Q5. Response to the Birth of Christ

[Theresa VJ]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

I would like to say all of the above at all times. All are certainly appropriate. I think the key is to truly see God in the fullness of His awesome nature, and to be consistently, literally humbled. I pray that I will keep myself kneeled...even face to the ground low...as befitting the true definition of worship. When I perceive a small glimpse of God's amazing radiance...His mercy and compassion, combined equally with His abhorence of sin as seen in His Holness that by nature and definition also requires retribution and justice...I must be humbled and awed. That leads to praises and the deeds and changed character that begin to reflect back to God His glory. The more I see God, and focus on God, the more I will take joy, render praise, combine curiosity in total face to the ground amazement, and be driven to meditate on God's wonders and be compelled to share all I have been shown and discovered. My truthful answer is that I reflect some, but not nearly as much as I desire. The key, I think, to seeing these responses in my life is to be so enthralled with the beauty of God as reflected in the face of Jesus, that I consistently repent of my sin, praise Him for His mighty deeds, and reflect back to Him in my life the wonders of His glory that is given to me for light and life.

[Barbara A. Lee]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

All of these are in my life. I love to learn about Jesus Christ. I have been taking Bible Study courses for about 4 yrs. and I really love the ones on this site.

[Foofee's Nana]

Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation.

Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life?

Telling others.....thoughtful meditation, and great joy.

In what manner do they show themselves?

I want to share with others my love of Christ...I enjoy and try to stay faithful in study....to really try to know the Word.

If some are missing, why?

The things that are missing are because of me.....not Christ. I want to be amazed......to be always curious and full of praise. I guess it is a daily walk and growth.

What can you do to recover these responses?

I can lean more fully on Him and His word.....trust His love for me.

[pjg]

Thankfully all are experienced. Although the awareness of shortcomings are very real to me, I do meditate on Him, share my faith, look for Him in the things I do, praise Him for what He has done, and enjoy fresh amazement as His Word and presence open to me. I am blessed.

My wife and I like to take time with people we meet in day to day activity, and find genuine opportunity to share Jesus there. I have neighbors that don't know Christ and have been stirred in this season to look for ways to reach for them again. They will be getting a Christmas gift of a Christian book and cookies. I am praying for a breakthrough in their souls. Reading the Word in different translations facilitates meditation on key thoughts. I have enjoyed thinking about the shepherds being the lowest common denominator of their culture, and being the ones God chose to testify to much of Bethlehem of Jesus.

This is a good time in my personal life and church life to enter into fresh seeking of the Lord, so I will walk closer with Him. I find I still get muted by partaking of too much television or internet trivia or just plain selfishness.

My wife and I will be doing some fasting and prayer to begin the new year, in hope that it will yield a closer walk with Jesus and more fruit for His kingdom. In the words of the old chorus "I want more of Jesus, more and more and more - I want more of Jesus than I ever had before. I want more of His great love so rich and full and free. I want more of Jesus so I'll give Him more of me."

[Ramon]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

Answer:

1. Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life?

ALL OF THEM..THANK YOU JESUS.

2. In what manner do they show themselves?

I AM STILL IN GREAT HUNGER AND THIRST FOR HIS WORD..[/size]

[Highohfaith]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

ALL are present in my life!And I thank and attribute God and God alone for this, I pray consistently for God to keep my priorities in the right place! I feel IN MY HEART all of the above ideals are present in my walk with the Lord!

[rosegarden]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

5. Joy, praise and amazement - In Him choosing me to experience Him, His presence and all His wonders. I think of that song "Who Ami I". Thank you Lord for coming into my life and giving me the faith to believe. Thoughtful meditation on His Word and getting to know Him more by spending time in His presence. I need to work more on telling others and doing these Bible studies gets me more focused on God and gets me excited about Him that I will be more filled with Him and telling others will just flow from me. That is my prayer.

[Trusting God]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life?

The Good News of Jesus Christ brings great joy, praise, amazement, and encouraged me to tell others about why Jesus came into the world to save people from their sins. I love to meditate on God

[PegiA]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

Great joy, praise, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation are the responses to the Good News that are present in my life. I did not list curiosity, because when I am curious as to anything regarding God, etc., I go to my Bible and prayer. Great joy: whenever I read anything new in the Bible or hear anything new about Jesus, I have great joy. When I hear of another person accepting Jesus into their life, etc., I have great joy. PRAISE: Whenever I have an answer to prayer, I praise and praise. AMAZEMENT: I am always amazed on a daily basis as to what Jesus does and can do in my life and in other's lives. TELLING OTHERS: Either by open witness or how I live my daily life, I love to tell others about my Jesus. THOUGHTFUL MEDITATION: I do love to meditate on my life and after I read my Bible.

[thepearlturtle]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

I would have to say that all of them are present in my life. Great joy is present when I think of how my life used to be so filled with despair before I knew the Lord Jesus! Praise fills my heart when I think of the wonderful love and unconditional acceptance He showers upon me, and for the amazing Truth that He has forgiven my sins past, present, and future! Curiosity fills me when I awaken each day to see what the Lord is going to do in my life today! And amazement that the Lord has so totally transformed my life from one in which I lived in abject terror of my own shadow to one in which I cannot wait to awaken to each new day now fills my life. I am excited about telling others about the Love of the Lord, and what He can do for them if they will only accept Him into their hearts! And thoughtful meditation is one response to the Good News, to the Word of God, that inspires me to go deeper and deeper in my relationship with Christ Jesus every day!

[Platoz]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20)

Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful

meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present

in yourlife?

Praise, curiosity, telling others, thoughtful meditation

In what manner do they show themselves?

Thoughtful meditation and praise go hand in hand with me. When I am

reflecting and thinking on God, creation, his ways as I know and

understand it, I immediately go to praise.

I have always been a curious person, but with God I often have to think

that a certain question will have to wait until I get to heaven to find out the

answer. I try to connect the reason for a certain thing to happen in 2000

BC was the same reason it happened in 1000 BC. But, that is not always

the answer.

So many people profess knowing Jesus in this day that telling others is not

so much about trying to telling them about Jesus but is more about getting

them to recognize that their actions portray their belief in Jesus. Preaching

to myself.

If some are missing, why?

Great joy and amazement are missing and I am not so sure that I do not

have these. These two are relative to me. I have a bad habit of comparing

myself to others. I wonder sometimes why I am not spiritually moved and

gushing out words of love for Jesus when the person next to me is doing

such. God knows my heart and I try to remember that also when there is a

tendency to pass judgement on the actions of someone else.

What can you do to recover these responses?

Keep a steady, regular prayer life and study God's word. I know that

sounds like a canned statement but oh, how true it is. As said many times

“If anyone is moving it is us, not God”.

[Commissioned]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

My response to the Good News and present are all of the above, at one time or another. This is seen in the way I live life. If some are missing then I must endeavor to walk faithfully to be led by the Spirit so that any deficiency might be corrected and once more live in praise to God.

[Guitar Jim]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life?

Since I became a Christian thirty years ago each of the above responses have been present in my life. The excitement of conversion of course manifested in great joy, praise, and curiosity as to the future. Telling others followed and in the course of time thoughtful meditation resulting from studying the Bible. Over time though circumstances and events have altered the courseof my life and these days I share my faith in a low key way. Thoughtful meditation is still a daily activity but most of the other things are of the past. Thirty years is a long time to maintain the joy one feels at the point of salvation.

In what manner do they show themselves?

Well, they don't really. I'm a quiet living guy, keeping to myself not necessarily by choice but by circumstances. One example I can give in my present situation is this: I've started attending a Blues jam that's held every Thursday night. The pub has some pretty hard men drinking there and being an ex-competitive lifter who still works out heavy and hard myself, I was noticed and talked about for my build and my many tattoos. But the one thing that caused the most consternation among the locals was my quiet nature. Any other man who looked as hard as I seem to be would be trying to establish himself as someone not to be messed with but I go in quietly and try not to upset anyone. As a result a few of the guys have taken to me, hopefully in a good way, and I hope I don't mess it up when the time comes to talk about what makes me tick.

If some are missing, why?

I think just the way my life has turned out. Less than optimum health, divorced, broke, all while believing and trusting in God to care for me . . . all this has jaded me and I really don't have much joy and amazement etc left in my life.

What can you do to recover these responses?

I really don't have a clue. All the praying I've done asking God to revive my faith over the years seems to have been in vain. I have nothing more to say on this.

[Lorraine Overstreet]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20)

Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation.

Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life?

In what manner do they show themselves?

If some are missing, why?

What can you do to recover these responses?

a) Praise, telling others of how the HE saved me in my car wreck,

amazement and joy at His presence in my life.

Hunger - I want to learn all I can, walk with the Lord, and do daily

studies and reading. I always give Him credit for me even being alive

today. He has helped me all my life, even if I did not know it at the time,

but above all, curiosity, wanting to learn more and more of His way.

c) I believe it would be talking to people about God, how He saves

you and what to do to invite God into your life.

d) Practice talking to strangers, I have never been an outgoing person

in life, and praying for God to let me know what to say to people I do

talk with about my Lord and savior.

[tgandy]

I am taking this course as I daily write what I am thankful for before Thanksgiving.  Maybe I am more attune to these things but I can honestly say that I experience these emotions daily.  I tell others and witness, I am amazed at the blessings and I am most humbled at what He does for me.  When I am down and it happens to all of us I read the Bible or my Upper Room or just sit outside on my deck in my rocking chair and watch the leaves fall from the trees.  God is Good, all the time.

[haar]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?
 

Present in my life in response to the Good News are: Praise, curiosity, telling others.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[humblejon]

When I recall the moment when God's grace became a reality in my life, it brings feelings of great joy and heart-felt praise. I often ponder upon this and I am still amazed at how much God loves us and how much He did to make us realize that. I wish I was bolder in telling others instead of just relaying on my actions. (Sometimes they are not so reliable). People need to made known and hear the Good News.

[WinstonY]

All of the above except telling others. This is a great and terrible lack in my character . 8 neef to addtess the problem!

[ising]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

There are times when i feel all of these emotions, great joy, curiosity, amazement, thoughtful meditation and telling others. However I must admit I am not a stand on the street corner type of telling others In most situations. I am much better at one on one. Although at times I've been in a position to give my testimony to a congregation-that is easier because most of the folks are believers

.I can recover any of these responses by studying God's word each day, meditating on God's word and incorporating God's word into my daily walk. I have found that people will seek me out to ask questions about my faith privately and i am able to share what I believe.

[Old Jerry]

I think that all the above is present in my life when I hear the good news. They show themselves in the things that I do.

[Rosesam]

Q5. (Luke 2:17-20) Great joy, praise, curiosity, amazement, telling others, thoughtful meditation. Which of these responses to the Good News are present in your life? In what manner do they show themselves? If some are missing, why? What can you do to recover these responses?

Recently a song that was playing in my mind was “May I never lose the wonder, the wonder of Your….” Sadly I don’t know the remainder of the song. When I tell others, these responses of Good News is present. But the problem is in telling others. May be I need to be more tuned to the voice of the Holy Spirit when He leads me to others to tell of His wonders.

[Katy]

Q5. I do have all these responses at different times in my life but these days it is more a gentle peace and trusting in my Lord and Saviour. I wrestle constantly with trying to speak to people about Jesus, to bring Him naturally and spontaneously into conversation and praying I will evoke a curiosity or a question which would show some interest in Jesus. I do think the pressures of life can at times rob me of my calmness and attempts at trying to stay focused on God.