs improvement. Many times the joy and telling the Good News to others have been lessened or dulled because of depression and heavy trials and burdens, and crises.

Currently, I

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  • 3 weeks later...

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

http://www.joyfulheart.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=723

In my life at this time I believe I have all these responses, great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, and thoughtful meditation.

Great joy...daily I am able to find the joy in my life even when things are outwardly not all together. God has given me the ability to see the joy in the smaller things in life...it was not always this way...worry was a common companion but with God's help I am able to concentrate on what is given not what is wanted...

Praise...the Lord has blessed me abundantly and I want to praise and thank Him with every breath....again was not always this way...had many years of anger and turned it towards the Lord

Curiosity...the Lord has placed a hunger for knowing what He has to say to me and a hunger to read His Word and study it.

Amazement...I am amazed at the love that the Lord shows me daily and amazed at the change in my life and the life of my family with God being first in our lives

Telling others...this I guess would be one of my weaker areas that the Lord is working with me on...it is not that I am ashamed of the Lord but still miss the oportunties the Lord gives me to share...

Thoughtful meditation...because of all of the above being in my life I find myself thinking upon them and just on how my life is...because of reading the Word on a more steady basis I find comfort in just basking in the Word.

As i said before telling others of the joy of the Lord and of His love for us is what I need to work on...I have many christian friends who are helping me in this area...and finding in the Word how much Christ wanted that to be a part of our lives. I pray that the Lord will place those in my life that I can share with and that I will have the boldness and courage to do so.

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  • 9 months later...

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

All of these responses are present at times in my life but I want to have each increased in my life. When I pray and glorify God, I feel great joy and amazement and know excitement as I share the Good News with other. As I pray, I ask God to help me to help me to grow in Him and to strive daily to live in such a manner that I know the amazement and excitement of serving Him as my Lord and Savior. :rolleyes:

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  • 2 weeks later...
Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

Great joy, I would say, is missing in my life. While I am happy and joyous when in worship or reading and studying the Bible, most other times I don't really live a life that exhibits joy.

Praise, I do praise the Lord many times every day, though we all need to do more!

Curiosity is one that abounds in me, and has led me to want to delve deeper into the Bible.

Amazement is a response that I often have, both to God's word, and to my own life in general.

Telling others, or evangelizing, is another response that I do not often do.

Thoughful meditation is something that I do on a regular basis.

I am in one of those situations where it is easy to say 'I just don't have the time to ...' for many of the above responses, my quandry is that I know that by allowing myself to feel that way, and not making the time to meditate, or pray, is only making things worse.

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Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

All are present in my life to varying degrees, but not enough. My ego or self still gets in the way of letting Spirit shine through. I think I need to thoughtfully meditate, praise more. I am thankful that I have the Spirit, though, the greatest source of joy.

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Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? I would have to say all of them are present in my life. God is doing a restorative work in me and my life ...the transformation is amazing to me...I even "look" different. The most astounding quality I possess is peace and joy ...the peace I experience is like a steady flowing river...and the joy is like a tender dew drop that keeps on dropping...

In what manner do they show themselves? Steadiness of spirit...positive optimism in the face of hardship and the world, hunger for the Word, desire to be obedient to the Lord and to be with God's people. I have a strong desire to share Christ with everyone and in all manner of speaking. I am curious as to why people think they "don't need God" in their lives, and I joy in the opportunity to share my own testimony in hopes that it may bring them closer to repentance. I am constantly amazed at how God sees all in our lives, and His involvement in the details of our lives. Thoughtful meditation is my favorite place to be!

If some are missing, why? I don't feel any are missing...I live in the secret place.

What can you do to recover these responses? I'm just going to keep on keepin' on...trusting the Holy Spirit to show me, mold me, make me...and equip me to be a workman approved of God.

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Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life?

I'm so thankful that as I read the choices for this question, that they are all present...not all at once but definitely all are experienced on a regular basis...especially, telling others, amazement, curiosity and great joy...I'm learning to praise, and these Bible studies always lead to thoughtful meditation. Thank you Pastor Ralph for your work of providing them..I'm truly grateful!

In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why?

They are always a response to the work of God in my life or in those around me. They show themselves as "my heart leapt within me", and a soaring of emotion and a loving, thankful outpouring to the Lord. I've always been curious...it manifests in digging, seeking, in the Word..I have an insatiable desire and longing to KNOW God, to LIVE in Him, to COMMUNE with Him....and curiosity seems to be the driving force. He keeps letting me know that wherever I am in Him, there is ALWAYS more! Yesterday it manifested in tears of joy as a nurse friend told me about the Lord speaking to her to go hold the hand of a dying 90 year old woman. She obeyed and not wanting to wake her, just lightly touched her hand. The sunken eyes snapped open and she said "Are you the one?" Doris said "The one?" The woman said I've been involved in Scientology all my life, but I've been lying here praying for God to send someone in here to tell me the truth. Doris said "Well, then I am the one...let me tell you about Jesus...The woman wanted to pray for salvation and did, then said "Now what shall I do...I feel like there is something I should do". Then the Lord showed Doris these words: "As you're lying there, when anyone who has hurt or wounded you comes to mind, forgive them". The next day when Doris went to work the bed was empty. She assumed the woman had died. The charge nurse told her "She had an amazing recovery and she went home"....that's when I cried.

Several weeks ago I noticed that all of the leaves on our Japanese maple tree had died and shriveled up. When I cleaned them off, I saw that there was one vibrant green leaf left. I sensed there was a reason...and curiosity caused me to keep an eye on it and to wonder about it and to ask God if there was a message there for me.....It hung on and on and stayed green. I asked others and received several good "answers" for what it might mean... Then He showed me. His message was "Nothing happens apart from His timing...wait...for His timing". When it finally turned red, I picked it before it could shrivel and dry up and I pressed it and put it in a little frame to remind me that though I've been waiting for 30 years for Him to heal our marriage, it is coming a day at a time. And another promise for which I've been waiting for 20 years, is on the way. Several other long time prayers "are on the way in His timing"....

What can you do to recover these responses?

They aren't missing, but if I found that they were, I think the only recovery would be through prayer...the "search my heart" and "show me" or "reveal to me" why they have gone kind of prayers.

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  • 4 weeks later...
Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

The two areas I need to improve on is do more telling others and more meditation. I do a lot of talking to God but I don't always listen or wait on Him for the answers.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

I think all of these are present in my life because of what the Lord has brought me through in the year 2008. I can not get enough of the Lord's word, I can not tell enough people about how good God is and what He is doing, and I love letting the love of God shine through me. If you don't have all these in your life, seek God. Ask Him to give you understanding.

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  • 10 months later...

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation, are all responses to the Good News present in my life. Great joy of knowing Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, an attitude of praise to a loving God, living daily curious as to what's on God's agenda for the day, telling others about the Good News and the "peace" which essentially amounts to salvation, living with hope for eternal life; meditating on the Word of God for Spiritual nourishment.

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Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

At some time these are all present although maybe not at the same time. I have found focusing on the greatness of God and not circumstances or health is necessary if there are those concerns. Prayer is necessary if I want to receive answers. I need to focus on a deeper prayer life. God wants to answer and He delights in our awe of Him.

One hindrance I have is my health. But even when it is hard to read and concentrate I can still listen to hymns and praise music. I can remind myself of those scriptures commmited to memory.

God Bless!

Jen

Numbers 6:24-26

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Q5 Great joy, praise and amazement are present in my life.

When you are touched by the Lord, you are a new being and are set from all

bondage and are filled with great joy and peace. With this happiness inside, you

tend to praise God and amazement griped you on the marvels of God's love for you.

At times some obstacles might prevent us from spreading the Good News to others

especially availability and time. We need to set our priorities right but also

would love to go and share God

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  • 2 weeks later...

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20)

Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation.

Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life?

In what manner do they show themselves?

If some are missing, why?

What can you do to recover these responses?

I experience great joy knowing what my Saviour has done for a sinner like me. I praise Him daily and am truly amazed at His sacrifice and love for us all. Given the opportunity I do tell others and I often find myself in thoughtful meditation. I wouldn

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Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

Luke 2:17-20 - 17When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

I believe that I have joy and praise in my life. I have a wonderful supportive wife and family. I am curious about learning as much as I can through all kinds of ways which is the reason that I am taking this Bible study. I am constantly amazed about God and what He does for me everyday. There are things that I do today as retired which just a few years ago I would not have thought of doing, such as hospital visitations and nursing home ministries. I hope that these activities show others how God works. I try to show by actions rather than just telling. I think that the one thing that I have to work on is my meditation time. There never seems to be a good time to be alone with God.

It would have been a grand day to have been one of those shepherds when they actually experienced God first hand and then be able to praise and glorify God.

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Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

For me, all of these responses are always there somewhere, but sometimes (too often actually) get lost or buried in my day to day life and in my daily cares and worries. The way to rediscover these responses is through prayer, meditation and worship. Just focus on the glory that is God and these responses will resurface. Quite often, I find that starting simply focusing on the words used in the Eucharist, "Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again!" is enough to focus my mind on the glory of God and the responses described in the question are then all natural responses to the glorious truth.

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As a writer, I naturally do a lot of pondering. However, while I can think about God and what he has done quite a bit, I can go for days without directly praising him or talking to him about how I'm feeling. The outright noisy, boisterous praise of this night is a good reminder that God enjoys seeing our outward excitement in him too!

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Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life?

Most of them.

In what manner do they show themselves?

The joy is a decisive measure for me. I decide to look at what is good in my life and give little attention to what is not good. I refuse to give into self pity or a victim mentality. Praise is what I do to let Jesus know that I understand it is all about Him and Him only. I am amazed when I meditate on God and His grace and His ways. He does truly amaze me. Telling others, I fall short of and would like to be more bold and more secure in sharing my faith with those not saved. Meditation is when I ask God, 'why?' and seek and expect an answer.

If some are missing, why?

Sharing my faith with the non saved is missing. I think it is because I sometimes can sense how people view me when I speak of Jesus. I used to be an usaved person and I know how I thought about those that tried to sell me on salvation. I do not like to be thought of as 'oh no, here comes that lady that preaches at ya!'. But, I realize this is exactly how the enemy wants me to think and I need to get past my fears and my past failed attempts.

What can you do to recover these responses?

Find a creative way to bring Jesus into the conversation and not come off as just another brainwashed Christian.

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Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

1. I'm always excited about this season of celebrating the birth of Christ. No matter how often I hear it I'm always amazed at the miraculous events that took place. Which brings about my curiosity, praise and sharing with others. I think I need greater joy and more thoughtful meditation.

2. Be more consistent in my studies of the word and meditating.

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Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

I try to make all of these things a part of my daily walk. I try to always have an attitude of worship, praise, and thanks for the great love and many blessings God gives me constantly. I am constantly amazed and thankful that He seems to think so highly of me--that He thinks that I might be a useful tool that fits His hand. I am always curious to find out more about God and to deepen my experience in my daily walk with Him.It seems to me that the area where I fall the most is in telling others. I always think I could/should be doing a better job. It is through the reading of Scripture and meditation on God's Word that He communicates with us most. If certain things are lacking in our lives, it is through prayer to Him and meditation upon His Word that we are most likely to find our answers. If we pray in the power of the Holy Spirit through our Lord Jesus Christ, God promises to give us what we need.

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