Alabaster Heart

1 Peter 1:3-8

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,

2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.  

Purpose for Trials in our Life

The proof of our faith

The testing of our devotion

The purifying of our life

To show Himself strong in our life

Provide Christ-like character in our life

To equip us to help others through the same difficulty

We need Wisdom in our Trials

*To discern the proper response to our trials

We can rejoice in trials when we are convinced

That God is in control of the time and intensity of my trial

That God has a specific purpose for allowing it

That it is designed to meet a specific need in my life

That God is developing a Christ-like character in us

A Friend is

A treasure.

One who loves you as you are.

One who sees not only who you are, but who you can become.

One who is there to catch you when you fall.

One with whom you can share your everyday experiences.

One who accepts your worst, but helps you become your best.

Someone who understands your past, believes in your future and accepts you today just the way you are.

Someone who comes in when the whole world has gone out.

Wrong Kind of Friends

A gossip - Proverbs 20:19

Hot-tempered - Proverbs 22:24-25

Discontent - Proverbs 24:21-22

Self-indulgent - Proverbs 28:7

Immoral - Proverbs 29:3

Foolish - Proverbs 13:20

How to Build Friendships

Spend time together.

Talk to each other.

Be willing to cry or laugh together.

Share accomplishments.

Share trials.

Be thankful.

Be thoughtful.

Be tolerant.

Touch.

Be transparent.

Be truthful.

Behavior that Destroys Friendships

Selfishness

Manipulation

Possessiveness

Jealousy

Criticism

An explosive temper

Covetousness

Disloyalty

Dishonesty

Busyness

How to Rescue a Friendship

Admit fault.

Do not be defensive.

During our Sunday service, I have listed my points on the verse our pastor shared with us.

Mark 8:34 (NIV) The Way of the Cross

34 Then He called the crowd to Him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow Me.

1. Deny Self

Submitting our will to God, may His will be done

It is not about us anymore it’s about Christ who live in us.

2. Take Up Cross

We are willing to put Jesus first even if we have to endure shame and suffering. We are willing to give up our life for Christ.

It is a daily and continual journey until the rest of our days.

3. Follow Jesus

It is surrendering full control of our will to the Lord.

God desires more than just sacrifice, more than just commitment from us. He wants us to surrender to Him. He knows what is best for us and His ways are better than our ways. He has planned our life carefully.

What does it mean to be a follower of Jesus? 

When I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior at that time I was still not sure what that meant. I have been slowly discovering who Christ is in my life. I know that I am still uncovering the role of Jesus in my life. The journey of discovering Him has been challenging and there are times when I have questioned Him endlessly. I have wrestled with God on what are His plans for me and why has my life not gotten any better.

Up until this point, He has been patient with me. He has answered some of my questions and I have come to an understanding. The moment I had accepted Jesus into my life, my life is not mine anymore. I have understood that I have to surrender fully into His will. The reasons for my struggles was that I was resisting God and was forcing my ways into my life. I felt confusion. It was a painful process I would say. I was not listening to Him and I was rejecting what He was trying to tell me.

It’s not easy surrendering everything to God. All my life I never knew I had to do that. I thought that I have planned my life so carefully and then it all came crashing down on me. The things I worked hard for were all gone. The love of my life left me. I had nothing. I lost everything in one day. It’s very difficult to accept. I remember watching this service where the lady said: God destroys our plans because He knows those plans will destroy us.

I may not fully know the reason why God had taken everything away from me. But when I started to lean on Him. I started to trust Him and let Him take care of me I realized that I am not alone after all. God has provided for me, has led me to where I am now today. He has been patient and gentle in dealing with my tantrums. He has heard my cries and pleas. He has always listened to me. When He grants the little prayers I ask of Him the joy I feel in my heart is so immense. I could never understand the joy and the peace I have in my heart if not for Him. I understood now.

When you surrender everything to God, He promises to take care of your needs. He tells you to not be afraid. He tells you to just put your trust in Him and have faith in Him. He is there to comfort me, to encourage me and to strengthen me. He always held my hand. He is always for you, with you and in you.

Love

Jn 13:34-35 - A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.

Ro 12:9-10 - Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.

1 Pe 1:22 - Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart.

1 Jn 4:7 - Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.

1 Jn 4:11-12 - Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us.

1 Jn 4:21 - And He has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister

Joy

Dt 12:7 - There, in the presence of the LORD your God, you and your families shall eat and shall rejoice in everything you have put your hand to, because the LORD your God has blessed you.

Dt 12:12 - And there rejoice before the LORD your God - you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites from your towns who have no allotment or inheritance of their own.

Dt 12:18 - Instead, you are to eat them in the presence of the LORD your God at the place the LORD your God will choose - you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites from your towns - and you are to rejoice before the LORD your God in everything you put your hand to.

Ps 64:10 - The righteous will rejoice in the LORD and take refuge in Him; all the upright in the heart will glory in Him.

Isa 25:9 - In that day they will say, “Surely this is our God; we trusted in Him and He saved us. This is the LORD, we trusted in Him; let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.

Php 4:4 - Rejoice in the LORD always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

1 Pe 1:8 - Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy.

Peace

Isa 26:3 - You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in You.

Ro 5:1 - Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ

Ro 12:18 - If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone

Ro 14:17 - For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit

Eph 2:14-17 - For He Himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by settings aside in His flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in Himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which He put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near.

Forbearance

Eph 4:2 - Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love

Col 1:11 - being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience

Heb 6:12 - We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.

Jas 5:7-8 - Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.

Jas 5:10 - Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the the of the Lord.

Kindness

1 Co 13:4 - Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

Eph 4:32 - Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Col 3:12 - Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

Goodness

Ro 15:14 - I myself am convinced, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with knowledge and competent to instruct one another.

Eph 5:9 - for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth

2 Th 1:11 - With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of His calling, and that by His power He may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith.

Faithfulness

Lk 16:10-12 - Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?

2 Th 1:4 - Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.

2 Ti 4:7 - I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

Titus 2:10 - and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.

Gentleness

Isa 66:2 - Has not My hand made all these things, and do they cam into being? declares the LORD. These are the ones I look on with favor: those who are humble and contrite in spirit, and who tremble at my word.

Mt 5:5 - Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

Eph 4:2 - Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love

Col 3:12 - Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 

Self-Control

Pr 16:32 - Better a patient person than a warrior, one with self-control than one who takes a city

Titus 1:8 - Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined.

Titus 2:12 - It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.

1 Pe 5:8-9 - Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

Love

Ex 34:6 - And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness

Jn 3:16 - For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life

Ro 5:8 - But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us

1 Jn 4:8,16 - You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the One who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.

Joy

Ps 104:31 - May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in His works

Isa 62:5 - As a young man marries a young woman, so will your Builder marry you; as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you

Lk 15: 7,10 - I tell you that in the same way there will be rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.

Peace

Isa 9:6-7 - For to us a child is born, to us a son is given and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over His kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.

Eze 34:25 - I will make a covenant of peace with them and rid the land of savage beasts so that they may live in the wilderness and sleep in the forests in safety.

Jn 14:27 - Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

Heb 13:20 - Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep

Forbearance

Ro 9:22 - What if God, although choosing to show His wrath and make His power known, bore with great patience the objects of His wrath- prepared for destruction?

1 Ti 1:16 - But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display His immense patience as an example for those who would believe in Him and receive eternal life.

1 Pe 3:20 - to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water.

2 Pe 3:9,15 - The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. Instead He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with wisdom that God gave him.

Kindness

Ro 2:4 - Or do you show contempt for the riches of His kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?

Ro 11:22 - Consider therefor the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in His kindness. Otherwise, you will also be cut off.

Eph 2:7 - in order that in the coming ages He might show the incomparable riches of His grace, expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

Titus 3:4 - But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared

Goodness

Ne 9:25,35 - They captured fortified cities and fertile land; they took possession of houses filled with all kinds of good things, wells already dug, vineyards, olive groves and fruit trees in abundance. They ate to the full and were well-nourished; they reveled in Your great goodness.

Ps 31:19 - How abundant are the good things that You have stored up for those who fear You, that You bestow in the sight of all, on those who take refuge in You

Mk 10:18 - Why do you call Me good? Jesus answered. No one is good - except God alone.

Faithfulness

Ps 33:4 - For the Word of the LORD is right and true; He is faithful in all He does

1 Co 1:9 - God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord

1 Cor 10:13 - No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

Heb 10:23 - Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.

1 Jn 1:9 - If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Gentleness

Zec 9:9 - Rejoice greatly, daughter Zion! Shout, daughter Jerusalem! See your King comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.