Hearing God’s Voice from His Word
James 4:8 says, “Come near to God and he will come near to you.”
Take a moment and turn your attention to God. Tell God that you desire to trust and obey Him. Ask God to speak to you from His word.
Psalm of the Day
Psalm 142:1-2 I cry aloud to the Lord; I plead aloud to the Lord for mercy.
2 I pour out my complaint before him; I reveal my trouble to him.
Read the entire Psalm
You can cry out to the Lord. If you have trouble or a complaint. You can bring it to the Lord. He hears. He cares. If you do not have pressing trouble, consider the awe-inspiring reality that the Holy, Triune God – would hear your plea for mercy. Praise Him that he is so vast that he can see and hear you.
Scripture Reading
1 Peter 3:1-7 – New International Version
3 Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, 2 when they see the purity and reverence of your lives. 3 Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. 4 Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. 5 For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands, 6 like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.
7 Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.
Having God’s Ear through Prayer
- Express thanks to God.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal sin to you.
- Confess your sin to Him and receive forgiveness.
(1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sin He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins.”) - Bring your personal requests to God.
(Psalm 62:8 “Pour out your heart before God”) - Pray for someone in your small group.
- Join with others from River and pray for students training in Salina with OneLink. Ask God to use the training to prepare students. Ask God to prepare the hearts of those that the students will be meeting this summer.
Living as God’s People by applying the Bible
Scripture Reflection from the Sermon
There is nothing like the Trinity in any man-made religion. It is not something humans would invent, but it is who God actually is. Human language is not fully adequate to describe God, but the words we use are important, and they do correspond to the truth. God is three persons and one being. Or put another way, there is one God who is three persons. This is not a contradiction, but it is a mystery. It is mystery because we cannot get our minds around it. We cannot get our minds around it because we are talking about God, so we should not be surprised that he is much bigger than our capacity to understand him. The fact that we cannot get our minds around him doesn’t mean that the information we can hold in our minds isn’t true. We can know truth about gravity and rely on it every day, but no one fully understands it. God the Father, Son, and Spirit exist in an eternal relationship of love. There is no difference in majesty, value, or power in them. There is a difference in roles and personality. Again, this is a mystery, but it is one with application. As followers of Christ, we are all joint heirs with Christ of eternal life. As members of Christ’s body, the church, we have different roles and life callings. We must not look around and wish we had another’s role or calling. We must take what God has given us and be found faithful. Be grateful! You have been included in the eternal loving relationship of God the Father, Son, and Spirit.
Application: It may seem like an impossible task, but spend a few minutes pondering the Trinity. If it causes “smoke” to come from your brain, even that will help you remember how great our God is.