Pick 5 verses from your May Bible reading plan, and memories God’s words. Here are my picks from Corinthians
I think you may know which verses I am going to pick. I highlighted them in the previous posts.
1 Corinthians 10:13 Bearable temptation
1 Corinthians 11:23-26 Communion
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 Love
2 Corinthians 9: 6-7 Abundant
David wrote a lot of Psalms during his time of struggles and battles with Saul. Not many people can give praises to the Lord like David did when experience what David was experiencing. Some Psalms David wrote was cursing the enemy and crying for justice. David was being betrayed by his friends and soldiers which could endanger his life. He was scared and worried, but instead of being worried, he cried out to Lord.
很久没有读到这么让人精神为之一振的圣经故事了。读完的时候我在车里握着方向盘高呼 哈利路亚。确切哈利路亚的含义我不确定，但就是充满喜悦的想要献上我对神的敬仰。除了对路得她照顾自己婆家不离不弃的深情表示敬佩之外，我也很欣赏波阿斯说到做到的骑士风格。 Continue reading
2 Samuel应该不是Samuel写的了吧？
帮助扫罗结束自己生命的人前来给大卫通报扫罗和他儿子约拿单的死，然后就被大卫处死了【纳尼！？】。大卫是这样纪念约拿单的：“你对我的爱情奇妙，远超过妇女的爱情。” 【纳尼！？】大卫上了希伯伦做了犹大家的王，而扫罗的儿子做了以色列人的王。两家之间争斗不断，直到大卫家兴起，扫罗家衰败。大卫和很多女子生了很多儿子【纳尼！？】
扫罗家的臣仆押尼珥跑来投奔大卫，却被大卫的臣仆约押刺杀。在这之后，扫罗家的王伊施波设也被刺杀。大卫就作了犹大和大卫家的王，攻打了耶路撒冷，建立王宫，攻打非利士人。后来大卫亲自去欢喜唱歌跳舞，把神的约柜请到了自己的城中，并有意为耶和华建殿。这些都是被神祝福的事，神也与大卫同在。(大卫跳舞，米甲鄙视，所以米甲就不孕不育了？可是米甲最开始被他的父亲改嫁给一个爱她的郎君，现在换做大卫，大卫又有那么多臣妾，她的鄙视也不一定是给耶和华的呀…我不理解) Continue reading
I summarized my version of Samuel, in Chinese, of course.
这是我在我们小组当中讲的故事的草稿 （害羞）：
“Samuel was the last of the Hebrew Judges and the first of the major prophets who began to prophesy inside the Land of Israel. 1Samuel 8:4，以色列长老聚集，找撒母耳要一个王治理他们。这是厌弃耶和华的表现（8:7）。扫罗就是以色列人拣选的第一个王。又健壮又俊美（9:2）。但扫罗不听话。耶和华厌弃扫罗做以色列的王，预定了大卫做王。叫撒母耳去伯利恒把大卫带出来。因为耶和华的灵离开扫罗，他就被恶魔骚扰（从耶和华来，什么意思？！） 大卫刚好擅长弹琴，帮扫罗驱赶困扰他的恶魔，这样就留在了扫罗王的身边。
开始打仗了，从敌军当中出来一个名叫歌利亚的加特人，巨高，巨凶猛，要单挑。很巧的是，送羊咩咩给哥哥吃的大卫也来到了前线，大卫就说：“如果有人击杀这个非利士人，除去以色列人的耻辱，那人会得到怎么的对待呢？这未受割礼的非利士人是谁呢？竟敢向永活的 神的军队骂阵？”他问了好几个人，这个话就传到了扫罗耳边，还主动请缨上战场。先开始扫罗嫌大卫年轻不让大卫上战场，直到大卫对耶和华表忠心，扫罗才同意。帅气的大卫在溪边捡了五块石头就去了。俩人对站着互呛了一下就开打。大卫一个石头就把歌利亚击倒了，因为无法拍照留念作证，大卫就把他的头拿到了耶路撒冷。大卫这般优秀让扫罗很是惧怕。因为妇女们喜欢大卫，耶和华由与大卫同在，而扫罗一不小心又把自己女儿许配给他。最让我不能理解的是。扫罗，要大卫，取一百个非利士人的阳皮。要鼻子不行吗为什么非要阳皮。什么是羊皮啊！”
在小组当中我只需要讲到大卫，现在我要继续总结： Continue reading
2 cor 9:6 Aboundant
6 Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 6 还有，少种的少收，多种的多收。 7 各人要照着心里所决定的捐输，不要为难，不必勉强，因为捐得乐意的人，是神所喜爱的。
和哥林多前书不同的在于，我觉得保罗在这本书里面语言更加的直接。但我还是更喜欢哥林多前书，我觉得严厉的话有时候虽然严厉，却能给人更多启发。我相信每个人在不同的时候读神的话语，感触都不一样。但我同样相信，神是长存不变的神，他的话语永远都是真的。我喜欢沙龙牧师说的那句话，真理是越辩越明的。虽然我相信这个陈述，有时候却没有动力和激情去辩论。这几天在一个聊天群里，这个群不是教会或者团契的群，但每每提到宗教，大家都各抒己见，讨论的十分激烈。我让自己成为一个旁观者。我想观察，其他的弟兄姐妹是怎么来陈述自己对神的观点。这样的讨论多了，我作为一个旁观者，看着都觉得疲惫。因为觉得自己聪明的正确的人，是永远不会去听别人的观点，不会去思考，而急缺的要说服对方。所以圣经上也说了，有耳可听的，有福了。圣经上也说，要是对方不听，你就用衣袖弹走脚上的灰，离开罢了。我还想分享一首歌，叫做 With all I am. 视频在文末。 Translate to English
Chapter 7 talks about marriages and intimate relationships. I am really inspired.
10:13 13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. 13 你们所受的试探，无非是人受得起的；神是信实的，他必不容许你们受试探过于你们承受得起的，而且在受试探的时候，必定给你们开一条出路，使你们能忍受得住。
11:23-26 23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”
23 我当日传交给你们的，原是从主领受的，就是主耶稣被出卖的那一夜，他拿起饼来， 24 祝谢了，就擘开，说：“这是我的身体，为你们擘开的；你们应当这样行，为的是记念我。”25 饭后，照样拿起杯来，说：“这杯是用我的血所立的新约，你们每逢喝的时候，应当这样行，为的是记念我。” 26 你们每逢吃这饼，喝这杯，就是宣扬主的死，直等到他来。
13:4-7 (NIV) 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 4 爱是恒久忍耐，又有恩慈。爱是不嫉妒，不自夸，不张狂；5 不作失礼的事，不求自己的益处，不轻易动怒，不计较人的过犯； 6 不喜欢不义，只喜欢真理。 7 爱是凡事包容，凡事相信，凡事盼望，凡事忍耐。
哥林多书是保罗带着爱的斥责，我在读的时候很有启发，有很多从来没有思考过的问题也挑战了我的观点。哥林多书同时也是保罗提醒世人上帝恩典的诗篇。我特别挑出来的这三段是时常出现在教会教导和日常生活中的经文，叫我们不至于在患难的时候，背弃神的旨意。这段时间我学习最多的就是，顺服。顺服在神的旨意中，因为神，是爱。
WHAT IS LOVE?
“Love never dies a natural death. It dies because we don’t know how to replenish its source. It dies of blindness and errors and betrayals. It dies of illness and wounds; it dies of weariness, of witherings, of tarnishings.” ―Anaïs Nin
Anaïs Nin, whose wisdom on love knew no bounds, in A Literate Passion: Letters of Anaïs Nin & Henry Miller, 1932-1953: What is love but acceptance of the other, whatever he is.
“The best love is the kind that awakens the soul and makes us reach for more, that plants a fire in our hearts and brings peace to our minds. And that’s what you’ve given me. That’s what I’d hoped to give you forever.” ―Nicholas Sparks
“Love is a fire. But whether it is going to warm your hearth or burn down your house, you can never tell.” ―Joan Crawford
“I heard what you said. I’m not the silly romantic you think. I don’t want the heavens or the shooting stars. I don’t want gemstones or gold. I have those things already. I want…a steady hand. A kind soul. I want to fall asleep, and wake, knowing my heart is safe. I want to love, and be loved.” ―Shana Abe
“Anyone who loves in the expectation of being loved in return is wasting their time.” ―Paulo Coelho
“Love is a decision, it is a judgment, it is a promise. If love were only a feeling, there would be no basis for the promise to love each other forever. A feeling comes and it may go. How can I judge that it will stay forever, when my act does not involve judgment and decision.” ―Erich Fromm
“Letting go doesn’t mean that you don’t care about someone anymore. It’s just realizing that the only person you really have control over is yourself.” ―Deborah Reber
Katharine Hepburn in Me : Stories of My Life: Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get — only with what you are expecting to give — which is everything.
James Baldwin in The Price of the Ticket: Collected Non-fiction, 1948-1985: Love does not begin and end the way we seem to think it does. Love is a battle, love is a war; love is a growing up.
What is love to you?
*Joy Life* 