Key People in the Bible
Noah-hero of faith
in Hebrews 11:7. How would you react if God told you to do something this crazy (God asked Noah to build a boat and take his family and two of every animal)? Generally, what God asks us to do doesn't require this much risk or effort, but we still find it hard!! HELLO. When we don't do what God asks, we demonstrate our lack of faith. We can talk about how much we love and trust God, but our actions may tell a different story.
James 2:26
"Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works." We will always act according to what we truly believe. If we believe God's ways are best, we will act as God wants. If we believe we will be happier by doing something wrong, we will do something wrong.
Joshua
"these men who were responsible for spreading the bad report about the land were struck down and died of a plague before the Lord. Of the men who went to explore the land, only __________, son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, survived."
Joseph-In James 1:2-4, we are told to consider it joy when we experience trouble. Our troubles help to make us faithful, and our faithfulness makes us complete. Our faithfulness is rewarded. It would be great if there were an easier way for God to perfect us, but God knows what is best!
(Pharaoh made Joseph the king of Egypt due to Joseph's faithfulness and commitment to God's reign. Joseph was able to interpret pharaoh's dreams because he submitted them to God, "God is showing you...")
Abraham's Obedience/his son Isaac
Abraham finally has the son that God promised him, Isaac. PLOT TWIST: God asks Abraham to sacrifice his only son! Wild! But God stops Abraham before he kills Isaac once he demonstrated that he is willing to obey God even when it is extremely difficult!
Abraham/Sarai- Our mistakes have long lasting impact
Abram's wife Sarai was barren, so she told Abram to impregnate her servant, Hagar. Hagar started to treat Sarai disrespectfully after discovering she was pregnant. Sarai wasn't having am. Hagar ran away because of the beef, but an angel of the Lord found her and convinced her to return back to her mistress Sarai. Although Abram is now going to become a father, their actions cause conflict that carry through to today. Ishmael (Hagar and Abram's son) becomes the father of the people we call Arabs, who still live in conflict with Abram's other descendants, the Jews. LESSON: Although we are forgiven for our mistakes, the consequences remain.
Joshua- going against popular belief and standing for what is right
Because of his faith, God says he will enter the land God promised to Israel. _______ was one of a handful of people to believe God's promise. It's not easy to stand for what is right when almost everyone else is doing the opposite. Would you have openly expressed your faith in God when everyone else was expressing fear?
paul
Before he became _____, he was known as Saul. Saul had been someone who hated Christians and Gentiles. Jesus transformed him into being a Christian who loved Gentiles. How has your life been transformed by Jesus? Who has God taught you to love?
Esther- miracle or coincidence
Chapter 6 tells of Mordecai being honored by the king just as Haman is about to execute him. In this chapter, _____ lets the king know of Haman's underhanded plot resulting in Haman being executed. This story is loaded with coincidences that by themselves are not miracles. However, when they are viewed as a whole, they can only be attributed to the hand of God. How many things does God bring together in our lives that we view as just a normal chain of events?
Joshua reminds people about what?
Chapters 2 through 22 cover lots of battles between Israel and their enemies. Some of the battles go smoothly and some don't. Problems arise when the people forget to depend on God. ______ is coming to the end of his life and reminding the people of their need to obey God. He also reminds them that God has kept his promises to the people. They are living in safety within the land God promised. Hopefully you can look back on your life and see ways God has kept his promises like Joshua.
David
For the rest of 1 Samuel, Saul continues to be king. Throughout, _______ is being prepared for leadership, often through some very difficult challenges. Many of those challenges come from Saul who tries to kill ______ to prevent him from becoming king. Despite Saul's mistreatment of _______, he grieves when he learns of Saul and his son Jonathan's death. _______ respected the office of king of Israel and realized God had put Saul in that place. Paul tells us to do the same thing in Romans 13:1. The news media loves to point out the weaknesses and mistakes of our government leaders. It's easy to become disrespectful toward those in authority, but God says he has put them in place to be obeyed. _________understood this even when his life was directly threatened
Moses
Generations after Joseph and his brothers moved to Egypt, the Israelites have become so numerous they present a threat to the Egyptians. Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, orders all the male babies to be killed at birth, beginning a process of genocide. In this chapter, _____' parents are not only able to preserve his life but also get him adopted into the royal family.
abraham's circumcision
God also requires all the males of Abraham's household to be circumcised. Abraham's circumcision is important because he obeyed God but that is not what made him righteous. LESSON: Our obedience isn't how we are adopted into God's family. It is our faith in what God has told us that matters most.
Why was Israel left in shambles?
God challenged Pharaoh through Moses. Pharaoh stubbornly refuses to do what God said, and Egypt was left in shambles as a result. Pharaoh finally let the people of Israel leave Egypt.
Elijah
He simply arrives on the scene as someone who confronts the king (king of Israel whom was evil) in a very bold way. God then provides protection and food for ______ while the rest of the nation suffers for disobeying him. How much courage does it take to confront an evil king who can have you executed? How could ______ be sure it would not rain, that he could make flour and oil from nothing and could raise the dead? ______ accomplished great things for God because he had faith. God doesn't expect all of us to do the things _____ did, but we should all have the faith ______ had. If you knew God wanted you to take a huge risk, would you do it? BE BOLD AND HAVE FAITH. Your name is powerful. Where are you lacking in boldness and faith?
abraham- perfect example of humility
He was powerful enough to rescue Lot and refused to be made rich. In his victory he worshiped Christ. This is a reminder that we should not take the credit for ourselves and receive the praise of others..."
5th commmandment
Honor your father and mother
Esther
In chapter 1, the queen offends the king and ends up getting fired. Through the events we read about today, ______ becomes queen. How does a seemingly insignificant Jewish girl become queen? By God bringing together all the details. What does God have in mind for you? It's not likely you are going to become royalty, but whatever God has planned he will bring together all the details.
Joseph-SEE HOW GOD TURNS YOUR ENEMIES INTO SERVANTS.
In chapters 42-49, Joseph is reunited with his family. Due to the famine, Joseph's brothers come to Egypt for help. Joseph goes through a process of verifying his brothers have changed their ways and forgives them for their treatment of him. In this chapter, Joseph's father, Jacob, dies. His brothers are concerned that Joseph's forgiveness of them is not real, so they lie to him about their father's dying words. Joseph lets them know he sees God's hand in all that has happened.
4th commandment
Keep the sabbath day holy
nehemiah- pray before action
Many years after Jonah, both Israel and Judah are defeated by foreign invaders. Jerusalem, the capital of Judah, was left in ruins. Generations later, some of the people of Judah are allowed to return to the land, but the city is still in ruins. __________hears of this and begins to pray. He reminds God of the promises he has made to his people and asks God for help. His prayer is everything!!! Nehemiah 1:5-11 Praying before taking action is a great pattern. It demonstrates that we depend more on God than ourselves. Actions are required too, but the actions should be built on a foundation of God's promises from the Bible.
what's true for the Earth during Noah's time is true now in our lives. HOW SWAY?
Noah was used to restore things closer to how they were in the Garden of Eden, humanity and Earth still fall short of God's original design. This becomes obvious when we are told of Noah's drunkenness and Ham's disrespect for his father; even animals fearing people and people hunting and eating animals was not how it was in Genesis God intervenes and restores us to more of what he wants us to be, but we always fall short.
Joshua- Urim
Not only does _____ live long enough to enter the new land, he becomes the leader of the nation (succeeds Moses) and leads the people into that land. ______ is told he should seek direction from God by going to the priest and asking him to use the Urim. We can't be sure of the exact use of the Urim, but it was used by the High Priest of Israel to seek God's guidance. We don't have Urims today, but we should still seek God's guidance to help us lead. However, getting guidance from God requires faithful obedience.We can't expect guidance from God if we have no intention of doing what he says.
Jonah 4
READ JONAH 4!!! Talk about me and ______ being twins! Don't be a hypocrite! It's okay for God to bless those you dislike. In times of anger: really pause and ask yourself "IS IT RIGHT FOR YOU TO BE ANGRY ABOUT THIS?" God forgave _____, and ______ was glad, but when God forgave Nineveh, ______ was not happy. ______ cared more about himself and his own comfort than he did about those around him. this story also shows how God is working for our good when we don't even realize it nor deserve it nor ask for it(giving _______ shade and breeze). But also shows how when we take these things for granted and think it's a right rather than a privilege, God can take them right tf bike!! When we avoid the risk of rejection by not talking to someone about Jesus (SUMMER INSTITUTE), we choose comfort over loving others. We also choose comfort when we see a need we could do something about but do nothing.
Samuel's final speech
Samuel's final speech as leader of Israel asks the people if they can make any accusation against him. He knows he has served God and the people faithfully. Samuel knows it's more important for them to obey God than a king. It would be great to reach the end of your life and be able to confidently ask if anyone had anything to hold against you. Samuel was a leader who had integrity throughout his life. GOALS.
Samuel's obedience
Saul is an unlikely leader, but _______ obeys God in appointing him king. Saul will lead Israel in a military victory. God knows best even when it doesn't seem to make sense.
What we can learn from Peter
This event happens after Jesus was crucified and rose from the dead. Peter has gone back to fishing for fish. Jesus is again asking Peter to follow him. After denying Jesus three times, he now states his love for Jesus three times. Peter had said in Matthew 26 that he would be willing to die for Jesus. Jesus lets him know he will indeed do that. Despite Peter's mistakes, Jesus still wanted Peter to follow him and continued to have a plan for Peter's life. It did require Peter to reconfirm his loyalty to Jesus, though. 1 John 1:9 tells us we need to confess our sins to be restored to a strong relationship with Jesus. We need to realize we have done wrong and recommit to obedience.
esther's enemy
Today we are introduced to the villain, Haman. He wants to kill off all of the Jews. Haman uses his influence and money to plot against God's chosen people. The people in Susa were confused by the decree against the Jews. God's enemies come upon us unexpectedly, but they don't surprise God. He already has a rescue plan in place. We can never be completely prepared for the future, but we can trust in God at all times
nehemiah- keep moving forward, keep grinding, in spite of the opposition
Today we read of the opposition. The surrounding nations do not want Jerusalem to be fortified. They begin by mocking the work and saying the wall is weak and will never be finished. Then the opposition comes in the form of threats. As a result, the people need to arm themselves while they work. ________ is again an example we can follow. He continues the work, challenges the people to depend on God, but also prepares to fight. All three had to be done. Had the work stopped, the wall would not have been finished. Had they stopped depending on God, they would have been fearful. Had they not prepared for combat, they likely would have been attacked. Like _______ , we need to continue to move forward, depend on God and be prepared to face opposition. Ignore the opposition, sometimes it's your own self-doubt/insecurity! It be yo own self! Lol keep building.
1st commandment
You shall have no other gods before me--WHO you worship. "I am the Lord your GOD."
2nd commandment
You shall not bow down to any other idols-- You cannot give anyone else this title/position
7th commandment
You shall not commit adultery
10th commandment
You shall not covet (yearn for something you do not have)... wow. This is hard. I yearn for wealth...lol but i guess that's the point, it assumes that God has not provided me with wealth in other ways. This breeds the spirit of jealousy!
9th commandment
You shall not give false testimony against your neighbors
6th commandment
You shall not murder
8th commandment
You shall not steal
3rd commandment
You shall not use the Lord's name in vain= So it doesn't just refer to a certain tone of voice or a certain use of the word. It's dealing with God and speaking of God in a way that empties him of his significance. This includes both throw-away words—like "God!" or "Jesus!"—as well as speaking about him in trifling and flippant ways. Not just swear ways but cheap ways, low and insignificant ways that just treat him like a commodity. And when you hear them you sense that there is no weight to that sentence, no corresponding emotion to that statement.
paul-We can't control how people respond to what we do, but we can check our motives to make sure they are based on love and a genuine desire to encourage.
____ was trying to convince Jews he was still one of them, but his attempt to build a bridge was rejected. Our best attempts at trying to help people can often be misunderstood. We may want to help someone turn away from an incorrect belief or activity, but it may not be accepted.
Esther- ease your way to the bag
_____ eases her way into making a request of the king. She simply requests their presence at a special banquet for both of them. She avoids letting the risk to her and her people cause her to act in a disrespectful way toward the king or Haman. In the meantime, Haman is continuing to plot and is planning to move quickly to execute ______'s uncle Mordecai since M didn't stand or bow dine or shiver when H came by after the banquet. M was big chillin. There is a tendency to panic when the stakes are high. We say things we later regret or fail to act in ways that are completely honest. ____ can be a great example of patiently looking for the best way to move forward. Ease your way
Jonah
_____ is sent to Israel's northern neighbor Assyria. The Assyrians are Israel's number one enemy, and Jonah doesn't want to preach to them. He would rather see them continue offending God and be destroyed. ____ runs away, but God uses a storm and a big fish to show ______ who is in charge.The big fish swallowed Jonah and he stayed there for 3 days/nights. ______ has an interesting problem. He has enemies that he would rather see God destroy than see them change. Whether or not we mean it, it is common to hear people tell someone to go to hell or curse something to damnation. Do we reach a point where we would rather see God judge someone than save them. Don't be like _______, seek change not condemnation in your fellow brothers and sisters.
paul
_____ moves from preaching in Asia to now preaching in Europe. He is put in prison for his faith. So, the one who had put Christians in prison is now the one in prison, OH THE IRONY. Saul wanted to imprison every Christian. Even when in prison, ____ looks for ways to bring people to Jesus.(Acts of Apostles 16. PAUL AND SILAS!) ______'s message to the jailer in verse 31 ("believe in the Lord and you will be saved") is a simple one. The message of Jesus isn't complicated, but still people struggle to understand it. How can something as valuable as forgiveness be available to anyone simply by believing?
Jonah- God still loves you despite your mistakes
_______ begins to change his ways by turning to God in prayer. He talks about the extreme distress he is in and realizes God is the only one who can save him. If you ever find yourself in a difficult spot because of your own poor choices, you can always turn to God for help. You may feel God will not listen because of your mistakes, but he still loves you. That's not an excuse to go ahead and make the mistakes, but it does mean you can never sin too much for God to forgive.
Jonah- second chances!
_______ is again sent to Nineveh where the people respond to his preaching. God gave ______ another chance and used him to give Nineveh another chance. I'm glad for second chances - and thirds and fourths. Our disobedience to God needs to be recognized, and we need to turn away from it. God will always be quick to forgive. Who are you not giving a second, third, fourth chance to?
Elijah- messenger. We need to trust in God
Ahab's son Ahaziah takes over and follows in his father's footsteps. He has wandered so far from God that he consults false gods to discover his future. "why are you sending men to far places to find out if you will recover? Is there no God in Israel, your country?" God spoke through ____ to stop these men and deliver that message. Ahaziah was upset that _____ stopped their quest and sent 2 groups of 51 soldiers to capture ____. Each time a group found ______, God struck them down. Finally the captain of the 3rd group saw his fate and pleaded with ____ to not struck him and his men down. Instead _____ went back to Ahaziah with them and told Ahaziah he will die for not trusting God. And that is indeed what happened. God should be the guide in our lives. When we fail to trust in him, the outcome can be dangerous both for us and the people around us.
David- forgiveness doesn't mean w/o consequence
Although ______ had gotten away with his sin in the eyes of the people around him, God knew the truth. Thankfully, ______ admits his sin and is forgiven. However, there are still consequences (his son grows ill and dies). Those consequences don't last forever because ____ has another son who will be the next king of Israel. We often think forgiveness means there are no consequences, but that's not true. God can forgive us for the wrong things we have done, but there can still be prison terms to serve for crimes committed, health issues caused by bad habits or broken relationships with those we have mistreated. Although forgiveness from God is always available, the best way to live is to not sin in the first place. READ 2 SAMUEL 12:1-25!!
Elijah's simple prayer
Baal was the god of storms, so he should have been able to make lighting strike. Mount Carmel typically had large amounts of rainfall, so Baal was considered to be more powerful there. Baal had 450 prophets representing him; God only had one. Baal's prophets worked very hard to get Baal to respond, but ____ only said a simple prayer. It's as if God was saying he can beat Baal with one hand tied behind his back! You probably aren't tempted to worship other gods, but you may be tempted to depend on things other than God. You may also be tempted to put extra effort into alternatives like the prophets of Baal did. We take our focus off God when we rely on our own efforts like: working late, constant monitoring of your investments, withholding money from God or being overly-cautious. God will care for us in this life and in eternity, but we need to trust in him.
Esther- use your position to benefit others
Even though ______ is the queen, it is a huge risk for her to even speak to the king. In verse 14, Mordecai lets ______ know she is in a place where she could do some good and she needs to do it. Like Nehemiah, _____ understands she should not take action before praying and fasting, especially if the action is risky or scary to us. _____ knew her power would not save her from being executed with the rest of the Jews [don't forget she is a jew in hiding, even though she is queen]. So at the end if the 4th chapter she asked for the remaining jews to fast with her before she embarks this journey to speak to the king."If I die, I will die...but at least I'm dying for a good cause." What was true for ______ is also true for us. We are where we are because God wants us there. If there is good we can do, we should do it! You could be in a position close to power, like ______, or in a place that seems insignificant. No matter our place, we should use it to obey God and benefit others. WHO ARE YOU BENEFITING IN YOUR POSITION? Better not be just yourself.
Moses- We have receive many assurances from God: He will supply for all our needs (Philippians 4:19), reminding us we are more than conquerors (Romans 8:37), and that God loves us (1 John 4:10). Do we act as if we believe what God has told us or live in fear that circumstances or our own limitations will cause us to fail?
God tells ______ (through the burning bushes) that he will lead Israel out of slavery in Egypt but warns that Pharaoh will not be easy to convince. God assures _____ he will do all that is required for him to succeed. ______ is doubtful and hesitant because he doesn't see his worth and what God sees in him.
Abram/Abraham
God tells him to move from his hometown to a new place where God will bless him. He does as God instructs.
Joseph
Grandson of Abraham; son of Jacob...Was acceptable to have multiple wives and Jacob had 4 of them [THIS WAS NOT GOD'S DESIRE, BUT AS IN ALL TIMES, PPL DON'T ALWAYS DO WHAT GOD WANTS.] Rachel was the favorite of Jacob's 4 wives.For many years, she had been unable to have children but finally gave birth to____. This caused_____ to be the favorite among Jacob's twelve sons.
Samuel
Hannah was very troubled by the fact that she could not get pregnant, but God had something important he wanted to do through her. _______ was the answer to Hannah's persistent prayer. God has plans we know nothing about. Maybe what feels like God withholding something from us is actually God setting the stage for something greater. Can we have the faith to ask God for something and then just wait?
Nehemiah- God will provide
He goes to Jerusalem to start gaining support for rebuilding the wall, despite the opposition. _____ organized the people into families and assigned them specific sections of the walls and gates to rebuild. In verse 8 we see a perfume maker as one of the builders. He was probably a great guy, but building walls would not have been his strength. It's clear __________ is working with what he has. Sometimes people claim they can't move forward because they are missing some required thing. If God wants us to do something, he will provide
Joseph-Do you feel God's presence in the midst of discouraging circumstances? He's always at work.
In the midst of _____ doing everything right, his situation goes from bad to worse. However, multiple times we are told that God was with ____. It may not have felt like it to _____, but it was still true. Genesis 39-Potiphar making him a slave but then admiring his work ethic and noticed God was with _____, so P made _____ his personal attendant, which gave _____ a lot of authority over the household. However, P's wife blackmailed him and told her hubby that _____ tried to rape her, when in reality she wanted segz but he was curving her. P was big mad about this so he dumped _____ into the worst of the prisons. However God is still with boys, so ______ ended up becoming the favorite prisoner of the wardens and was placed in charge of everyone and everything in the prison. See God! He'll give you influence where the devil wants you to be oppressed.
Noah-"herald of righteousness". key lesson
In the midst of evil, are you a "herald of righteousness"? It's easy to complain that things are not as they should be, but we should be doing what we can to make things better.
David- patience
Israel is made up of 12 tribes, or clans. _______ was from the clan of Judah and was made king of that clan. The other 11 clans followed Saul's son Ish-bosheth. Ish-bosheth was not God's chosen leader, so ______ was free to oppose him. In this chapter and the ones to follow, _______'s strength increases, he defeats Ish-bosheth and becomes king of all of Israel. God's appointment of ______ as king takes 40 years to complete, but it does happen. _______ remained faithful to God through many difficult times and over a long period of time. How long have you prayed for healing or financial stability? Could you be as patient and obedient as _________ was? Waiting on God is not fun, but well worth the wait! PATIENCE.
Joseph-classic story of jealousy and lack of humility. BE HUMBLE.
Jacob makes his favoritism obvious, and _____ shows some lack of wisdom in how he treats his brothers (boasting about his dreams of his brothers and the moons and stars bowing before him). His actions lead to some extreme sibling rivalry (his brothers even planned to kill him but was convinced to just imprison him). _____ ends up being separated from everyone he has ever known and sold into slavery. (brothers lose track of him and out of desperation to not be caught, they covered the beautiful robe their dad gave _____ in the blood of a goat to trick him to thinking Joseph was killed by an animal.) Joseph has experienced a serious setback; he has gone from being the favorite son in a wealthy household to being a slave. We all experience setbacks. Most are not this big, but some are. Can God be at work in times like these? It takes faith to believe that the best is yet to come.
Joseph-Despite all of your hardships, you must still find time to genuine and present/supportive to others. IS NOT ALWAYS ABOUT YOU!
Joseph is kind to his fellow prisoners and becomes involved in their lives. Despite God proving His presence in Joseph's life by showing Joseph dreams and making them come to pass, he is still in prison and forgotten.
Peter: Jesus' first disciple
Matthew 4 also begins by telling us of Jesus asking ______, sometimes called Simon, to follow him. We learn a little of _____'s background: He was a fisherman and had a brother named Andrew. ________ and Andrew became Jesus' first disciples! ____'s response to Jesus seems to be kind of sudden, but this may not have been the first time _____ met Jesus or heard his teaching. Perhaps he had been considering following Jesus, but this is when he committed. Even if that's the case, it was a step of faith for ______ to leave his job to follow someone who was a great teacher, but had no obvious way of supporting himself or his followers. We are all asked to follow Jesus, but are there things we are unwilling to give up for him? Jesus isn't asking all of us to give up our jobs. He usually expects us to serve him where we are, but we should always be willing to follow when God sends us in a new direction to fish for people.
exodus 2 summary
Moses is born, but since he is Hebrew and Pharoah has mandated all male children to be killed, his mother puts him in a basket in the river to protect him. Pharaoh's daughter finds him because of his apt cry. She raises him as her own. He grows up and one day sees an Egyptian beating a Hebrew man,one of his own, so he kills that Egyptian. Pharaoh finds out about this so Moses flees to Midian to escape his pharaohs wrath. He helps this family of seven daughters and ends up marrying zipporah, one of the daughters, and having a son with her. During this long time the king of Egypt dies and Israelites continue suffering in slavery for many years.
Nehemiah- internal opposition (it be ya own mind/ya own níggas)
The opposition is now internal; the people are fighting amongst themselves. Internal problems are often far worse than those coming from outside. It be your own nxggas/support group. ______ doesn't hesitate to take care of those too. In the next chapter, ______'s leadership, with God's help, completes the wall. Nothing can be allowed to stop the project God wants him(YOU) to complete. What distracts you from doing what God wants? When opposition comes from others, we need God's protection; when opposition comes from within, we need God's correction
Peter's mistake. Sitting under Jesus' teaching even over a period of years does not make any of us immune to mistakes.
We fast forward to Mathew 26. Jesus has taught ____ many things, and _____ has made progress. He also has made a number of mistakes along the way. This chapter tells about one of those mistakes. _____ believes he is totally loyal to Jesus and always will be. Although _____ means well, he is not as strong as he thinks. Jesus tells _____ "you will deny me 3 times." BUT WHAT WAS HIS REASONING FOR DENYING? He was embarrassed? He too would be persecuted? We shouldn't judge _____ too harshly, because he did take some amazing steps of faith along the way! However, even after spending three years in direct contact with Jesus, he is still making mistakes. _____'s weakness can give us hope when we mess up.
David- losing humility & covering it up
_______ not only does something wrong, he makes it worse by covering it up. 2nd Samuel 11: He slept with a married woman, Bathsheba who became pregnant. Her husband Uriah, one of ______'s servants, stayed at his palace and slept with the other soldiers despite ______ getting him drunk so he can sleep with his wife (to make it seem like Uriah impregnated her). After several attempts, _______ instructed Joab to put Uriah in the worst part of the battle so that he can be killed. This worked and Bathsheba mourned her husband's death then later became _____'s wife and gave birth to a son. ______ went from patience and obedience to adultery and murder. None of us is immune to sin. We can never assume we have arrived in a safe place and stop depending on God. REMAIN HUMBLE. Nxggas ain't shxt. But this can very well happen to a woman. I pray that I don't allow my power to get the best of me. That even in freedom, i still exercise obedience.
moses- when you think God made the wrong choice (in choosing you or someone else)
________ thinks God has made the wrong choice in choosing him to lead Israel. He disagrees with God five times in chapters 3 and 4 of Exodus, and God gets tired of it in verse 14. Don't have one of these arguments with God. We tell the God of the universe we know better than he does. Regardless of how qualified or underqualified we may feel, God's plan is always best!
Noah
a man who finds favor with God while living in evil times. God is so angry with the evils of humanity that he decides to destroy everyone and everything
Noah-man of patient endurance
living on a boat for over a year, terrifying rain, boring waits for the water to go down. But at the end of it all, Noah was thankful. Obedience to God involves endurance!!!