Week 12/ Day 1:
Hebrews 11:34
“…quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.”
Journaling Assignment #1
Write the verse and read it several times. Pray and ask the Lord to reveal to you His heart in this verse. Don’t forget to practice the first 34 verses together several times today.
Journaling Assignment #2
Spend today defining the following words, not by looking them up, simply based on what comes to your mind. There is no right or wrong. This is just a jumping off point. Take the time to reflect; be honest and open with yourself about your thoughts and feelings. We have nothing to do in the space except grow and learn! I will even provide my journal notes each day so that you can see the mess that the Lord is working with here!!
quenched/escaped
weaknesses/strengths
routed
Kinsee’s Stream of Consciousness Journal Notes
Quenched/Escaped: Each of these words make me feel a sense of great relief and yet also brings about some anxiety around what must have just happened! I am a runner. Every morning I get up, go down to my basement and take about an hour to run out whatever I need to on my treadmill before I face a new day. At the end of that run there is only one place where I am headed. I go straight upstairs, directly to the fridge and grab a cold can of Diet Coke. I know, I am a terrible person and all you nutritionists can judge me as you see fit. It doesn’t matter because nothing quenches my thirst like that beautiful, fizzy, ice cold diet coke. At that point, my day can officially begin! To escape something insinuates that there was a dire situation of some sort. In the movies you can always tell when an escape is about to happen by the musical score and the angles of the camera. The tension builds and you can never quite see around the corner. In real life, situations that require escape feel much the same way. Whether I am trying to escape from a dark and abandoned parking lot or a conversation with a particularly unsafe acquaintance, it feels as if my heart is providing the sound track and that I can’t quite see what might be coming at me; I feel at risk and out of control. I simply know that when I need the escaping or when I need to quench something, it is no longer optional. It is a dire situation.
Weaknesses/Strengths: This is often a topic of conversation at a job interview or career counseling session. What are your strengths and weaknesses? Another way to ask this is when do you feel in or out of your comfort zone? We are then encouraged to look for fields of occupation and opportunities that capitalize on our strengths while setting goals to improve on the areas in our lives where we may be weaker. I sometimes wonder if hard work can overcome any weakness? Can someone with a natural strength, who does not use it, get passed by another who may dedicate themselves to improvement and success? I am not entirely confident of the answer to this question. We are always told that we can do anything we set our minds to. However, I am fairly certain that no amount of effort would have ever landed me on an Olympic speed skating team, or in the Sydney Opera House. There are areas in which I have aptitude and others where I do not. IQ is another example of a strength that we do not earn, however a weak work ethic can render any strength useless. Overall, spending time determining the strengths that we have and honestly assessing if we are being good stewards of those giftings is a valid use of our mental energy.
Routed: I had to look this word up as it is not one that we use very much in the current vernacular. It is defined “to send forward by a specific route, to schedule the order of”. Sounds to me like it means that you have control over a situation and a person or group of people! That being the case, I have often times routed my children, family, extended family and even friends! With great confidence I have routed them successfully in many circumstances and routed us all right off a cliff in many others! To determine the course for anyone is to take on quite a responsibility. It is to say, in essence, I know what is best for you and I am going to insist that you follow my desires. I have also had the experience of being routed! There are times when this feels wonderful and safe. When someone that we trust is calling the shots, we are able to rest in their leadership. On the other hand, when we are being controlled and manipulated by an unhealthy person, being routed can be frustrating and exhausting.
Journaling Assignment #3
Jot down anything from this verse that jumps out at you. Include other scriptures that come to mind. Cross references add great insight into each verse. It is powerful to keep notes of what the Holy Spirit draws out of the verse in your heart and also to study Scripture in light of Scripture.
Week 12/Day 2:
Hebrews 11:34
“… quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who
became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.”
Let’s Dig into Some Truth
During Daniel’s ministry, he repeatedly refused to bow his knee to any idol. This verse is, once again, referencing, the faithful few who, while in exile in Babylon, remained consistent in their devotion to the One True God. Shadrach, Meschach and Abednego would not worship the image of God as demanded by the king. As a result that were thrown into a fiery furnace to be burned to death. Instead, there was a fourth man seen walking around the furnace with them. This was an angel of God who quenched the fury of the flame and preserved the lives of these three faithful men. The king responded by praising the God of Israel. Throughout the Old Testament, the Lord allowed many of His chosen ones to escape the edge of the sword. Examples can be found in the lives of David (1 Samuel 17), Elijah (2 Kings 1), Elisha (2 Kings 6:31) and Jeremiah (Jeremiah 26). God is able to protect the earthly bodies of those whom He chooses; no power on earth can defeat the power of our almighty God.
Reality Check #1: In reading these stories, I am amazed and in awe at the power of God. These men seemingly skated through extreme situations! The reality is that Daniel, David, Elijah, Elisha and Jeremiah were all in very dire situations. Situations that they never would have chosen. We have the gift of reading their stories with the “happy ending” already spelled out. They did not. They lived through the terror and the risk. They trusted God and were willing to be devoured by the flames and slayed by the sword. My relationship with God has to mean more to me than the comfort of my current circumstances. This means that I have to feel the heat of the fire, I have to feel the blade of the sword. I have to accept that whether or not God chooses to save me is irrelevant to His faithfulness. I have to live my life dancing in the fire and confident of His plan. “You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised” (Hebrews 10:36). I can’t do that unless the Holy Spirit empowers me and sustains me when I begin to feel the heat.
God is clear and consistent throughout the Bible that He loves to take the weaknesses of His and turn them into strengths. One of my favorite examples of this is in the story of Hannah, found in 1 Samuel 1. Hannah was a faithful Jewish woman who could not have children. She prayed to the Lord, more than that, she poured out her tears, heart and soul to the Lord. She laid her desire and her inability to have children before Him. In His faithfulness, God answered Hannah’s prayer and gave her Samuel. Samuel grew to be a mighty priest and prophet for the Israelites. He was a great man of prayer and a tremendous source of strength for God’s people. God not only turned Hannah’s weaknesses into her strengths, He multiplies that strength into a legacy that is still resounding in our hearts today.
Reality Check #2: Strengths and weaknesses, left in the hands of our feeble human efforts, will never amount to anything eternal. Even considering the greatest athletes, talents, leaders of our time, very few will be remembered thousands of years from now. And yet, the heroes of the Bible, whom God equipped, are still going strong in our hearts and minds! I have no strength that is worth anything without God’s blessing and I have no weakness that cannot be made powerful in God’s hands. Nothing is impossible with God.Nothing. The plans and purposes that He has for each of us will be fulfilled when we lay our lives at His feet. “…being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6). He is all strength and His strength is eternal. He will equip us for His ultimate victory in this life and in the life to come.
As the Israelites conquered the Promised Land, God empowered them and they routed foreign armies. These were armies larger, more powerful, more equipped and intimidating in every way. God consistently used non-conventional methods of warfare and left no doubt that it was His power that was allowing His chosen people to be successful. When the Israelites were not obedient to the plans of God, they lost battles and lives. It was a time of clear direction and God demanded their faith and loyalty.
Reality Check #3: I like to plan, a lot. Calendars make me happy; I keep at least 2 at all times. I know, you are feeling sorry for my family! Calendars and planning somehow make me feel in control of life. The reality is that we are not, nor were we ever intended to be in control of our lives. The Lord is the one who is routing our lives. Here is the tricky part… while He has the whole plan from the beginning of time until the end, He does not choose to reveal our future to us. It is a lot like using the GPS when it only shows you the next upcoming turns. I really would like to see all the turns and directions to my final destination but it only gives me one at a time. When I try to scroll down and see what is coming up, I have taken my eyes off the road and risk swerving into the other land and causing an accident. I can only handle one turn at a time. While we cannot know our entire route, we can know the One who is routing us, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105). As we spend time in God’s Word, we can trust His hand with our hearts even if we cannot see it with our eyes.
Journaling Assignment #4
Take time to record the “reality checks” that the Lord provided to you as you were digging into His truth today.
Week 12/ Day 3:
Hebrews 11:35
“Women received back their dead, raised to life again. There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection.”
Journaling Assignment #1
Write the verse and read it several times. Pray and ask the Lord to reveal to you His heart in this verse. Don’t forget to practice the first 35 verses together several times today.
Journaling Assignment #2
Spend today considering the following concept, not by looking anything up, simply based on what comes to your mind. There is no right or wrong. This is just a jumping off point. Take the time to reflect; be honest and open with yourself about your thoughts and feelings. We have nothing to do in the space except grow and learn! I will even provide my journal notes each day so that you can see the mess that the Lord is working with here!!
Received back their dead vs. gaining an even better resurrection
Kinsee’s Stream of Consciousness Journal Notes
Received back their dead vs. gaining an even better resurrection: Receiving back our dead is not a miracle that many have experienced. At times we hear of near death experiences or a miraculous act restoring a life by CPR or dedicated paramedics. In these instances, God’s hand is obviously involved. He chooses to allow people more time on earth. He is the One who breathes life into our lungs. I have not heard of anyone in my lifetime who was declared dead for several hours or even days and then was raised to life again. This did happen in Biblical times by the prophets, the apostles and Jesus Himself. I do not know why the Lord does not choose to move in that way currently, but I know that He can and will if that is how He chooses to be known to us. Gaining an even better resurrection is an even more foreign concept to me. I understand that on the other side of life we will have a new body, a body without pain and weakness. A body that does not break or get sick. That does sound amazing! The stories in the Bible speak of bodies that were resurrected back to their earthly state; we dream of bodies that will be resurrected in a heavenly state.
Journaling Assignment #3
Jot down anything from this verse that jumps out at you. Include other scriptures that come to mind. Cross references add great insight into each verse. It is powerful to keep notes of what the Holy Spirit draws out of the verse in your heart and also to study Scripture in light of Scripture
Week 12/Day 4:
Hebrews 11:35
“Women received back their dead, raised to life again. There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection.”
Let’s Dig into Some Truth
There are several stories of people receiving back their dead thoughout the Bible. I will list these references so that you can go and read these amazing occurrences if you would like to do so:
Elijah raised the son of a widow (1 Kings 17)
Elisha raised the Shunamite woman’s son (2 Kings 4)
Jesus raise the widow of Nain’s son (Luke 7)
Jesus raised the daughter of Jarius (Luke 8)
Jesus raised Lazarus (John 11)
Peter raised Tabitha(Acts 9)
Paul raised Eutychus(Acts 20)
There is also a great deal of scripture dealing with our resurrected bodies. One of the most clear is found in Matthew 27:52-53 at the moment when Jesus dies on the cross, “…and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the Holy City and appeared to many people”. We also read of resurrected bodies of believers in Daniel 12:2, John 5:28-29, Revelation 20:12-13, Acts 17:31 and 1 Corinthians 15:52. These are not the only references on this topic, but enough to get you started if you choose to study resurrection on a deeper level. It is not an easy concept to understand but what we can grasp is that God will eventually grace each believer with a heavenly, perfect body with which to spend eternity with Him.
Reality Check #1: God is able to raise people from the dead. This is perhaps the most important reality check that we have, it is the basis of our faith. Jesus was crucified and buried. He was completely dead for three days and then God raised Him from the dead. It is because of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus that we do not have to fear death. Hell has no power to hold us because it had no power to hold Jesus. Jesus Himself explains this in Luke 24:46, “This is what is written, ‘The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in His name to all nations beginning with Jerusalem.” We have been set free for the power of death because of the resurrection of Jesus!
Reality Check #2: The confidence of eternal life with Jesus does not completely eliminate the pain of losing someone we love. Last year, I battled melanoma. I knew that if the Lord chose not to heal my body on this side of life then I was headed to eternity with Him. I will be honest, that was not what I wanted. I pleaded with the Lord to allow me more time on earth to be with my family, my friends, my boys. I was not done raising them, I was not ready to leave them, I did not want them to hurt because of me. The Lord did use the hands of a wonderful surgeon to heal my body and He gave me the desire of my heart to stay here longer. What if He hadn’t? Whether God chooses to heal us on this side of life or with Him in eternity, He is still good. Admittedly, that is easier to say as I sit here cancer free. However, it is absolute truth regardless of our emotions and feelings. He is good and has perfect wisdom. The grief that we feel when we are separated by death from those that we love grieves the heart of God as well. It is the reality of a sinful and fallen world. The hope is that the separation is temporary for those who have salvation in Jesus. This is the promise found in 1 Corinthians 15:21-22, “For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.”
Reality Check #3: The victory of God is secure and He can be trusted. In the moments that God does not act as we wish that He would, when He does not choose to move the mountain, to heal the disease or to prolong the life this can be very hard to see and believe. God knows and understands our struggle. These are the times that we have to sit back and reflect on His past faithfulness and remember that He does not change. If He was faithful then, He will be faithful again. Remembering that “God’s ways are not our ways” allows us to release our need to dictate the outcome of even the most dire situations, trusting that His providential grace is always in play. In light of eternity, our time on earth is but a breath, regardless of the years that we count. And our eternity with God and those whom we love is secure, through Jesus forever. I cannot take away the pain, but I can offer this precious and unchanging truth, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18).
Journaling Assignment #4
Take time to record the “reality checks” that the Lord provided to you as you were digging into
His truth today.
Week 12/ Day 5:
Hebrews 11:36
“Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment.”
Journaling Assignment #1
Write the verse and read it several times. Pray and ask the Lord to reveal to you His heart in this verse. Don’t forget to practice the first 36 verses together several times today.
Journaling Assignment #2
Spend today defining the following words, not by looking them up, simply based on what comes to your mind. There is no right or wrong. This is just a jumping off point. Take the time to reflect; be honest and open with yourself about your thoughts and feelings. We have nothing to do in the space except grow and learn! I will even provide my journal notes each day so that you can see the mess that the Lord is working with here!!
jeers
chains
imprisonment
Kinsee’s Stream of Consciousness Journal Notes
Jeers: When I was in 5th grade, my world got rocked when a new girl came into our school. She had moved many times and had adapted a strategy of bullying someone as a means to make herself feel more comfortable in her new environment. Having been in school with the same kids since first grade and never having anything but fun at school, I was caught off guard when she chose me as the object of her attacks. I was even more surprised when my long time friends followed her lead and began to tease and ridicule me. It was a very difficult year filled with lonely lunches and dreaded playground hours. The cruel ring leader would criticize my clothes, athletic ability, anything she could think of and the jeers that she made cut right to my ten year old heart. I am so grateful that the Lord used that year to cement my security in my family. I knew that if I could just make it to dismissal, my mom would be waiting in carpool, ready to pick up the pieces and put me back together again. It was a character building year for sure, but one that still makes me cringe to relive. Side note: The above mentioned tyrant did not move onto 6th grade with us, not sure what ever happened to her actually. I may be one of the only people in history to have truly loved middle school. Being freed from the anxiety of her jeers made the next 3 years a dream!
Chains: Every now and then we see a police car pulled over to the side of the road. Generally, this simply means that someone is getting a speeding ticket, bummer! Occasionally, we will see a suspect leaning on the side of the car or being helped into the backseat of the squad car with handcuffs on their wrists. This evokes an entirely different set of emotions. We begin to wonder what they did and what will happen next. We are witnessing someone’s freedom being taken from them. They are no longer free to determine the course of their day; the choices that they have made up until this point have eliminated that privilege. They are not even free to use their own hands! Chains quickly take away freedom in every sense of the word.
Imprisonment: Following our scene from the side of the road would lead us to prison. When someone has lost their freedom, they are likely to be placed behind bars. At this point, everything is dictated for you; meals, showers, recreation, future plans and destiny. In essence the choices that you have made have indicated that you are not capable of making responsible choices. Even more than that, past behavior indicates that you are actually a threat to society. Putting someone in prison eliminates their ability to have an impact on the world in which they live.
Journaling Assignment #3
Jot down anything from this verse that jumps out at you. Include other scriptures that come to mind. Cross references add great insight into each verse. It is powerful to keep notes of what the Holy Spirit draws out of the verse in your heart and also to study Scripture in light of Scripture
Week 12/Day 6:
Hebrews 11:36
“Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment.”
Let’s Dig into Some Truth
There are examples throughout the Bible of God’s anointed ones facing jeers. One such example is found in the story of Jeremiah, the prophet to Judah. Jeremiah prophesied and spoke God’s Word to His people during the decline and fall of the Southern Kingdom (Judah). Jeremiah stayed in Judah and continued to preach even after Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had taken all but the poorest Israelites from the Promised Land. This faithful man of God remained in Jerusalem for 11 more years with the poor and destitute, and he only went to Egypt when they did. The last we hear of Jeremiah he is still preaching the Word of God, undeterred by the jeers and persecution. In his own words Jeremiah explains, “so the word of the Lord has brought me insult and reproach all day long. But if I say, ‘I will not mention his word or speak of his name,’ his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot” (Jeremiah 20:8-9).
Reality Check #1: We do not have any real concept of the jeers and persecution that was faced by the early church or that is faced by Christians around the world today. We have the immeasurable gift of freedom of religion. We do not have to risk our lives, homes or families in order to proclaim our belief in God. I also do not want to downplay the jeers that some of you have experienced for standing up for your faith; in the workplace, in your neighborhood and schools. I admire those who are willing to be excluded and judged because of their convictions. However, the jeers that the Lord has laid on my heart today are those the come from our greatest enemy, the devil. We cannot underestimate the strength and relentless nature of the jeers that the evil one throws into our hearts and minds. He whispers in my ear, “you are not good enough, pretty enough, smart enough,” “you can’t do that, write that, speak that,” “you are going to fail them, let them down, make them angry.” The jeers are constant, like the beat of my heart. And, like the beat of my heart, they become a subconscious part of my being and I begin to believe his lies and live them out. I am not strong enough to combat the jeers of my enemy, but my God is! The next time you catch yourself leaning into the jeers of Satan, stop and ask God to bind him and to fight the battle for you. I promise He will be faithful to do that. Next, ask God to show you how He sees you, how He created you. “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well” (Psalm 139:13-14). You can replace the lies of Satan with the Truth of God. You can live in that freedom!
In Acts 16, we read the amazing story of Paul and Silas in a prison in Philippi. They were chains at their wrists and at their feet. The part of these two men that the jailers could not chain was their spirits. “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once the prison doors flew open and everyone’s chains came loose. The jailer woke up and when he saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and he was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, ‘Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” (Acts 16:25-28). The circumstance that Paul was in (prison) and his personal struggle (chains) did not keep him from praising God!
Reality Check #2: The chains in our lives are often times wrapped around our hearts. I, thankfully, have never had the experience of handcuffs or shackles around my ankles. I have, however lived with chains wrapped tightly around my heart. These chains, while they cannot be seen, hold us hostage from the calling of freedom that God has placed on each of our lives. What are the chains around your heart? Control? Fear? Addiction? Insecurity? There is an endless list. Satan would love for us to live our lives chained to the brokenness inside. God has a better plan, freedom! “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1). Christ died to set you free. You can go to Him, every second of every day and He will free you from whatever is holding you captive from His love.
Reality Check #3: Sometimes our circumstances are so painful, difficult and make no sense to us. You might be living in a prison because of the sin in your own life. You might be living in a prison because of the sin in someone else’s life. You might be living in a prison because of the fact that we live in a fallen world. There are prisons of abuse, illness, addiction, manipulation, job loss, grief, loneliness, and so many others. Our circumstances can feel like a prison but they do not define us or the ultimate direction of our lives. God does. The even better news… He never leaves us. You are not alone in your prison; God is with you and is loving you even as you peer through the bars of the pain. I cannot explain away difficult situations, but I can promise that God can work in them. He can strengthen us, just as He did Paul, to worship Him while we wait for Him to break down the walls of our current circumstances. Call out to God. He will be with you and He will set you free from the prison of your circumstances in His time and in His perfect way. “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (2 Corinthians 3:17).
Journaling Assignment #4
Take time to record the “reality checks” that the Lord provided to you as you were digging into His truth today.
Week 11/Day 7:
Reflection Day
1. Reflect on your notes from this week.
2. Practice the verses that you have memorized so far.
-Write them.
-Recite them to a friend or family member to check for accuracy.
-Use them as a prayer to the Lord.
3. Read Hebrews 11 in its entirety a couple of times.
4. Pray for endurance throughout this journey.
5. Remember…
“He who has called you is faithful and He will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:23).
“Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve God’s will, His good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:2).
Scripture Memory Strategies
1. Copy the Scripture several times. Then try to write it by memory.
2. Set an alarm on your phone for 4 times each day. Each time you hear the alarm, practice your scripture.
3. Showers! The shower is a perfect time to recite your scripture.
4. Traffic. As you sit, instead of getting frustrated, use the time to practice.
5. Accountability. Find a friend working on scripture memory as well. Recite your scripture to each other one day a week.
6. What else? List some ideas that might work for you!
