Firm Foundation with Bryan Hudson
2017-08
Episodes
Sunday Aug 20, 2017
My God is a Big God!
Sunday Aug 20, 2017
Sunday Aug 20, 2017
My God is a Big God
Psalm 145:5, "I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty, And on Your wondrous works."
In life, we have a tendency to see everything through the light of our experience. That’s not necessarily a bad thing but it is always something is limiting to our perspective.
One of the main challenges life is how circumstances and especially trouble work against our minds, outlook and faith. Everything around you does not encourage you. Having encouragement and faith are essential.
On a regular basis, you should expose yourself to realities that expand your mind and your faith. This is part of the appeal that our society has for celebrities in big leagues sports. All of these people seem bigger than us and so we feel inspired by them. People can are certainly a source of inspiration, but we should reach much higher to God himself and His creation.
Our natural lives and circumstances can force small thinking when we need to be thinking bigger.
God is a big God and we are a big people with him. We don’t think small or accept small, simplistic statements on matters of big consequence.
Proverbs 1:22, How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? For scorners delight in their scorning, And fools hate knowledge.
David put in mind on big things. That’s how he got through difficult situations
David said: Psalm 145:5, "I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty, And on Your wondrous works."
Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Psalm 8 O Lord, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth, Who have set Your glory above the heavens! 2 Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have ordained strength, Because of Your enemies, That You may silence the enemy and the avenger. 3 When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained, 4 What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him? 5 For You have made him a little ower than the angels, And You have crowned him with glory and honor. 6 You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, 7 All sheep and oxen Even the beasts of the field, 8 The birds of the air, And the fish of the sea That pass through the paths of the seas. 9 O Lord, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth!
Some Ways to Expand Your Thinking
Read an entire book (A Good one!)
Take a walk and pay attention to nature
Do something you have not done before)
Think about what God has brought you through
Reflect on the birth of a child
Reflect on how God has kept you in times of difficulty
Pray and worship God for an extended time
What can you think of?
Isaiah 54;1-6 (MSG)
“Sing, barren woman, who has never had a baby.
Fill the air with song, you who’ve never experienced childbirth!
You’re ending up with far more children
than all those childbearing women.” God says so!
“Clear lots of ground for your tents!
Make your tents large. Spread out! Think big!
Use plenty of rope,
drive the tent pegs deep.
You’re going to need lots of elbow room
for your growing family.
You’re going to take over whole nations;
you’re going to resettle abandoned cities.
Don’t be afraid—you’re not going to be embarrassed.
Don’t hold back—you’re not going to come up short.
You’ll forget all about the humiliations of your youth,
and the indignities of being a widow will fade from memory.
For your Maker is your bridegroom,
his name, God-of-the-Angel-Armies!
Your Redeemer is The Holy of Israel,
known as God of the whole earth.
Sunday Aug 13, 2017
Trailblazers, Not Just Travelers
Sunday Aug 13, 2017
Sunday Aug 13, 2017
Trailblazers, Not Just Travelersby Bryan Hudson
Psalm 84:5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in You, Whose heart is set on pilgrimage. 6 As they pass through the Valley of Baca [tears], They make it a spring; The rain also covers it with pools. 7 They go from strength to strength; Each one appears before God in Zion
This is a very encouraging text. David is providing a framework for handling and overcoming adversity. This is something that David understood very well both from the perspective of attacks he endured from his enemies, as well as suffering from consequences of his own bad decisions and actions.
David approaching everything from the perspective of a worshipper and a victor, not just as a victim. He looked to the Lord for help.
5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in You,God is your source. Your strength is in Him as your source, not in your resources.
5 Whose heart is set on pilgrimage.A pilgrim is someone moving on a specific mission for God. We can use the word “trailblazer.” A traveller may only be someone moving for pleasure. In context, the jewish people were often on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem to celebrate days of feats or “appointed times” in the presence of the Lord.
I. The Feast of PASSOVER (Leviticus 23:5)II. The feast of UNLEAVENED BREAD (Leviticus 23:6)III. The feast of FIRST FRUITS (Leviticus 23:10,11)IV. The feast of PENTECOST (Leviticus 23:17)V. The feast of TRUMPETS (Leviticus 23:24)VI. The feast of ATONEMENT (Leviticus 23:27)VII. The feast of TABERNACLES (Leviticus 23:34)
6 As they pass through the Valley of Baca [tears]
The journey was sometimes difficult because the of the desert environment and hardships such as drought along the way. This is the point at which travelers become “unhappy”, lose their will to continue, and drop off. A traveler is all about having a good time. A pilgrim or trailblazer is all about purpose and God’s purposes in particular.
This “Valley of Baca” is oftentimes a “Valley of tears” because of the anguish and hardship.
6 They make it a spring;Some translations render this verse, “They make a well or wells.” The idea is that they didn’t just suffer through it. The did something about it. They dug wells or made cisterns to collect rain water and heavy dew. You might think, “how could that help them if they were in need of water?” Here is where the trailblazer part comes in: They did not make the well for themselves. They made for others who would follow them!
A lot of us pilgrims don’t get the opportunity to benefit from their own labors. A true trailblazer is building paths and opportunities for those who follow. This is what people in the generation of Dr. Martin Luther King did, and people in every generation have done. This is what I do.
One commentator wrote: “This trouble they willingly undertook, rather than to neglect the opportunity of going up to Jerusalem at their solemn times. And possibly they did this, not only for themselves, but for the benefit of other travellers who came after them; whereby they showed both their piety and charity.”
6 The rain also covers it with pools.God (Our Source) fills the wells and cisterns with water to create a resources for those who follow.
7 They go from strength to strength; Each one appears before God in ZionThis is the highest hope of every pilgrim and trailblazer: That those who follow will experience strength for their journey, and become a trailblazer for others; “Strength to strength”
These are things that mere travelers cannot do. A traveler is focused on more on himself than on others.
The prophetic words of Isaiah 61 describe the mission of the ultimate Pilgrim and Trailblazer, Our Lord Jesus Christ. One a day when He was in the synagogue, he stood up to read and he was given the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He found this place and read the following:
1 “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, Because the Lord has anointed MeTo preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn,3 To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified
Jesus blazed the trail of our salvation, blessing, and purpose! He brought Good News:
Gold tidings to the poor: You don’t have to be poor anymore!Heal the brokenheartedLiberty to captivesOpening of the the prisonYear of Jubilee, release from debtConsole those who mournBeauty from ashes: Something good from nothingOil of joy for heavinessTrees of righteousness: Planting of the Lord
Wednesday Aug 09, 2017
"The Attitude of a Victor" by Patricia Hudson
Wednesday Aug 09, 2017
Wednesday Aug 09, 2017
"The Attitude of a Victor" by Patricia Hudson
1 Corinthians 15:57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.