Without God
Dear Boys and Girls,
When you awoke this morning, did you bow your knees and thank the Lord for another day? The Lord gives us so much. Do you ever consider this? God is so good. Have you ever felt that? Everything we have is from Him. I do not mean only our clothes and food, our homes, our families, our schools, and our churches. Those things alone are so great and undeserved. Think back for a moment. What did you do this past week?
Did you ride the bus safely to school every day? It was God who kept you safe. Did you play with your classmates? It was God who gave you those friends. Did you learn new things? God gave you a good teacher and a capable mind. Did you eat a tasty supper every evening? God gave you a healthy body so that you are able to enjoy the food and a kind mother who prepared it for you. Did you run around in the backyard or read a book? God gave you strong legs. God gave you eyes to see the words. Remember, some children sit in wheelchairs or lie in their beds, and others are blind. Did you perhaps spend a day indoors because it was raining or sleeting so heavily, and were you happy when it was dry again the following day? The Lord gave the water for the plants and the sun to cheer the earth again.
Did you celebrate New Year’s Day? God gave us a new year to begin and continue. Did you go to church? When you sat there and the minister began to preach or the elder read a sermon, it was God who sent that message to you. I hope you listened. In one week, you probably heard the Bible read many times—at every meal, at the beginning and closing of every school day, and before you went to sleep. Remember that there are children who do not have a Bible— possibly, they are not allowed to own one, or they are too poor to have one, or their parents have never taught them from one, or they have never heard of one.
Perhaps I could entirely All The Banner of Truth with questions and suggestions, and each time, our answer would be that it was given by the Lord. Really, I think I would never finish. When we stop to think about these things, we can see that God is so good. This great God should be served and obeyed. Each day should begin with a seeking for His mercy and His keeping.
One day some time ago, my family and I were eating lunch outside on our deck. The sky was blue and the sun was shining. We saw an airplane, so high that it was just a tiny silver triangle in the vast cloudless space above us. As it traveled, it left a long thin trail behind. I am sure you have all seen this— it looked like two straight tracks of white cloudy smoke. As we watched, another plane, slightly higher, came into view. It was coming from the opposite direction. Slowly but surely, the two paths crossed, and the trails of both planes left a huge X in the sky. Immediately, another plane appeared, and we watched with interest as this one tracked its way steadily across the X and, with its smoky trail, added another path up high in the sky, creating a star-like design. My daughter stared up at the tracks and declared, “They X-ed out the sky!”
A thought came to me then. Yes, those airplanes had drawn a huge X across the sky, but what has the whole world done? Think about it. When you pass car after car on the highway on Sunday, most of the people in those cars are not going to church as you are. Many of those people have spent the week busy with work and fun, never giving God a thought. Perhaps they have visited places where God never comes—movie theaters and sports arenas— and they have never once opened a Bible or prayed. On the day we saw the airplanes, many people had been openly mocking with God, making jokes about the end of the world. How awful. The world “crosses out” all thoughts of God.
However, it is not only those people who are without God. By nature, we also live like there is no God, passing our time day after day without Him. Every day, we say by our thoughts, words, and actions that we do not need Him. There are Ten Commandments which God has given us, yet we do not obey a single one. We were created to serve and love Him; yet, we live to please ourselves. Do we think about God, or do we also “cross out” thoughts of Him? Surely you hear about Him in school and at church and you bow your knees by your bed morning and evening, but did you know that the Bible tells us, “Seek His face continually” (1 Chronicles 16:11)? If you spend your life never considering how good God is to you and never seeking Him at all—worse yet, if you never NEED Him in all things for body and soul—then you are content without God. You came into the world this way and continue on this way. It is described in the Bible as, “God is not in all his thoughts” (Psalm 10:4).
Something needs to change. The only way it can ever be well with us is if God gives us a new heart which does need Him, which does see something of our own evil and His goodness, and which cries to Him for all things. God is able to do that. Ask Him to show you that you are without God in this world. Think of those airplane tracks that X-ed out the sky. Do you, each day, turn away from God who is so good? Ask the Lord, who is able when it is impossible for us, to seek a wicked, wandering, unfeeling, and dead heart. May the Lord become too strong for each one of us, making an unwilling heart a seeking heart.
Read Luke 16:19-31. Find the phrases below in this passage, and fill in the missing words. Then find these words in the word search at top of next column.
1. “... Father Abraham, have _____ on me ...”
2. “... the dogs came and _____ his sores.”
3. “... carried by the _____ into Abraham’s bosom ...”
4. “...and likewise _____ evil things: but now he is comforted ...”
5. “...I am tormented in this ______.”
6. “... and _____ sumptuously every day ...”
7. “... desiring to be fed with the _____ which fell ...”
8. “... between us and you there is a great _____ fixed ...”
9. “... clothed in _____ and fine linen ...”
10. “... in hell he lift up his eyes, being in _____ ...”
11. “... _____ that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things ...”
12. “... which was laid at his gate, full of _____ ...”
13. Do you know what the rich man’s sin was?
It was not that he was so rich, no, but he only cared about his riches and himself. He did not even care about the poor beggar at his gate. The rich man’s sin was that he was CONTENT to be WITHOUT GOD. He was happy that way. That is why he went to hell. Are you content too? Read Luke 17:17&18.
How many lepers were content with being healed and forgot the Lord Jesus, the Healer? _____ How many were thankful and needed to go back to Jesus? _____
14. Read Genesis 25:31-34. Which one of the two brothers was content without God, not needing His blessing? _____
15. Five of the sentences in #1-12 speak about Lazarus while the remaining ones speak about the rich man. Which numbers speak of Lazarus?
__ __ __ __ __ Circle all the words below which have these numbers in front of them. When you have done so, read those words in order and you will see why Jacob, in Genesis 33, was very content. Jacob could tell Esau that he had everything he needed because God was with him. He needed no more.
4. BECAUSE 1. KEEP 3. GOD 5. THAT 2. HATH 10. THOU 8. HAST 7. DEALT 1. UNTO 11. THYSELF 12. GRACIOUSLY 5. RECEIVE 6. MY 2. WITH 10. PRESENT 4. ME 8. TAKE 12. AND 3. BECAUSE 7. I 4. HAVE 1. BLESSING 2. ENOUGH
____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____, ____ ____ ____ ____ ____.
For the Older Children
Read Acts 10:31-33, Acts 12:12&13, and Acts 16:13&14. Each passage speaks of a gathering of people who were NOT content without God. They were gathered so they could hear of Him and from Him. Which three people who were part of those gatherings are mentioned in these passages?
16. ____________________
17. ____________________
18. ____________________
In the box below, cross off all the letters which spell these names. The letters which remain spell the answers to #19 and #30.
L C F R Y E O D S I T H U S O R A A D N G R A I P E P L A I U S
19. In Acts 36:34, who was a man who was content to remain without God even while under the preaching? _________
20. In Acts 36:37&38, who was the man who was somewhat touched by the preaching and yet also remained too content to believe Paul? _________
21. Find seven words in 1 Timothy which speak of being content.
B _______ g _______ w _______ c _______ i _______ g _______ g _______.
33. Unscramble these words to form a psalter verse:
“Defend ___________________________________
(me, from, pride, men, of, the)
__________________________________
(is, portion, whose, below)
___________________________________
(life’s, with, who, satisfied, treasures)
___________________________________
(know, no, portion, better)
___________________________________
(joys, wealth, they, and, content, earth’s, with)
___________________________________”
(them, all, must, when, leave, is, spent, life)
For the Younger Children
In Acts 16:33-36, we read how Paul and Silas were put in prison for speaking about the Lord Jesus. Put the sentences below in the correct order in which they happened.
a) “And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed ...”
b) “... and sang praises unto God ...”
c) “... and made their feet fast in the stocks.”
d) “... and immediately all the doors were opened ...”
e) “... and the prisoners heard them.”
f) “... they cast them into prison ...”
g) “And suddenly there was a great earthquake ...”
23. ______________________________________
24. What did Paul and Silas do in prison that showed they were happy? Circle the correct answer:
a) they slept; b) they cried; c) they talked; d) they sang; e) they were very quiet
25. Which one of the two sentences below is true? Circle the correct one.
a) Paul and Silas were content and happy and not afraid, even in prison, because they were WITH God and God was WITH them.
b) Paul and Silas were not afraid in prison because they were together and they knew God would deliver them.
Please send your answers to:
Aunt LenaBeth
63 Roosevelt Ave., Butler, NJ 07405
Fax: (973) 838-0863
E-mail: aemol@live.com
Answer to last month’s “Birthday” quiz are:
1. inn Luke 3:7
2. thereof Psalm 103:15&16
3. it Luke 3:36
4. satisfy Psalm 91:16
5. evil Psalm 34:11-13
6. virgin Matthew 1:33 (Isaiah 7:14)
7. engraver Exodus 38:10&11a
8. north Jeremiah 31:8
9. away Psalm 90:10
10. voice Genesis 16:3
11. add Proverbs 3:1&3
12. pain Psalm 48:6
13. or John 9:1&3
14. unto Genesis 3:16
15. rejoice Luke 1:14
16. “It is even a vapour” (James 4:14b). It means life passes and fades as quickly as mist before the sun.
17. “And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died” (Genesis 5:37).
18. Pharaoh
19. Herod
20. Herod
21. Isaac, Abraham, Sarah
22. Jacob, Esau, Isaac, Rebekah
23. Joseph, Jacob, Rachel
24. Samuel, Hannah
25. John (the Baptist), Elisabeth
Answers to previous quizzes were received from:
Cassy Behm
Andrew Blom
Ashleigh Blom
Adah Both (2)
Jaden Both (2)
Luke Both (2)
Meagan Both (2)
Corne De Boer
Emily De Vry
Julia De Vry
Seth De Vry
Adrienne Engelsma (2)
Dezirea Erickson
Andrew Fluit
Erin GeBuys
Kimberly GeBuys
Seth GeBuys
Elana Goudzwaard
Joshua Greendyk
Rebecca Greendyk
Shelly Greendyk
Stefan Greendyk
Leah Grisnich
Jack Groenendyk
Jacoba Groenendyk
John Groenendyk
Nelina Groenendyk
Paulina Groeneveld
Elizabeth Groeneweg
Henriette Heger (2)
Johnathon Heger
Marilyn Heger
Keanna Hoogendoorn (2)
Keaton Hoogendoorn (2)
Daniel Hup
Jason Hup
Jonathon Hup
Rhonda Hup
Bethany Kanis
Madeleine Kanis
Hannah Kegel
Sarah Keurhorst (3)
Trina Keurhorst (3)
Aleshia Kieboom
Joelle Kieboom
Kaelynn Kieboom
Ryanne Kieboom
Jacquelyn Kievit
Carrie Kievit
Ben Knibbe
Caylea Knibbe
Courtney Knibbe
Heidi Knibbe
Lindsey Knibbe
Olivia Knibbe
Carlye Krul
Gemma Krul
Shelly-Ann Moens
Derek Mol
Luke Mol
Rachel Mol
Shelley Mol
Shantal Oudshoorn
Nathan Pelleboer
Maaike Scholten
Hannah Slingerland
Jared Slingerland
Emilee Ten
Elshof Meghann
Ten Elshof
Melanie Ten
Elshof Seth
Ten Elshof
Arianna Timmer
Bryce Timmer
Skye Timmer
Cody Vand der Vlist
Joanna Van der Vlist
Kendrik Van der Vlist
Rylan Van der Vlist
Sarah Van der Vlist
Andrew Van Harten
Mary Van Harten
Matthew Van Harten
Bensen Van Wingerden
Dustin Van Wingerden
Esther Van Wingerden
Matthew Van Wingerden
Sarah Van Wingerden
Emily Van Zee
Emily Van’t Zelfde
Jacob Van’t Zelfde
Jonathan Van’t Zelfde
Kelsey Van’t Zelfde
Abigail Vanden Berg
Elisabeth Vanden Berg
Joseph Vanden Berg
Seth Vanden Berg
Robyn Vanden Hoek
Diane Vandenberg
Donna Vandenberg
Jody Vandenberg
Jonathan Vandenberg
Julia Vandenberg
Leon Vandenberg
Meghan Vogelaar
Zachary Vogelaar
Ivan Vrieselaar
Jordan Vrieselaar
Alice Ymker
Annie Ymker (2)
Dean Ymker
Edward Ymker (2)
Jacob Ymker (2)
Joshua Ymker
Sara Ymker (2)
Tara Ymker
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Bekijk de hele uitgave van zondag 1 januari 2012
The Banner of Truth | 24 Pagina's
Bekijk de hele uitgave van zondag 1 januari 2012
The Banner of Truth | 24 Pagina's