“Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” (Psalm 126:2 ESV)

There is a time for laughter

“A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.” (Eccles. 3:4 ESV) 

“…Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.” (Luke 6:21 ESV)

God will fill your mouth with laughter

“He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy.” (Job 8:21 NIV)

 Therefore

“A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.” (Prov. 17:22 NLT)

“A glad heart makes a cheerful face, but by sorrow of heart the spirit is crushed.” (Prov. 15:13) 

Quote

“Laughter is the most beautiful and beneficial therapy God ever granted humanity.” - Chuck Swindoll

“Avoiding a fight is a mark of honor; only fools insist on quarreling.” (Prov. 20:3 NLT)

Quit early before a quarrel begins

“The beginning of strife is like letting out water, so quit before the quarrel breaks out.” (Prov. 17:14) 

Do what is honorable

“Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all.” (Rom. 12:17 ESV)

Be silent and let the Lord fight for you 

“The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.” (Exo. 14:14 ESV)

Therefore

“Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. For “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” (1 Peter 3:7-12)

“Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!” (Psalm 150:6 ESV)

Praise Him all people on earth

“Praise the Lord, all people on earth, praise his glory and might. (1 Chron. 16:28)

Praise Him because He is your God 

“Praise him—he is your God, and you have seen with your own eyes the great and astounding things that he has done for you.” (Deut. 10:21)

Praise Him for His free and glorious grace-gift of His dear Son, Jesus!

“Let us praise God for his glorious grace, for the free gift he gave us in his dear Son! (Eph. 1:6)

Praise Him for His steadfast love and faithfulness

“Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!” (Psalm 115:1 ESV)

Praise Him for His gift of peace

“Praise the LORD who has given his people peace, as he promised he would.” (1 Kings 8:56)

Praise Him for being your defender

“The LORD is my strong defender; he is the one who has saved me. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will sing about his greatness.” (Exo.15:2)

Praise Him forever and ever!

“God is wise and powerful! Praise him forever and ever.” (Dan. 2:20)

Therefore

“Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens! Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness! Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp! Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! Praise him with sounding cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals!” (Psalm 150:1-5 ESV)

Quote

“Doth not all nature around me praise God? If I were silent, I should be an exception to the universe. Doth not the thunder praise Him as it rolls like drums in the march of the God of armies? Do not the mountains praise Him when the woods upon their summits wave in adoration? Doth not the lightning write His name in letters of fire? Hath not the whole earth a voice? And shall I, can I, silent be?” - Charles Spurgeon

“There is none like You, O Lord; You are great, and great is Your name in might.” (Jer. 10:6)

The everlasting Creator

“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.” (Isa. 40:28 ESV)

Greatness, power, glory, victory and majesty

“Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Yours is the dominion, O Lord, and You exalt Yourself as head over all.” (1 Cor. 29:11)

The God of gods and Lord of lords

“For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe.” (Deut. 10:17 ESV)

Greatly to be praised 

“For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; He also is to be feared above all gods.” (1 Cor. 16:25)

“For God is the King of all the earth; Sing praises with a skillful psalm.” (Psalm 47:7)

“Cry aloud and shout for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, For great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.” (Isa. 12:6)

Therefore

“I said, “I beseech You, O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who preserves the covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments,” (Neh. 1:5) 

Quote

“If God is the Creator of the entire universe, then it must follow that He is the Lord of the whole universe. No part of the world is outside of His lordship. That means that no part of my life must be outside of His lordship.” - R. C. Sproul

“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.” (Isa. 60:1-3 ESV) 

When you fall… arise!

“Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me.” (Micah 7:8 ESV) 

It is your task… arise!

“Arise, for it is your task, and we are with you; be strong and do it.” (Ezra 10:4 ESV)

Shake yourself from the dust… arise! 

“Shake yourself from the dust and arise; be seated, O Jerusalem; loose the bonds from your neck, O captive daughter of Zion.” (Isa. 52:2 ESV)

Even if you fall again and again… arise!

“For the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity.” (Prov. 24:16 ESV)

Therefore

“But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you…” (Acts 26:16 ESV)

“He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.” (Psalm 40:2 NIV)

Quotes

“Little minds are tamed and subdued by misfortune; but great minds rise above them.” - Washington Irving

“Families, friends and communities often find a source of courage rising up from within. Indeed, sadly, it seems that it is tragedy that often draws out the most and the best from the human spirit.” - Queen Elizabeth II

“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

“And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” (Matt. 16:17 ESV)

Revelation: The act of revealing or disclosing, especially a dramatic disclosure of something not previously known or realized; an epiphany, usually an experience of sudden and striking spiritual realization.

God gives us revelation in many ways

God has revealed Himself throughout history through what He has made, by His prophets, by His angelic messengers and by those led to speak by the Holy Spirit. No matter how the message is carried, however, it must always agree with and never contradict what is written in the Bible.   

Revelation comes when God enlightens the eyes of your heart 

“That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might.” (Eph. 1:17-19 ESV) 

Revelation comes through God’s Word 

“The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.” (Psalm 119:130 ESV)

Revelation comes through what He’s created

“For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” (Rom. 1:20 ESV)

Revelation comes by the Holy Spirit

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” (John 14:26 ESV) 

“For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.” (Rom. 1:19 ESV) 

Therefore

“Making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.” (Proverbs 2:2-5 ESV)

“Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.” (1 Cor. 2:12 ESV) 

Quote 

“A God whom we could understand exhaustively, and whose revelation of Himself confronted us with no mysteries whatsoever, would be a God in man's image, and therefore an imaginary God, not the God of the Bible at all.” - J.I. Packer

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” (Isa. 43:2 NIV) 

As long as you live in this world you will face challenges, everyone does! “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; ⁹ persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” (2 Cor 4:8-9)

The Lord your God goes with you 

Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid or terrified of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Deut. 31:6)

The Lord goes before you

“The LORD Himself goes before you; He will be with you. He will never leave you or forsake you. Do not be afraid or discouraged.” (Deut. 31:8)

Fear no evil

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” (Psalm 23:4)

Therefore

“Therefore let all the godly pray to You while You may be found. Surely when great waters rise, they will not come near.” (Psalm 32:6) 

Quote

“God knows our situation; He will not judge us as if we had no difficulties to overcome. What matters is the sincerity and perseverance of our will to overcome them.” -  C.S. Lewis

“‘I have the right to do anything,’ you say—but not everything is beneficial. ‘I have the right to do anything’—but not everything is constructive.’” (1 Cor. 10:23 NIV)

Rights: Rights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory.

Defend the rights of the poor, needy, afflicted and the destitute

“Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.” (Prov. 31:8-9 ESV)

“Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.” (Psalm 82:3 ESV)

Jesus didn’t cling to his rights but humbled Himself as a servant – you must have the same mindset toward others

“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature a God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!” (Phil. 2:5-8 NIV)

Therefore

“Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil. 2:9-11 NIV)

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” (Gal. 5:13)

Quotes

“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” - Jesus

“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me’.” - Jesus

“Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.” (Prov. 19:21 ESV)

You are a mist

“Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.” (James 14:6 ESV)

God’s plans for you

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” ((Jer. 29:11 ESV)

Therefore 

“Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.” (Prov. 16:3 ESV)

Quote 

“The best thing about the future is that it comes only one day at a time.” - Abraham Lincoln