Shirlee Abbott

God’s Outstretched Hand

Posted on September 14, 2017 by Shirlee Abbott

Psalm 33:12
Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.

God’s protective hand stands between his nation and disaster.

What happens to that protective hand when the people decided that they don’t want him to be their God?

Posted in other | Tagged God's hand, Psalm 33:12 | 4 Comments

Simply Changed

Posted on September 13, 2017 by Shirlee Abbott

Prayer changes things.

Prayer changes the storm.

Prayer changes me.

Posted in other | Tagged K.I.S.S., Keep it short and simple, prayer | Comments Off

Did Prayer Work?

Posted on September 12, 2017 by Shirlee Abbott

Over the weekend, my Facebook news feed was filled with prayers. So what do you think? Did the prayers deflate Irma’s power?

James 5:16 (NLT)
The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.

Posted in other | Tagged Hurricane Irma, James 5:16, prayer | 4 Comments

What’s God Thinking?

Posted on September 10, 2017 by Shirlee Abbott

Floods, wind, fire. Is God judging America? What do you think?

Absolutely! We have it coming
He wants the people to turn to him—this will do it
It our opportunity to show how good we are
This is just the way weather works
All of the above

I don’t know what God is thinking.

All those things could be true. After all, God says:

Isaiah 55:9
As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Posted in other | Tagged floods, hurricane, Isaiah 55:9, wildfires | 2 Comments

Shelter of Biblical Proportion

Posted on September 10, 2017 by Shirlee Abbott

As I drove to work, I listened to the top-of-the-hour news: Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Jose, wildfires in the west, the earthquake . . . and the North Korean nuclear threat. “Disasters of Biblical proportions, ” the radio voice announced.

Disasters of biblical proportion call for a response of biblical proportion.

Isaiah 6:5,8 (NIV)
“Woe to me!” I cried.“
. . . Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”
And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

All Christians, everywhere, saying,

Send me.

Send me to serve in a shelter. Send me to build new shelters. Send me to give my resources for shelter. Send me to my knees to pray for their shelter.

A response of biblical proportion.

Posted in other | Tagged earthquake, Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, Hurricane Jose, Isaiah 6, shelter, wildfires | 2 Comments

Don’t Quit Studying

Posted on September 7, 2017 by Shirlee Abbott

You might retire from your job.
Never retire from Bible study.

Psalm 1:2-3 (ERV)
They love the Lord’s teachings
    and think about them day and night.
So they grow strong,
    like a tree planted by a stream—
a tree that produces fruit when it should
    and has leaves that never fall.

Posted in other | Tagged Bible study, Psalm 1:2-3, retire | Comments Off

Simply Study

Posted on September 7, 2017 by Shirlee Abbott

It doesn’t have to be the whole Bible.
It doesn’t have to be a whole book.
It doesn’t have to be a whole chapter.

It can simply be one verse.

Posted in other | Tagged Bible study, K.I.S.S. | 6 Comments

Good Reason for Study

Posted on September 6, 2017 by Shirlee Abbott

“The Bible will keep you from sin,
or sin will keep you from the Bible.”
Dwight L. Moody, 1837-1899

(this guy was so good at Bible study, the school he stated has been teaching the Bible for 130 years)

Posted in other | Tagged Bible study, D. L. Moody, Moody Bible Institute | 2 Comments

Fix ‘Em

Posted on September 5, 2017 by Shirlee Abbott

Can you tell the plot of every episode of your favorite TV show, but not the story behind Exodus? Do you know the words to dozens of songs, but no Psalms? Do you know the government regulations for your job, but nothing from Proverbs? Do you study your investment portfolio, yet not one thing about the mysteries in Revelation?

Deuteronomy 11:18 (NIV)
Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds.

It’s fixer-upper time.

Posted in other | Tagged Bible study, Deuteronomy 11:18 | 2 Comments

Your Best Labor

Posted on September 3, 2017 by Shirlee Abbott

How do you feel about Bible study?

Love it!
I’m good in a group; solo, not so much
I hate anything that involves study

God calls us to work hard at Bible study:

2 Timothy 2:15 (ESV)
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.

Your pastor’s sermon probably comes out of serious study. But if your week’s labor with God’s Word is limited to listening on Sunday, you aren’t “doing your best.”

Posted in other | Tagged 2 Timothy 2:15, Bible study, Labor Day, Work | Comments Off