Friday Thought -- January 31, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“But Israel has rejected what is good; an enemy will pursue him. They set up kings without my consent; they choose princes without my approval. With their silver and gold they make idols for themselves to their own destruction. Throw out your calf-idol, O Samaria! My anger burns against them. How long will they be incapable of purity? They are from Israel! This calf -- a craftsman has made it; it is not God. It will be broken in pieces, that calf of Samaria. They sow the wind and reap the whirlwind. The stalk has no head; it will produce no flour. Were it to yield grain, foreigners would swallow it up. Israel is swallowed up; now she is among the nations like a worthless thing.” (Hosea 8:3-8)

You reap what you sow. That is a universal principle established by God and built into His creation. Paul declared it to the Galatians, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.” (Galatians 6:7)

The history of Israel is an illustration of that universal principle. Israel took what God set before them and turned away from it. They thought they were choosing something better. They thought they were choosing freedom from restraints and the pursuit of pleasure. In the end, they would see the worthlessness of what they had chosen. “They sow the wind and reap the whirlwind.”

Sometimes the way of the world seems easier and more pleasant at the moment. But it is the wrong path. In the end it will result in a harvest of death, pain, heartache, and hell. Their choice looked so good to them at the time. In the end they would realize they were just grasping at air!

The way of the Lord can sometimes be a difficult path. But it is the right path. In the end it will result in a harvest of righteousness, eternal life in heaven, and abundant life on earth. When you choose the Lord, in the end you'll still be clinging to the Rock -- not grasping at air!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought -- January 30, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“All their kings fall, and none of them calls on me.” (Hosea 7:7)

“Despite all this he does not return to the LORD his God or search for him.” (Hosea 7:10)

“They gather together for grain and new wine but turn away from me.” (Hosea 7:14)

“They do not turn to the Most High; they are like a faulty bow.” (Hosea 7:16)

Israel turns everywhere but to God. They look for help and satisfaction in all the wrong places. They look to Assyria. They look to Egypt. They look to the plenty of their own harvest. They turn to their passions. They try feasting and festivals. They look everywhere but to God.

God tries to get the attention of Israel, but even that does not cause them to turn to Him, to seek Him. The pain and distress does not cause them to look to Him. Not even God’s discipline causes them to turn back to Him.

Israel is so much like the people of our own time. They look everywhere for help and satisfaction, except to the one place it is truly available. They refuse to look to God. They look to their work. They look to their money and possessions. They look to partying and fun. They look to education and knowledge. They look to spirituality and other gods. They look everywhere but to God.

The one place where help and satisfaction can be found is the one place the people of Israel, and the people of our time, will not look.

Where do you look for help and satisfaction? There is only One from whom it is truly available.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought -- January 29, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.” (Hosea 6:6)

In the midst of all of Israel’s sin -- its adultery, its idolatry -- all of its sin -- they did not forget their religious duties. They continued to perform the religious sacrifices that were required of them. They continued to visit the temple and seek to worship God. They continued their regular prayers.

But God did not accept their worship because it did not come from a clean heart. It was not being done in sincerity. They were going through the motions, but their hearts were not in it.

In Hosea’s day, God was not interested in religious ritual that did not represent what was going on in the hearts of the people. He never has been interested in empty ritual. He still is not interested in empty ritual and ceremony today. He never will be.

God is interested in changed hearts and changed lives. God is interested in sincere and heart-felt relationship with Him.

In your prayers – in your worship – in your service – in your giving – are you just going through the motions because you know you should or do they come from your heart?

His, by Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought -- January 28, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“The LORD said to me, ‘Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another and is an adulteress. Love her as the LORD loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.’ So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and about a homer and a lethek of barley. Then I told her, ‘You are to live with me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will live with you.’” (Hosea 3:1-3)

Hosea married a wife of adultery, but she did not stay with him. She left his love and returned to her old ways. Then the Lord told Hosea to find her again and buy her back. Apparently she had fallen into slavery because of her sinfulness and Hosea bought her back from her slavemaster to be his wife again.

That’s an awful image -- a wife who has become a slave through her sexual sin and then the husband buying his wife back for himself again.

Although it is an awful image, it is a true story. What Hosea did for his wife provides a picture of what God has done for us. We left His love and turned to our own sinful ways. We got trapped in our sin and were made slaves of unrighteousness. And God bought us back. He didn’t have to. He owned us in the first place and then we left Him. It cost God a great deal to buy us back -- the sacrifice of His own Son.

God wanted us back. He loved us and wanted us back! He was willing to pay whatever price was necessary. He loved us that much.

He bought us back for Himself. Not so we could continue to wander in sin, but so that we would be His. He bought us back to change us.

He loved us – and He bought us back. He still loves us!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Monday Thought -- January 27, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

"'I will punish her for the days she burned incense to the Baals; she decked herself with rings and jewelry, and went after her lovers, but me she forgot,' declares the LORD. 'Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her. There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt. In that day,' declares the LORD, 'you will call me 'my husband'; you will no longer call me 'my master.''" (Hosea 2:13-16)

God did not allow Israel's spiritual adultery to go on as though unnoticed by Him. He brought pain and discomfort upon Israel as a result of their unfaithfulness to Him. It was discipline from Him aimed at getting them to wake up and turn away from their sin.

And when they would turn away from their sin, they found the Lord waiting for them, ready to renew His love relationship with them. God was always ready to take them back. No matter how long or how much or how far they had strayed, when they turned back to God they found Him ready and anxious to have them back.

And when God took His wandering people back it was not with any reluctance. He "allured" them, He wooed them back. He spoke "tenderly" to them. God loves His people and always wants them back.

What was true of Israel is also true of us. We wander from God, turning to others to serve and give allegiance to, we forget the Lord. When we do, God does bring discipline into our lives, pain and discomfort. Not to punish us, but to urge us to turn back to Him. And when we do turn back to Him we find Him waiting anxiously to embrace us and renew His love relationship with us.

God always wants us back!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Friday Thought -- January 24, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“When the LORD began to speak through Hosea, the LORD said to him, ‘Go, take to yourself an adulterous wife and children of unfaithfulness, because the land is guilty of the vilest adultery in departing from the LORD.’ So he married Gomer daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.” (Hosea 1:2-3)

The Lord asked Hosea to make his life an object lesson for the people of Israel. Israel was guilty of spiritual adultery -- they left the God who loved them and gave themselves to other gods. God asked Hosea to go and marry an adulterous woman to show Israel what they were doing to God.

Would you be willing to do something that difficult in obedience to the word of the Lord?

Gomer was not the kind of wife Hosea dreamed of or would have chosen from himself. But he willingly did what God asked him to do. He was willing to make his life God’s to use as God pleased. Hosea didn’t expect God to make his life happy -- that wasn’t his goal. Hosea’s goal was to allow God to use him in whatever way fit the plan of God.

Are you?

God may never ask you to do anything as difficult as what He asked Hosea to do -- but He may ask you to do some things that you would not choose to do. In fact, I’d say it’s a sure thing that as you follow God He will ask you to do some things you’d rather not do.

It’s a test of your faithfulness to God -- will you do what He asks, even when it is not what you want to do!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought -- January 23, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

There is a choice to be made in life. At the end of Joshua’s life he gathered the people of Israel together and put it to them bluntly.

“But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living.” (Joshua 24:15)

There are many possible choices of whom to serve.

You can serve your pleasures.

You can serve your career.

You can serve your family.

You can serve your possessions.

You can select from a wide variety of philosophies and serve one of them.

You can select from a wide variety of gods and serve one of them.

You can serve your ambition.

Each of those choices will have consequences for your life and for your family. The choice is yours.

There are many possible choices of whom to serve, and only one right choice.

Joshua declared, “But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” (Joshua 24:15)

Joshua made the right choice and led his family down that path. Now, he put the same choice before his people. He couldn’t make the choice for them, even as no one can make the choice for you. It’s a decision that is in your hands.

What does the way you are living your life now say about who you are currently serving?

Who are you deciding to serve from this point forward?

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought -- January 22, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

Several years passed after the people of Israel crossed the Jordan River into the land of Canaan. Joshua led the people for many years and then he summoned all the leaders of Israel and said to them, “I am old and well advanced in years.” (Joshua 23:2)

It was time for Israel to prepare itself for new leadership. Like Moses before him, Joshua would not be able to lead the people of Israel forever. Joshua approached the end of his life with a calm confidence. He told them, “Now I am about to go the way of all the earth.” (Joshua 23:14)

We fear death. There is probably no deeper fear that man has. But death is a natural part of life and it comes to every living being. There is no reason to dwell on death and embrace it before its time. But when the time comes for our life to be over, we should be able to approach death with the same kind of calm confidence with which Joshua approached it.

Paul talked to the Thessalonians about death and told them, “we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13)

The Apostle John heard a voice from heaven that said, “Write: ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.’ ‘Yes,’ says the Spirit, ‘they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.’” (Revelation 14:13)

In Christ, we can approach death, for ourselves and for those we love, with calm confidence, with grief that is mingled with hope, and with the assurance that death is not the end, but a blessing of rest and the beginning of real life.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought -- January 21, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“Then Joshua summoned the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh and said to them, ‘You have done all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded, and you have obeyed me in everything I commanded. For a long time now -- to this very day -- you have not deserted your brothers but have carried out the mission the LORD your God gave you. Now that the LORD your God has given your brothers rest as he promised, return to your homes in the land that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you on the other side of the Jordan.’” (Joshua 22:1-4)

The tribes of Reuben, Gad and half the tribe of Manasseh were given land on the east side of the Jordan River. They didn’t have to cross the Jordan with the rest of the people of Israel when they moved across to conquer Canaan. But they did!

They didn’t have to stay with the people of Israel through all the battles that were required to conquer Canaan. But they did!

They could have stayed on the east side of the Jordan and enjoyed peace in their own land. But they didn’t rest in their land until their brothers could rest in their own.

These tribes provide a good example of what unity and brotherhood mean. They were unwilling to enjoy what God had given to them until the rest of the people could enjoy their God-given land. They cast their lots with their brothers and stayed with them to help.

Paul told the Romans to, “Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.” (Romans 12:15) The principle is that we aren’t just to be interested in what is happening in our own lives. What is happening in our brothers’ lives should affect us, too.

Paul told the Philippians, “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (Philippians 2:4)

The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh were concerned about the interests of all the people of Israel. How does your life reflect your interest in what is happening in the lives of those around you?

His, by Grace,

Steve

Monday Thought -- January 20, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“So the LORD gave Israel all the land he had sworn to give their forefathers, and they took possession of it and settled there. The LORD gave them rest on every side, just as he had sworn to their forefathers. Not one of their enemies withstood them; the LORD handed all their enemies over to them. Not one of all the LORD’s good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.” (Joshua 21:43-45)

The war for possession of the land of Canaan lasted for some time. But city by city, region by region, the people of Israel conquered the land. Some of the battles were difficult because they were against strong opposing forces, but all of the battles were won by the people of Israel.

The promise God had given to Israel was that they would be able to possess the land. He had given this land to their father Abraham as an inheritance for his descendants. And God kept His promise.

When they first sent out the spies, over 40 years before, they could not see how God could keep His promise to give them the land. The defenders were too strong and they had the advantage of living in fortified cities. So, the people of Israel refused to even try. Now, they could see how foolish they had been. For 40 years they missed the blessing of God.

The people of Canaan had not grown weaker in the 40 years that had passed. The people of Israel had not grown stronger in that length of time. The only thing that changed was the willingness of the people of Israel to believe God would do what He had promised.

They tested God’s promise and God proved His promise was true!

There are promises that God has made to you and me. You can find them spaced throughout the New Testament. Some of them seem so amazing that we are tempted to not even try to see if they are true. When we do that, like the Israelites, we miss so many blessings of God. God’s promises were true for Israel and God’s promises are true for us. 

Is there a promise of God that you need to test?

His, by Grace,

Steve

Friday Thought -- January 17, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

When Moses sent the Hebrew spies into the land of Canaan, ten of them came back to report that the people of Canaan were too big and too strong and the people of Israel should not try to fight them. Two of the spies, Joshua and Caleb, came back and reported that although the Canaanites were strong, God would give them into their hands because He had promised to do so and they should take the land for the Lord.

The people of Israel listened to the ten unfaithful spies and rejected the report of the two men of faith. As a result, all of the Israelites who were twenty-one years or older on that day died in the wilderness during the next forty years of wandering. Only two of those over twenty-one still lived when Joshua led the people of Israel into the land --- Joshua and Caleb!

Caleb was 40 years old when Moses sent him to spy out the land (Joshua 14:7) and 45 years have now passed, making Caleb 85 years old (Joshua 14:10). At 85, Caleb comes to Joshua with a request: “I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. Now give me this hill country that the LORD promised me that day. You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the LORD helping me, I will drive them out just as he said.” (Joshua 14:11-12)

And Joshua granted Caleb’s request and Caleb did as he said he would do, he drove out the Anakites and conquered the hill country.

“So Hebron has belonged to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite ever since, because he followed the LORD, the God of Israel, wholeheartedly.” (Joshua 14:14)

Caleb was faithful to the Lord.  The Lord was faithful to Caleb.

How faithful are you?

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought -- January 16, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

To what lengths will God go to support those who follow Him and His directions?

That question is answered in a story in Joshua 10. The people of Israel, under Joshua’s leadership, were fighting against the combined forces of five kings of the Amorite people. God was giving the battle to Israel, but the day was too short to complete the victory. So Joshua made an audacious request of the Lord.

“On the day the LORD gave the Amorites over to Israel, Joshua said to the LORD in the presence of Israel: ‘O sun, stand still over Gibeon, O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.’ So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till the nation avenged itself on its enemies, as it is written in the Book of Jashar. The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the LORD listened to a man. Surely the LORD was fighting for Israel!” (Joshua 10:12-14)

Joshua made his request to the Lord in front of the people of Israel. It was no secret prayer. Joshua put his own reputation and the reputation of the Lord on the line. And God answered Joshua’s bold prayer with an awesome miracle!

Joshua and the people of Israel were able to completely finish the battle in that lengthened day. They routed the armies of those five kings. They were able to do it only because “the Lord was fighting for Israel.”

The Lord came to Israel’s help when their leader cried out to the Lord for help. It is a powerful lesson in leadership – and a powerful lesson in the willingness of the Lord to help when we are engaged in His cause.

When we follow the Lord and His directions, the Lord will be on our side and nothing will stand in our way.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought -- January 15, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

When Joshua and the people of Israel conquered Jericho, God had instructed that all of the possessions of those people were to be devoted to Him and none kept by the people themselves. That instruction was followed by all of Israel, except one man. Achan hid some of the spoils from Jericho in his own tent.

The next city that the people of Israel went against was the small village of Ai. After conquering the formidable city of Jericho with such ease, they were convinced Ai would be no problem and Joshua sent only a small number of the men of Israel against Ai. And the men of Ai defeated the army of Israel and several Israelites were killed.

When Joshua went before the Lord to find out why they had been defeated, why His favor had been lifted from them, this was God’s response.

“Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenant, which I commanded them to keep. They have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen, they have lied, they have put them with their own possessions. That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction. Go, consecrate the people. Tell them, ‘Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow; for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: That which is devoted is among you, O Israel. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove it.’” (Joshua 7:11-13)

The sin of one man affected the entire nation. Until Achan’s sin was dealt with, God’s favor would not return to the people of Israel.

The point of the story is to emphasize how much God is grieved by sin and to show that a person’s sins do not just affect him, but those around him, too. Achan is the only one who had sinned, but Achan’s sin kept the whole nation from being able to enjoy the blessings of God.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought -- January 14, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“Then the LORD said to Joshua, ‘See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams' horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have all the people give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the people will go up, every man straight in.’” (Joshua 6:2-5)

This scripture presents the strangest battle plan I’ve ever heard of! It doesn’t talk about laying siege to the city and waiting until the people inside ran out of food or water and then attacking when they had to come out of the city. It doesn’t include building a siege wall to enable the army to go over the wall and into the city. It doesn’t speak of storming the gates with battering rams until they give way. Those were the accepted methods of doing battle against a walled city in that time. But none of those was included in this plan.

Instead, the plan calls for marching around the city for seven days. It calls for the priests to carry the ark of the covenant in front of the people. It calls for the priests to blow trumpets.  It calls for the people to shout at just the right time. None of those things could destroy a city wall. They make no sense. But they do represent the plan God gave to Joshua for taking the city of Jericho.

And the plan God outlined for Joshua worked!

“When the trumpets sounded, the people shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the people gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so every man charged straight in, and they took the city.” (Joshua 6:20)

God’s plans do not always make sense according to the world. But God’s plans always work when we follow them! Doing God’s will is not about following human wisdom. It is not about doing things that make good common sense. It is about listening to God’s instructions, following them, and watching God work.

And it works!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Monday Thought -- January 13, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?’ ‘Neither,’ he replied, ‘but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.’ Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, ‘What message does my Lord have for his servant?’ The commander of the LORD’s army replied, ‘Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.’ And Joshua did so.” (Joshua 5:13-15)

When Joshua asked the angel, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” he received an answer that we would not have expected. If there ever was a people that God’s army should have been fighting for, it was the nation of Israel. Weren’t they God’s people? Shouldn’t God’s angel have been on their side? But the angel answered, “neither.” He wasn’t on Israel’s side and he wasn’t on the side of the Canaanites. He was accomplishing God’s purposes, not the purposes of man.

Was God on the side of the American Revolutionaries or the army of England? Was God on the side of the Yankees or the Rebels? Was God on the side of America or Iraq? We would always assume that God was on our side! In many cases, both sides would have assumed that! I’ve read several books about the Civil War. Both sides thought their cause was righteous. Both sides prayed for God’s favor in battle. Both sides thought God was on their side.

Is God on the side of the Beavers or the Ducks? Neither!  (Of course, I think God is a Sooner fan!)

God isn’t on either side in a conflict. He does not align Himself with the purposes of man. God does not show partiality toward men. God accomplishes His purposes, not man’s. In the conflict between Israel and Canaan, God’s purposes usually were accomplished by the victory of the Israelite army, but not always. There were times when Israel was defeated, and that also accomplished God’s purposes.

The principle is that we should not assume, just because we are Christians, that God is on our side in every conflict --- marriage disagreement, job controversy, lawsuit, athletic contest, war, or anything else that pits one side against another. God will accomplish His purposes, not ours.

God may not always be on our side – but we should always strive to be on His!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Friday Thought -- January 10, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“Joshua called together the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe, and said to them, ‘Go over before the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, “What do these stones mean?” tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.’” (Joshua 4:4-7)

God instructed Joshua to have the people of Israel build a memorial to what He had done in drying up the Jordan so they could cross it on dry ground. Twelve stones, one for each of the twelve tribes, were set up as a marker to remind the people of Israel of the miracle God had done for them.

God knew the people would need help to remember His provision for them. In the day-to-day busyness and stress of life, people forget the past. It’s easy to fall prey to the thought that God really doesn’t care, that He really isn’t there, or that He doesn’t have the power to help. When the people looked at the stone memorial it would remind them of a time God showed His care and His power in a very direct way. The memorial was for the weakness of the memory of the people.

The memorial was also for future generations. It would provide an opportunity for children to ask questions and for their parents to explain God’s work among their people. It would serve as an aid to pass faith on from one generation to another.

The Gilgal memorial, the Passover feast, and several of other memorials were given by God to the people of Israel to help them remember and to help them pass their faith on to their children. Baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and several other memorials have been given to us for the same reasons.

Our memories are weak, we live in the present and forget God’s work in the past. Our children need to ask questions and hear us talk of how God has acted in love and power on our behalf.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought -- January 9, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

God announced that it was time for the people of Israel to cross the Jordan River into the land of Canaan. This was the land God had promised to give Abraham’s descendants many years ago. Canaan is the land the people had refused to enter 40 years earlier out of fear of the opposition they would face. The people were ready now, only one thing stood in their way --- the Jordan was at flood stage.

“Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.” (Joshua 3:15-17)

God did a miracle for the people of Israel to allow them to enter the land. It was a miracle similar to the one God performed to bring them out of Egypt when He divided the waters of the Red Sea.

Israel had a new leader. Moses was dead and Joshua was now leading the people. But God was still with them and it would be God who would deliver them from their difficulties.

When they saw God’s miracle, I wonder how many of the people of Israel thought about those 40 years of wandering in the wilderness. The miracle confirmed that God could have given them the land 40 years earlier, if they had just trusted Him. The enemies they would have faced would have been strong, but they would have been no match for God’s power!

Their fathers and mothers had missed such great blessings because they would not trust God. They lived out the rest of their lives as wandering nomads in a desolate land instead of taking possession of their own land of milk and honey.

I wonder how many blessings of God we miss because we do not trust Him?

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought -- January 8, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“Rahab said to them, ‘I know that the LORD has given this land to you and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. We have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. When we heard of it, our hearts melted and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.’” (Joshua 2:9-11)

Rahab was a woman of faith. She believed that the Lord was with the people of Israel. She believed that the Lord was going to give the people of Israel the victory over her own city of Jericho.

That belief wasn’t something that looked reasonable. Jericho was a strong and well-defended city. It had strong city walls and an army of men who could defend it from an enemy. Israel had nothing except men. They were not skilled in battle. They did not bring with them great instruments of war. A look at the two sides in the battle should have led someone to the opinion that Jericho would win.

But Rahab looked beyond what she could see. The story of the parting of the Red Sea had gone before the people of Israel. Rahab had heard that story and it contributed to her faith. Other victories that God had given his people were also in Rahab’s mind. She had seen evidence that God was with these people. That evidence led to her faith.

Rahab and her family survived the destruction of Jericho because Rahab looked beyond what she could see and saw God at work among the people of Israel. Faith saved her. And it was faith that was grounded in the story of God’s work in the past.

Examine God’s work in the past, the way He has moved in and through the lives of others and the way He has worked in the past in your own life. Let the stories of what God has done in the past confirm your faith in Him in the present and your confidence in Him as you face the future.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought -- January 7, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

Moses was a great leader for the nation of Israel. Leaders like Moses don’t come along very often. He led them for a long time -- 40 years. But men don’t live forever and there came a time when Moses was no longer leader of Israel and there was a new leader -- Joshua. God gives Joshua his charge in the first chapter of the book of Joshua. It’s a good manual for leadership, especially leadership among God’s people.

“Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them.” (Joshua 1:6)

Strength and courage would be needed by the new leader if he was to lead the people to take possession of the land which had been promised to them by God.

“Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:7

 Strength and courage would be needed by the new leader to be obedient to God’s direction. It would be easy to fall into the temptation to take shortcuts that disobeyed God.

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9)

Strength and courage would be needed by the new leader because there would be a great deal to fear and discouragement could easily overtake him in the challenges he faced.

“Whoever rebels against your word and does not obey your words, whatever you may command them, will be put to death. Only be strong and courageous!” (Joshua 1:18)

To lead, Joshua would have to make hard decisions. There would be decisions that the people would not like and decisions against which some would rebel. What Joshua needed would be strength and courage.

Be strong and courageous -- four times in the opening chapter of Joshua God gave that charge to this new leader. That must tell us something about the character needed for leadership in God’s kingdom.

Be strong and courageous!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Monday Thought -- January 6, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“He replied, ‘Go your way, Daniel, because the words are closed up and sealed until the time of the end. Many will be purified, made spotless and refined, but the wicked will continue to be wicked. None of the wicked will understand, but those who are wise will understand. From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. Blessed is the one who waits for and reaches the end of the 1,335 days. As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance.’” (Daniel 12:9-13)

Daniel received things from the Lord that he could not understand. The messenger of God spoke to him of things that were to happen far in the future -- at the time of the end. They could not be understood in Daniel’s time, not until they begin to unfold will the people of God understand.

But this much can be understood -- many will turn to God and be cleansed from their sins. There were those in Daniel’s day who fulfilled that word and from that day until this it has continued to be true. In every generation there have been people who have turned to God and been cleansed. That will be true to the very end.

And in every generation there have been people who have refused to turn to God no matter how clear and compelling His message has been delivered to them. That, too, will always be true.

Don’t expect the church to disappear -- it never will -- God will always have a faithful people.

Don’t expect the church to triumph totally – it never will -- there will always be those who reject the truth and oppose the people of God -- till the very end.

God’s word to Daniel is the same word He gives to us – “go your way until the end.” Hold on to the Lord and be faithful -- no matter what happens in the world around you and no matter what happens in your own life. Trust God and in the end you will see the inheritance that has been promised to you.

Go your way until the end!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Friday Thought -- January 3, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people – everyone whose name is found written in the book -- will be delivered. Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.” (Daniel 12:1-3)

In the word Daniel received about the end times, there are several truths that stand out.

This world will not end in peace, but in a time of great distress. Times will not always be easy, and we cannot expect them to get better as the world moves toward its end. In fact, the world is not maturing and improving with age, but degenerating as it approaches its end. That’s a truth that should cause us to steel ourselves for whatever is ahead with a commitment to stand firm for the Lord no matter what happens.

God’s deliverance will come, even in the midst of the distress. That deliverance is not universal, but limited to those whose names are written in the Book of Life. There is no more important choice that a person can make than the choice to follow Jesus Christ. That choice, and that choice alone, will determine whether deliverance or distress will overtake us at the end.

Not even death can keep people from the distress that is coming. Not even death can keep people from the deliverance that is coming. God will open the graves to bring those whose names are in the Book of Life to Himself and those whose names are not in the Book will be sent to the greatest distress imaginable.

The bottom-line contains two truths --

First, we should be wise and choose to follow Jesus Christ!

Second, we should all we can to encourage others to follow Him, too! Michael told Daniel that those who lead others to righteousness will shine like stars. God will take note of what we do to help others move toward Him and He will reward us for those efforts.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought -- January 2, 2014

Good Morning Friends,

“‘Daniel, you who are highly esteemed, consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you, and stand up, for I have now been sent to you.’ And when he said this to me, I stood up trembling. Then he continued, ‘Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia. Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the future, for the vision concerns a time yet to come.’” (Daniel 10:11-14)

Why doesn’t God answer our cries for help right away?

There could be many reasons. Some have to do with what is best for us -- and at times that is to persevere through troubles rather than have them immediately removed. Some have to do with what God wants to accomplish in others -- our troubles can accomplish important things in the lives of others. Some have to do with sin in our own lives -- God may be waiting for our repentance before He acts in our behalf.

An angel came in response to Daniel’s prayer. But the angel did not come immediately. Over three weeks of fasting and praying passed before the angel finally came. He provides another reason God’s response is sometimes delayed. This angel was delayed by a battle that raged in the spiritual realm. The prince of the Persian kingdom resisted him – that’s not the human prince, for no human can delay the work of an angel -- but some kind of demonic being with authority over Persia.

There is a battle raging that we cannot see and know little about. It is going on in the spiritual realm between the Lord’s forces and the forces of wickedness commanded by Satan. For a time, God has given Satan power to wage this war and influence what happens on earth.

His, by Grace,

Steve