Deuteronomy 34:5-8
"So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD. And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Beth-pe'-or: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day. And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated. And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days: so the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended."
Moses' time had ended. He had completed his journey and purpose in life. It was now time for someone else, whom God appointed, to lead the Israelites.
Moses had done many great signs and wonders by God. He threw down his staff where it became a snake, and he placed his hand in his bosom and it became leprous. Moses led the children of Israel through the Red Sea as God parted and held back the waters while they crossed. Moses did many other things with the annointing and power of God.
In the particular scriptures given above, Moses' time had come to an end. Although, the children of Israel had followed Moses the entire time they wondered in the wilderness, they were now faced with something new.
Moses who had been an exceptional leader, chosen for the Israelites by God, was now dead. I imagine that in the 30 days of weeping and mourning that the children of Israel felt like giving up perhaps or maybe they were scared. Here they were weeping and mourning for the man who had faithfully led them through some very hard times in their lives. Moses was like a security blanket and now he was gone.
We, too, sometimes in life get "attached" or used to something. We like things because we are familiar with them. And then we get scared or pout because things aren't the way they were.
God used Moses to lead, guide, and help the children of Israel. Moses had served his purpose. God was about to do a new thing for the children of Israel. God had plans for the Israelites to help them and prosper them. But if the children of Israel would not have "moved on" from Moses' death, God could not move them forward to the promised land.
There are a lot of us out there who will not quit mourning for Moses. Our Moses could be past relationships, jobs, friends, habits, or anything else we use as a blanket of security that God has taken away. When God gets us out of certain relationships, there is a reason for it. When God does not allow us to do something we have always done, there is a reason for it. And not all of our "Moses" have to be bad things. We could be used to a certain way of praise and worship or prayer.
When we are encountered with any change in our "normal" everyday life, we are allowed to go through a grieving process. The children of Israel grived for Moses 30 days. But then they ended their mourning.
If we are serving the Lord and walking uprightly before Him then He is leading and guiding us. And when the Lord leads us and guides us, it may be a little scary to experience the unknown. But we have to step out in faith, knowing God's plans are to prosper us and not to harm us. And that everything that we go through, even though it may seem difficult at the time, there is a reason. And when God makes us get out of situations by taking people or things from our lives it is because He has better plans for us. So when He gets rid of whatever "it" is then we need not to continue mourning or grumbling over what was lost, knowing God is fixing to do something.
So BURY your Moses. Then GRIEVE over your Moses (if necessary). And then ARISE!
Joshua 1:2 "Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel."
We should also know that no matter what the Lord takes away, gives, leads us to or from, He will always go before us to get us through it. He is always there.
Joshua 1:9 "Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest."
So we need to let go of the past. The past and hanging on to it will keep us from our futures that God has in store for us.
Isaiah 43:18-19 "Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Thursday, March 12, 2009
You Are The Weakest Link
Have you ever had your hopes on something and then your hopes got shot down? Or perhaps you have hoped for something and it came true. Either way there is one factor in both of these situations that will determine the outcome. The factor of this equation is you.
Let's say that you are a college student. Okay there is going to be a big exam coming up. This exam will be testing what you have learned over the entire class that you have taken. What are you going to do? Study? Right, you are going to study until you can't study anymore. While studying you have a confidence that you are going to pass this test with flying colors. You are making sure that you are going over everything you have learned from the class. You are not leaving anything out.
On the day of the exam your teacher announces that the exam is going to be the biggest determining factor of whether you pass or fail. You are thinking "Oh this is so easy, peace of cake." Test get handed out then the timer is set and you are told that you have one hour. And off you go. Looking at the test you begin to go blank. You just went over this question last night you were just so sure and positive. Then you nervously try to decide is the answer A.) or B.) or no wait is C.) OH MY GOSH! You begin to have sweat beads pop out on your nose and forehead. Your hands begin to get clammy. Why are you such a nervous wreck? This is just a test? Right?
We all do something similar to this in life. We start out confident that what we have learned so far in life is going to get us through every situation life throws at us. When we come upon something that we have not ever encountered we tend to freak a little. We are looking at it like it is humungous or just too hard. But if we just calm down and look at each problem or situation instead of trying to look at 100 problems at once, then we can take our time and not rush and make the wrong choices.
But that is what the devil wants us to do in life. He wants us to come to a point where we don't know what to do in a situation that we have never faced before. He wants us to start to panic. When we do this we allow a door to be opened for any answer or "hint" for the current problem.
When a problem or situation arises we are the weakest link in our own problems. If we could just calm down and think about the answer and look at the situation we are in and not get overwhelmed. We would know exactly what the "right" answer is.
The most important thing to do during life and before any big test, trial, or tribulation is to study. We must feed ourselves the Word of God everyday. By doing this we are studying ourselves approved. And then when we have a short little quiz we will pass these. Then we continue to study and do our best, then when the exams in life come up, we can and will be ready for them. Another important thing to do everyday is to pray and seek God's will and answers for our lives. Take everything to God in prayer. Asking Him to make a way or show you an answer to something before we jump into something too quickly. The last but not least thing to do is to leave you out of it. Flesh is a hard thing to leave out of an equation, especially when it involves you. But you will find that if you are seeking and searching God for His Will and His answer then you will be leaving flesh out of it.
But we can be assured that even if we do "fail" some of the "exams" in life. God is still right there beside of us. He is urging us to get back up and try, try, try again. When we do fail, God will never fail you.
Isaiah 43:2
"When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee."
Deuteronomy 4:29-31
"But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul. When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the LORD thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice; (For the LORD thy God is a merciful God;) he will not forsake thee......"
(2 Corinthians 12:10)
Let's say that you are a college student. Okay there is going to be a big exam coming up. This exam will be testing what you have learned over the entire class that you have taken. What are you going to do? Study? Right, you are going to study until you can't study anymore. While studying you have a confidence that you are going to pass this test with flying colors. You are making sure that you are going over everything you have learned from the class. You are not leaving anything out.
On the day of the exam your teacher announces that the exam is going to be the biggest determining factor of whether you pass or fail. You are thinking "Oh this is so easy, peace of cake." Test get handed out then the timer is set and you are told that you have one hour. And off you go. Looking at the test you begin to go blank. You just went over this question last night you were just so sure and positive. Then you nervously try to decide is the answer A.) or B.) or no wait is C.) OH MY GOSH! You begin to have sweat beads pop out on your nose and forehead. Your hands begin to get clammy. Why are you such a nervous wreck? This is just a test? Right?
We all do something similar to this in life. We start out confident that what we have learned so far in life is going to get us through every situation life throws at us. When we come upon something that we have not ever encountered we tend to freak a little. We are looking at it like it is humungous or just too hard. But if we just calm down and look at each problem or situation instead of trying to look at 100 problems at once, then we can take our time and not rush and make the wrong choices.
But that is what the devil wants us to do in life. He wants us to come to a point where we don't know what to do in a situation that we have never faced before. He wants us to start to panic. When we do this we allow a door to be opened for any answer or "hint" for the current problem.
When a problem or situation arises we are the weakest link in our own problems. If we could just calm down and think about the answer and look at the situation we are in and not get overwhelmed. We would know exactly what the "right" answer is.
The most important thing to do during life and before any big test, trial, or tribulation is to study. We must feed ourselves the Word of God everyday. By doing this we are studying ourselves approved. And then when we have a short little quiz we will pass these. Then we continue to study and do our best, then when the exams in life come up, we can and will be ready for them. Another important thing to do everyday is to pray and seek God's will and answers for our lives. Take everything to God in prayer. Asking Him to make a way or show you an answer to something before we jump into something too quickly. The last but not least thing to do is to leave you out of it. Flesh is a hard thing to leave out of an equation, especially when it involves you. But you will find that if you are seeking and searching God for His Will and His answer then you will be leaving flesh out of it.
But we can be assured that even if we do "fail" some of the "exams" in life. God is still right there beside of us. He is urging us to get back up and try, try, try again. When we do fail, God will never fail you.
Isaiah 43:2
"When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee."
Deuteronomy 4:29-31
"But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul. When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the LORD thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice; (For the LORD thy God is a merciful God;) he will not forsake thee......"
(2 Corinthians 12:10)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)