At the end of each chapter, there are 10 reflection questions. You will be required to respond to 1 reflection question of your choice for each chapter. Post your answer in the comments section below the prompt in the Spaces App. Answers must be at least 2 paragraphs, grammatically correct, and spell-checked. Read the post of one class peer and comment one paragraph on what they said. Due each Friday. Class discussion may be based upon these reflections.
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Why does God desire to use difficult circumstances, troubles, and trials to purify our motives and prepare us for our destinies?
Nothing is so broken as to be unusable by God. Although suffering is alien to His goal for humanity, God uses it now as part of our development as a people. Nothing forces a person to confront their true self like suffering.
Suffering causes our focus to turn inward. To face those parts of ourselves, we might otherwise ignore. God can use suffering then to develop us into better people. The people who can love and enjoy Him forever ❤️ 💙
3. Why does God desire to use difficult circumstances, troubles, and trials to purify our motives and prepare us for our destinies?
I believe that everyone needs to go through trials by fire in order to become purified. As human beings, we are inherently selfish and sinful beings. Going through difficult times is what helps to shape us and to help us have sympathy for others going through similar situations. Also, not just sympathy but to have insight to be able to come alongside others in their struggles and to comfort them with the love that has been given to us by our Savior.
I see it as I'm looking to give everything to God. I am offering everything I have to be burned away in those trials that are not of God and His will for me. The difficult things I have gone through in life are what brought me to know that God is what I need in my life and that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life!
#4 How does trouble and hardship work with the grace of God to prepare us for our future and destiny in Christ?
To answer this question fully, I think we need to revisit a few key places in scripture that help to paint the picture of God's plan for us.
In Genesis 1, God created the Earth, and he created man and women. Everything was good. God made man in His very image to rule over the Earth and to commune with. Being from the very dust of the Earth, there is nothing special about the chemical elements that make up our bodies. It is the very breathe that was breathed into that lifeless shell that God breathed the "breathe of life" that makes us alive. When God removes life from us, at our physical death, we will once again return to dust. This shows that our very life and worth come from God's spirit.
As sin entered the world, by the choice of man, God and man were seperated. Eternal life was not able to be anymore. God gave a choice to obey or not, it is free will that each of us have this very day. This choice God gave to eat or not eat of the tree, is just the first example of many choices we will have to make in our journey of life. Too oftenly we chose wrongly and it causes pain. They reward we receive for chosing to obey and the consequences for choosing to disobey are but an exercise of choice. Living with our consequences allows us to be more careful with choices in the future.
Romans 8:18 Paul tells us the present sufferings that can not compare to the glory that will be revealed in us. Romans 8 tells us that sin has caused all creation to fall. The frustrations, decay, and bondage to death the world will be under, doesn't allow it to fullfill its intended purpose.
As children of God we know the promises that God has given us. We have hope for the future glory with Him. The world will be new one day, and sin is defeated through Jesus blood shed for us. We are to go and serve in the darkness and bring light where we are planted. We are to fight the evil effects of sin in our world by sharing the Gospel with everyone , all nations. Matthew 28:18-20
Our future and reward is to be once again with Christ, ruling together and communing with Him. His destiny plan for us will create many hardships and trials to endure. He will be with us and fill us with His gifts to serve His people and conquere sin. We are to fill the Earth with His glory. We eagerly await His return, to rejoin God in Paradise!
2. Why does the Bible use bridal language, or the picture of marriage, to describe our relationship with Jesus both now and in the age to come?
I think the reason that the Bible uses “bridal language” to describe our relationship with Jesus is that the relationship between a husband and wife is intimate and deliberate. That is to say, people choose to get married, we don’t choose our parents or siblings or neighbors, we can choose how we act in these relationships but the choice to start the relationship is never really deliberately made (except in certain circumstances like estrangement or adoption and the like). While in marriage two people decide to spend the rest of their lives together. Now our relationship with the Father is a little different, we are adopted by Him (Romans 8:15, Galatians 4:5), this also was a deliberate choice God wants us as His children, and as the Spirit within us cries, “Abba! Father!” We want Him. All that to say the way our relationship with God reflects the family was intentional on God’s part. I believe there are a couple of reasons why He did things this way, the first is that these relationships are the exact kind of relationships He wants with us. The second is that we would be unable to comprehend how we are to relate with God if there weren’t reflections of these relationships in the way people relate to each other.
Ephesians 5:22-33 compares how Jesus treats the Church, His Bride, to how husbands and wives should treat each other. Another biblical example of the Church as the Bride and Jesus as the Bridegroom is in Revelation 19:6-9 in which the marriage of the Church and Jesus is announced. This is a beautiful picture of what is to come and I am eagerly awaiting that day. Did you ever notice that the Church is normally called the Bride of Christ and not the Wife of Christ? For those reasons (the marriage is prophesied and the Church is referred to as Bride) I believe that the Church and Jesus are “engaged” right now. This is the time in which the Church should be preparing herself for the Second Coming. She should keep in mind that among all the other things that will happen when Jesus returns is her marriage. Yay!
#7 How can believers grow in trusting the Lord‘s leader ship in our lives? 
I believe the most important way to grow in the Lord is by reading the Word daily and getting to know Him by abiding in Him through meditation and prayer. This practice of getting to know Him intimately, knowing His mind, will and emotions, His character and heart, renews our minds to conform with His. Then our actions flow from this.
I believe it’s important to ask Holy Spirit to help us see through His eyes and not our dirty broken human lenses of hurt, pain, and judgment, but of His love, grace, and mercy. The fruit of the Spirit is developed over time spent with Him. Our secular human “bad fruit” is dried up and His ripe and good fruit is ripened in us the more time we spend with Him getting to know His heart, mind and intentions. I also believe that when we walk it out in obedience, we are allowing Him to lead.
What areas are you struggling in to trust the Lord‘s leader ship currently?
The process of laying down my life, my wants and desires, and lining them up with His daily is always a struggle and probably will be until I die. The world has a huge pull with its lusts and desires such as personal comfort and freedoms, possessions, food, wealth, vacations, the “American dream” and pleasures of this life. It’s easy to forget to look up and not around. Thank God for His grace!
#3 why does God give us difficult trials and circumstances to purify our motives and prepare for our destiny?
God does everything and will do everything he hast to do because he has a desire to be present with the church to his son, Jesus his pure spotless bride. Jesus works diligently to sanctify and cleanse his bride through Gods word. Internalizing scripture and filling out head makes us feel differently. The lord desires our full obedience and full agreements with thr participation of Gods plan. Refining and transformation by the power of the Holy Spirit, enable us to receive it. Meekness is an attitude of the heart. Meekness is a renewing of thinking in which way we use our strengths. God presence, power, and person become the answer thevout needs. Jesus knows the best way for us to experience, our discomfort, struggles and experiences.
God-given authority doesn't come automatically to anybody. It Hass to be accomplished to a natural maturing process under Jesus's leadership. The Lord is faithful to prepare his people for the trials to come . Paul states, there are two ways to get a hold of knowledge of Jesus, and become like him. The first is by entering into fellowship of his suffering. The second is by experiencing the power of his resurrection(Philippians 3:10). Jesus knows the best way for us to experience the deepest love and rise to the highest level of obedience for us to experience, shaking, discomfort, and struggles. This is how we learn how to successfully overcome obstacles. Psalm 149 says "he will beautifully the humble with salvation, "and in their glory, they are joyful, as their praises, become a weapon of judgment vengeance punishment in the hands of God, to humble the arrogant nations. It's impossible to love God wholeheartedly without help. He helps us by giving is grsce. One way we endure trouble and difficulty is through the fire tribulation in the journey of preparation. eventually, we fully understand his perfect plan. Our love for him will be intense, fiery, and eternal. walking through tribulation will produce humility in those who refuse to be offended by gods leader ship. when we walk through difficulty pain and continue to trust God and his leader ship, we gain godly perspective and learn through meekness. This allows us to value one another, and relate to one another as Jesus values and relates to us. salvation means complete deliverance from the world under the dominion of a demonic system. This demonic system is the enemy of the western culture and promotes a gospel of self, indulging and fleshly desires.
1(john2:15) States "love the world or love the things of the world" for the world is passing away, and the lust of it, but he who does the will of God abides forever.
salvation involves being healed from our brokenness, are false soulidh mindsets that affect the way we live before God, and how we relate to him. Jeremiah went through persecution after he crying out to God for healing work in his body. He went through a painful process and he endured painful persecution, but he chose this and wanted to submit to God's leader ship as painful and costly he knew it might be. God takes us through maturing processes and obedience. Hebrews states we must believe in two things. We must believe that he who comes from God, is a the rewarder of those who diligently seek him.
(1Peter 1:4-5)Peter said our inheritance will be an "inheritance, incorruptible and undefiled, and that does not fade away reserved in heaven, for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation, ready to be revealed for the last time"
Afflictions work for us, not against us according to Paul, and that they prepare us to receive our rewards through afflictions. God builds faith, and it enables us to stand the coming test and trials our face will not be genuine until we've endured these light afflictions as we keep our eyes on the future reward, we will be empowered to dance steady in obedience and tenderness, even while many are swept by the troubles of the end times.
God prepares us for the returning of Jesus, so Jesus will demonstrate what righteous leader ship looks like he will lead the earth in perfection. Jesus in the Saints, in the most high labor to rebuild, restore, renew all broken places we will get to partner with Jesus to heal the land. It will be the churches efforts to go disciple all the nations only Jesus will be able to complete the great commission before presenting the kingdom back to his father Jesus will disciple and sectors in society, follow his plan and live giving the sermon on the mount. God is love and puts us through suffering and trials for our own benefit. It's promotes growth perseverance and character. Trials and suffering also create spiritual maturity. Going through trials, suffering, obedience test and warefare build up confidence or wisdom for the next trial. We clearly see in the spirit realm. Trials and warefare, and obedience can reward us and prepare us . The spirituality move us to the "next level". Out eternity is not is this world, it's in heaven and we are being prepared for what's to come.