Read the familiar words of Mark 12:28-30. What is God‘s absolute priority commandment for you and me, and according to 1 John 3:18, what form should a genuine love for God take?
“We should love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength with actions and in truth.”
Write the last sentence of Isaiah 61:3.
“They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor.”
Read and paraphrase Malachi 3:16-17. Then read Zephaniah 3:14-17.
“God counts among his treasured possessions those who fear, honor, and serve Him.”
Read the[se] four references… and write any insight you gain concerning our representation as an oak, a tree planted by the Lord
Psalm 1:1-4 – “I will live a long, full, rich life, bearing much fruit for the Lord.”
Isaiah 60:21 – “He is the gardener and I am the sapling, my successful growth is through His care.”
Jeremiah 17:7-8 – “His living water makes us thrive as the best, healthiest trees.”
Matthew 12:33 – “Each of us will be recognized as good or bad by our fruit.”
According to Ephesians 3:17, what deeply roots us as plantings of the Lord?
“Christ dwelling in our hearts through faith.”
List a few antonyms (opposites) for the three words reflected by tsedheq.
Honesty: “falsehood, dishonesty, deceptiveness”
Integrity: “untrustworthiness, disreputableness”
Liberation: “captivity, bondage, imprisonment”
Psalm 45:11 could be appropriately spoken of any captive who has been set free. Write this verse.
“‘The King is enthralled by your beauty; honor Him, for He is your Lord.’”
Dearest Rachel –
To be sure, there are some Sundays when, as I go through your answers, there isn’t much to them but the scripture (or the paraphrase) that is being asked for, as opposed to anything coming from your heart and memories as such. Obviously, that’s not to say that such answers aren’t important, but there’s not much there – apart from the handwriting and the purple ink – that could be pointed to and said of it “yes, that’s Rachel’s voice, on paper.”
This feels like one of those weeks. Maybe it was a lack of time; maybe it was that the questions really didn’t offer much leeway for your thoughts and responses to meander. Whatever it was, there’s not much for me to comment upon at the moment, apart from the irony in the insight you gleaned from Psalm 1.
Given my current circumstances, perhaps it’s just as well that I minimize my commentary on your observations. Sometimes, I suppose I need to let the questions and the scriptural responses stand on their own.
I still want to offer my appreciation for material like this that you left behind; I don’t think Daniel (or, hopefully, Megumi, should she exist, I find her and she outlives me) will find nearly as much from me to mull over, but I’m doing what I can to change that. For now, though, honey, keep an eye on me (and them), and wish us all luck. We’re going to need it.
Letters to Rachel 