Facing Adversity and Persecution

12 Week Challenge Week 1 Day 2 – 1 Thessalonians

A letter written by Paul, Silas and Timothy to the church of the Thessalonians

In chapter 2, Paul talks about how they were persecuted for who they believe and yet they still stand firm and preach about God. I find it really challenging as for someone like Paul and his disciples to stand so firm for God. Many times i have fail to stand up for God in front of my friends. I love how Paul said He wasn’t trying to please humans but pleasing God when he is preaching and getting persecuted. I need to strengthen my faith more in order to be able to stand firm for God when facing persecution from God(Chapter 3).

Paul instructed the church to live a life that pleases God. How many times have i fail that, probably a lot. In chapter 4, it talks about how we should avoid sexual immorality, wrong or take advantage of a brother or sister and many more. I probably have done that a lot of times and what really hits me that, paul said that if we reject this things, we are rejecting God himself. Bam, that really hit me hard cause i have fail to please God so so many things and all the things i have been doing is causing me to reject God out of my life. Really pray that I can change in this area of my life.

Rashaun

Living and Loving Like Jesus

12 Week Challenge Week 1 Day 1 – 1 Corinthians 1-2 & 13

Chapter 1
Verse 10-17- Be united in the mind and thought among fellow church members.

Verse 18-30- What hit me the most in this verse is “Live in humility”. It talks about how God chooses lowly things of this world so that no one may boast before him so we can boast about the Lord.

26 Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”[d]

Chapter 2
This chapter talks about if we grow closer to God/Jesus, we will receive the Spirit of God, when we receive it, we are then able to receives God’s wisdom. I noticed that at the start of the chapter, Paul is talking about how he comes to his church with fear and trembling and with the wisdom of God. It shows that Paul really loves God and follows God. He talks about how God is a loving God in the first chapter and then talked about how powerful and almighty God is in the chapter 2. But what i get the most out of it is that Paul is really faithful to God and shows how to live a life for God and relies on God’s wisdom.

Chapter 13
This chapter talks about one word “LOVE”. What really hit me is the first few verses, it talks about without love, there inst much meaning in the things i do for others. This makes me realized that sometimes i can do a lot of things for peoples, but sometimes i just do it for the sake of it and not understanding or giving much of a thought to it.

1 If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Following on it talks about how love is patient, kind, does not envy, does not boast, not proud and so on, it just reminds me of one person that is Jesus Christ. He demonstrated what love means when he died for us on the cross. I believed that Love is the number reason why Jesus choose to go to the cross. In the context of living and loving like Jesus, i feel like i should learn and grow in the area of loving others more than myself.

Rashaun