About This Blog

This blog was a continuation from the blog which I shared with my best friend, Tommy Ng at Life on Wings. It achieved our devotions done since Oct 05.

Doing devotion together had given both of us strength to go on even when at times we didn't feel like doing it.
Unity was strength then. Sadly, when we stopped doing devotion together, we became quite irregular in our own personal devotion time too. :(

Love Covers All Wrongs

12 Hate starts quarrels,
but love covers every wrong.

13 Wisdom is found on the lips of a person who has understanding,
but a rod is for the back of one without sense.

14 Those who are wise store up knowledge,
but the mouth of a stubborn fool invites ruin.
Prov 10:12-14 (GW)

30 The fruit of a righteous person is a tree of life,
and a winner of souls is wise.
Prov 11:30 (GW)

Reflection of Bee:

What someone did recently made me feel very sad and hurt. I just wondered how a person could be so insensitive and mean, especially from someone whom I have cared for before. I felt very angry and felt the urge to show others what kind of person he is. I know I have to leave vengeance to God and not take things int my own hands, yet I still felt the unrest in my heart and it almost turned into hatred.... I didn't feel such strong feeling before.

However, in my Bible reading today (belated one), I came across Proverbs 10:12:

"Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers over all wrongs."

This verse came to me on time (though it was behind my reading schedule). Well God's timing is always perfect, though ours aren't. This verse reminded me that I should let love reigns in my heart and not take revenge. I should give life to someone instead of bringing death by my actions even if I have been hurt. I need God's help to keep my peace, keep my cool, and don't react. I need to let God's love covers the wrongs that were done to me.


Dear Lord,
You are always on time, though I may be behind time. Thank You for speaking to my heart today. I want to surrender all the hurts I felt to You. May Your love reigns an let it covers all wrongs that were done to me. I need You to hold me tight again. Please don't let me slip away.
In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Free Bible Study Softwares

I have been doing my devotions through the online Our Daily Bread since 26 Oct 05. It served me very well as it is convenient for me to blog my thoughts and do cross referencing. Thank God for this ministry.

However, the occasional inability to access Our Daily Bread or no Internet connection during my long holidays (therefore have to miss my devotions), caused me to think of alternatives to doing my devotion offline. Of course you may say I can just read my bible. True, but I like to take notes of my reading and do cross referencing while I read. So doing it on my PC is still a better way for me.

Through my Internet search, I found a very useful bible study and devotional software, Bible Explorer. Not only it is a free download, where I can do my bible study and devotion offline, but it also has many wonderful features I like, e.g.

• commentaries, complete
  
• cross references, automated when clicked
  
• automatic bible links, when you type the scripture references
  
• notepad, for taking notes
• devotional passages, morning and evening
  
• calender, for automated personal bible reading schedule,
• Christian forum, discussions
  
• prayer requests and testimonies
• many more

Other useful free bible study software downloads I found are the e-sword and the Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible. With these, I need not depend on the Internet connection to do my bible studies or devotions anymore. Thank God for these wonderful softwares! :)

I have been using the above tools and found them to be very good. I highly recommend you to use them, especially the Bible Explorer, if you like to be disciplined in studying the word of God systematically at your desired scheduled pace.

I may publish my bible study notes and devotional thoughts one day when the time is right.

Cheers!

Tongues Control

Proverbs 15:1-4

1 A gentle answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.

2 The tongue of the wise commends knowledge,
but the mouth of the fool gushes folly.

3 The eyes of the LORD are everywhere,
keeping watch on the wicked and the good.

4 The tongue that brings healing is a tree of life,
but a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.

My thoughts for today...

Controlling our speech isn’t easy, because the real problem is not our words but our hearts. Behind the insults, we are likely to find in ourselves an insecurity, fear, or guilt that tempts us to protect ourselves at the expense of another."
—Mart De Haan

Right, we speak what we think or feel in our hearts. When we are hurt we tend to speak hurtful words in return, words which we may regret after we cooled down. But very often, words that had been said can't be recoiled.

Tonight's devotion reminds us to "gentle" with our reply, to speak wisely and to heal with our words instead of destroy. I may be guilty of speaking too fast when I felt hurt though I have no intention to hurt in return. I tend to share how I feel or the actions I would take too fast. I need to learn to keep my mouth shut unless what I say is going to bring "healing"like a tree of life.

The antidote for our untamed tongues is love. "Love is patient, love is kind." (1 Corinthians 13:4). When we love we will be kind with what we say.


Dear Lord,
Forgive me for times when I spoke too quickly or acted too rashly when I was hurt. I pray for forgiveness and healing for myself and those whom I might have hurt. May Your love restores us and make us whole again. Let me love just like You do.
In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

A Deep Dependence

2 Corinthians 3:1-11

4Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. 5Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. 6He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

My thoughts for today...

It is difficult to be a Christian sometimes as the world we live in has its own systems that are contradictory to the system of God. There may be a pressure to compromise to be accepted by others. Yet God wants Christians be different, to be set apart, to be sanctified. We can do this on our own, we need God to help us to live a lives that are different, yet more productive.

Dear Lord,
Thank You that my competency comes from you. Thank You for giving me strength to be different, yet able to perform well in my work. Keep me holy and pure in You Lord.
In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.