God's Word...It Is Our Life

Deuteronomy 32:45-47 -  When Moses finished reciting all these words to all Israel, he said to them, “Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law.  They are not just idle words for you—they are your life. By them you will live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.”

Moses’ last words to the people he loved so much were in the form of a song. They were long…proud…reflective verses…every word straight from his heart.  He poured out the heart that God had built inside of him as he led these rebellious people. Perhaps he thought if he put his last words to music…they would remember them….sing them more often that the require reading of the law every 7 years. He told them to let his teaching “drop like rain”  …so it would saturate their being.

It began with a call to honor God…. to proclaim his name and ascribe him greatness.  Then he asked them to remember all that they had been through.  He wanted them to remember also how jealous God was when they went astray…and recounted that just because God has chosen them to be his people…they would be treated harshly if they rebelled against him again.

I love the last part…verse 47 especially. Those words speak a basic truth of anyone who believes n God…and has asked his son to rule their lives. This law that God had given them….this law that God expanded to 66 books before the cannon was finished….is not just a collection of idle words. It is our life…our manual to how to make God happy…how to give him honor…how to glorify him with all that he made us to be.

I needed the reminder that this book I read each day…has all the wisdom that I need to live a life pleasing to God. I need to set my heart on each and every word I read…they are God’s words…penned by many men over the ages…to help me know how to live my life with the greatest benefit to God….to help me feel purposeful and content in all that he has called me to do. 

Father…thank you for the reminder that your word is the lamp my feet need to walk the way you want me to walk. Forgive me for the many times I have failed to hide its words in my heart so that they can help me when I need them.  Renew my passion…not just to read the words to say I read them…but truly begin to embed them into who I am…so you can use them to help me through the temptations of life. Amen.

Do Not Be Afraid... Do Not Be Discouraged.”

Deuteronomy 31:7-8 -  Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the presence of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the Lord swore to their ancestors to give them, and you must divide it among them as their inheritance.  The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.  Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

It was time.  Moses was 120 years old…had lived a very long and purposeful life…and was near to his time to die….and Joshua had been selected to lead the people over the Jordan. He gathered all the people together…to let them know that God would be with Joshua…just as he had been with Moses these 40 years. He told Joshua the most comforting words in the Bible… “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.  Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

I found 8 other verses in the Bible that say the same thing… in both the old and new testaments.  The most convicting of them being Jesus own words right before he ascended to heaven to prepare it for us to come be him later.  He said in Matthew 28:20 - Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

What a great reminder that we are never finished with what God put us here to accomplish until he calls us home like Moses. He goes before us…and will always be with us...no matter what he allows life to throw at us during our journey. We are never to be afraid…never to let discouragement win our emotions…always falling back on the power Jesus left with us to help us through the harder moments of life.

Father…thank you for the great promise that you are always with us…no matter what. Forgive me for the times that I have let fear…or discouragement win out over claiming your power to overcome any temptation. Help me to claim 2 Timothy 1:7 … using God’s power to overcome the spirit of fear satan tries to burden me with. Then use his power…his love…and his perfect mind to keep moving forward in my faith…no matter what.  Amen.

God Is Always With Us...No Matter What

Deuteronomy 30:11-14 -  Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach.  It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?”  Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, “Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it.

Moses speaks a truth here that I had not fully comprehended.  Once we accept and believe in Christ…he places his full power inside of us to do his will. We don’t have to chase after something that we can never attain…it is already inside us. The tricky part is allowing God to develop it into a confidence and courage he can use to make us the best servants we can be for him.

This truth did not change when Christ fulfilled the law. It became even easier.  Christ took the last barrier to eternal life and gave it to all people.  God made all lives matter.  Jesus began to share his power to overcome the world ...beginning with the criminal that hung beside him when he died for our sins.

Paul explains it further in 1 Corinthians 10:13. He said…”No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

What a great reminder that when things seem hard or hopeless…all I have to do is look for the door God left cracked for me to remove myself from it. Life never presents us with only one choice…God always provides his choice…clear enough for us to see when satan has been given any power over our circumstances.

Father…thank you for the reminder that your door is always open an ready to help me fight off any attack or pain that might be crippling my ability to love you and others. Forgive me for failing to search for the door you have left for me when I feel overwhelmed. Open my spiritual eyes wide so I can see it clearly …then give me courage and faith…and wisdom to keep walking toward it till you have shut the door behind me.  Amen.

Stand In His Presence... And Recommit Your Life To God

Deuteronomy 29:10-11 -  All of you are standing today in the presence of the Lord your God—your leaders and chief men, your elders and officials, and all the other men of Israel,  together with your children and your wives, and the foreigners living in your camps who chop your wood and carry your water. 

Moses stood with the people he had been asked to lead for 40 years one last time.  He reminded them that God himself was standing there with them…his presence mingled with everyone from leaders to foreigners among them. They had come together to make a commitment to follow God from this day till the end of their days on the earth.

It got me thinking….when was the last time I stood in God’s presence and vowed the same. Certainly when I gave my life to him at 14 …I could feel his presence strong as we started our journey together. Once with a group of youth at their summer camp I felt him stronger than I ever had. Many times during worship services… and just yesterday...as I toured the Billy Graham Museum…his presence took over my emotions most of the time I was there.

But it seems that most of those experiences were one sided exchanges.  God pouring something into me …and yours truely soaking it up as a renewal of God’s strength to help me through whatever I was going through at the time.. I can’t always remember stopping like that sweet leper in Luke 17. He came back to praise God and give thanks. I’ll just bet that time was a time of commitment for him as well.

I sure needed the reminder that my relationship with God…his son Jesus…and the Holy Spirit I cling to so many times for help should be a two way exchange. I should tell them daily that I love them…I am committed to the laws they left for us to live by…and I will gratefully give what is left of my earthly life to serve and do God’s will.

Thank you Lord for the reminder to renew my commitment to love and follow your commands. Forgive me for the times that I take advantage of your care and the love you show me every day by not returning to thank and praise you for what you have done. Help me to be more like that leper…and shout loud and proud all that you have done for me…giving you all the glory and praise for each tiny detail.  Amen.

Sell Out To God

Deuteronomy 28: 1-2  and 15 – If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God:

… However, if you do not obey the Lord your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come on you and overtake you:

Moses left them with two choices.  They could obey God...and reap a bounty of wonderful blessings….  OR…they could disobey him and choose for themselves curses upon curses. The list of blessings was great…God opening Heaven to anything and everything they needed…so many things that the other pagan nations around them would see he had called them to be his people.

The list of curses was extensive.  As I read it….many of the things Moses told them seemed to be a normal part of life in my world. Destruction of all types…diseases of all kinds…some that caused tumors… some with no cures. I quickly wondered…even voiced a quick question in prayer form to God.  Is this what is happening to the world he created in 6 days?

I know there are people in the world obeying God because I see pockets of blessing all around me too. But that’s also where the truth of Moses words ring true as well. Good…Godly…obedient people suffer every day. My mind asks the question…do they also harbor some secret sin for their lives to seem so cursed?  Are these words to every individual today…or were they just for the Israelites?

Perhaps when Jesus came to fulfill the law contained in this part of the Bible…the logistics of this passage changed…but that still leaves me with tons of questions about why some Christians suffer. Galatians 3:13 says… “But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree."

I choose to believe that the things on Moses ‘cursed’ list that seem to be coming true in our world are not a fulfillment of this scripture…but rather a way of God showing us that he is in control. God allowed satan to bring sadness and disease to Job’s life…simply because he knew that Job’s heart was sold out to God. Then he blessed Job double for showing satan that nothing could pull him away from God’s control.

I also feel deeply  in my heart that we are smack in the middle of many of the end time prophecies. Its gonna get worse before Jesus comes back to make it all better for all who believe. I needed the reminder to keep my heart and mind focused on God…the sacrifice his son made to give me eternal life…and to use the Holy Spirit to help me stay focused like Job when trials come my way.

Father…thank you for the reminder that You are my power when things around me seem to be hopeless.  Forgive me for the times that I let my heart and mind wander to earthly things and distract me from all that you need me to do.  Help me to stay focused on you …so any trials you allow in my life can be overcome with your power and love guiding my heart.  Amen.

Quick To Listen...Slow To Speak

Deuteronomy 27:9-10 -  Then Moses and the Levitical priests said to all Israel, “Be silent, Israel, and listen! You have now become the people of the Lord your God.   Obey the Lord your God and follow his commands and decrees that I give you today.”

Moses had already told them to listen many times…but this time he added the phrase…be quiet…in front of his command.  Perhaps the crowd had gotten louder than usual that day.  Perhaps he felt the urgency of what would happen if they didn’t listen because he couldn’t go with them. For whatever reason…Moses felt the need to add a bit more drama to his words this time.

David added to Moses wise words to also be still when trying to listen to God. He said in Psalms 46:10… He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;  I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Solomon said to really listen we have to use our heart as well.  His words from Proverbs 3:5 have always been one of my favorites…which by the way have been popping up in my pathway a lot lately.  He said… “ Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding.”

I’ve never been a great listener.  I’ve never mastered completely the art of when to talk and when to be quiet. My heart has always wanted to do better…but my mouth keeps stealing the show…so to speak. I sure needed the reminder that if I really want to hear God speak clearly to my soul… I need to work on this listening skill some more. 

I admit that the earthly heart we are born with is corrupt and sinful. One quick google search will give you several scriptures to back this up. But even as far back as Ezekiel 36:26 God clearly told the people that all they had to do was allow God to replace that heart of stone with a heart of flesh. 

Jesus modeled for us what we are like when God has done that heart transplant in us. We walk this earth with God’s eyes…ears….hands….and feet.  We no longer search for our own agenda…but pray daily for God to work his will in our lives. Caring for others becomes priority one. Spending time with God... listening through his word…listening to songs of faith…and serving others turns the world’s volume down and God’s volume way up.

Father…thank you for the reminder that listening is an important skill.  Forgive me for not working harder on this vital skill …so I can hear even your whisper as Samuel did. Help me to internalize James 1:19…. be quick to listen, slow to speak…  so that the heart transplant you did on me at 14…can be put to its best use for you.  Amen.

Dedicate ALL Your Heart...ALL Your Soul...And All Your Mind To God

Deuteronomy 26:16-17-   The Lord your God commands you this day to follow these decrees and laws; carefully observe them with all your heart and with all your soul. You have declared this day that the Lord is your God and that you will walk in obedience to him, that you will keep his decrees, commands and laws—that you will listen to him. 

Moses stops his listing of laws just long enough to put a call to dedicate themselves to following them in their brains. He has watched these people mess up …more than twice… and knows that he will not be there to intercede for them if they don’t get it right this time. He wanted them to learn to listen to god as he had…with all his heart…all his soul…and all his mind.

I will admit that it is not always easy to listen to God.  I have trouble even hearing that still quiet voice sometimes. Even though Even though I am getting to know God in deeper and deeper ways...I know the reason….I still have not mastered the art of loving him with ALL my heart ...ALL my soul…and ALL my mind.

One of my problems is the background noise of the world. It distracts me…disorganizes me…sways my thoughts too much to self. It makes me give up too soon. It reminds me too often that I am only a human.  It limits my field of vision to what I think I can do. It convinces me that the dry spells I go through can’t be helped.

Moses was such a great leader because he let that personal experience at the burning bush transform him to what God saw he could be.  He let God have ALL of who he was ...and allowed him to penetrate every part of his being. The background noise in his time did not have a chance against God’s presence in his life.

I needed the reminder that my best defense against the world is to give ALL of my being to God.  To stop holding back those tiny pieces…or large chunks of what I think my life with him should be…and allow God to take COMPLETE control …so I can become who he made me to be.

Father…thank you for the reminder that I can be only who I allow you to make me. Forgive me for the times that I have let the world speak louder than your voice…and convinced me to keep pieces of who I am from your control.  Help me to learn to surrender all I am to your control…so you can use me the way you created me to be your servant.  Amen.