Awesome God – Praying Pint

36.q. “Great and awesome God”

Genesis 18:1 And the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth and said, “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree, while I bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.” And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick! Three seahs of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes.” And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to a young man, who prepared it quickly. Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them. And he stood by them under the tree while they ate.

They said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “She is in the tent.” The LORD said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah. So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?” The LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.” But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. He said, “No, but you did laugh.”

Deuteronomy 7:21    You shall not be in dread of them, for the LORD your God is in your midst, a great and awesome God.

Job 42:2  “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.

Jeremiah 32:17    ‘Ah, Lord GOD! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.

Matthew 19:26    But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Ephesians 3:20    Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us

We see a day in the life of Abraham. it’s hot and he is old and sitting in a bit of tent shade. Abraham sees messengers from God, bows down before them, offers a meal, prepares a meal, and serves them. He is told in one year’s time Sarah will conceive and give birth.

Abraham may not have known the Lord was coming to speak with him but he surely had an expectant hope that He would or could come. He invited the Lord to stay. He wanted to serve the Lord. He wanted to be in the presence of the Lord. He found comfort in the Lord. He believed in the promises made by the Lord.

We do well to simply live in the presence of God and wanting to serve Him rather than ourselves, wanting to hear from Him rather than things of this world, wanting to be in His presence rather than being out of it. It is in His presence our faith is rooted and grown and matured. It is in His presence we find purpose and meaning. It is in His presence continually that we find peace in times of unrest, hope in times of frustration, power in times of weakness, and clarity in times of confusion.

It is when we live knowing we are in the presence of God that we will find ourselves trusting, relying, believing, following, obeying, and serving Him and wanting everything we think, say, and do to Honor and Glorify Him.

4.g. “Nevertheless, they were disobedient and rebelled against you and cast your law behind their back”

Nehemiah 9:25 So they ate and were filled and became fat and delighted themselves in your great goodness.

“Nevertheless, they were disobedient and rebelled against you and cast your law behind their back and killed your prophets, who had warned them in order to turn them back to you, and they committed great blasphemies. Therefore you gave them into the hand of their enemies, who made them suffer. And in the time of their suffering they cried out to you and you heard them from heaven, and according to your great mercies you gave them saviors who saved them from the hand of their enemies. But after they had rest they did evil again before you, and you abandoned them to the hand of their enemies, so that they had dominion over them. Yet when they turned and cried to you, you heard from heaven, and many times you delivered them according to your mercies. And you warned them in order to turn them back to your law. Yet they acted presumptuously and did not obey your commandments, but sinned against your rules, which if a person does them, he shall live by them, and they turned a stubborn shoulder and stiffened their neck and would not obey. Many years you bore with them and warned them by your Spirit through your prophets. Yet they would not give ear. Therefore you gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands. Nevertheless, in your great mercies you did not make an end of them or forsake them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.

“Now, therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love, let not all the hardship seem little to you that has come upon us, upon our kings, our princes, our priests, our prophets, our fathers, and all your people, since the time of the kings of Assyria until this day. Yet you have been righteous in all that has come upon us, for you have dealt faithfully and we have acted wickedly. Our kings, our princes, our priests, and our fathers have not kept your law or paid attention to your commandments and your warnings that you gave them. Even in their own kingdom, and amid your great goodness that you gave them, and in the large and rich land that you set before them, they did not serve you or turn from their wicked works. Behold, we are slaves this day; in the land that you gave to our fathers to enjoy its fruit and its good gifts, behold, we are slaves. And its rich yield goes to the kings whom you have set over us because of our sins. They rule over our bodies and over our livestock as they please, and we are in great distress.

“Because of all this we make a firm covenant in writing; on the sealed document are the names of our princes, our Levites, and our priests.

Does this scripture reveal the intent of man’s heart? Do you see any revelation into the paths mankind takes when they are in times of prosperity? Time and time again God is sought with an open pleading heart in times of trials and trouble. This happens when you realize you are powerless in facing the trials and troubles before you. You humble yourself and call out to God because everything you have tried within your own power has failed. It is not as though you did not try with all your strength and courage to overcome but in the end, your efforts were not enough. Worldly wisdom would say to keep trying, get back up again, you can do this, and you are an overcomer. Too many times we listen to the worldly voice because it is the only words of hope in our mind. It is the words we latch on to because the word of God is void in our hearts and mind. However, when we have hit rock bottom and our heart, mind, and soul have become depleted of self-power, self-courage, self-wisdom, and self-strength it is then we can open the door to Jesus Christ and say forgive me please help. It is then we can make a commitment, put a stake in the ground, and stand firm in conviction to humbly serve, honor, glorify, follow, trust, and obey Jesus Christ. Nehemiah 9:38 “Because of all this we make a firm covenant in writing; on the sealed document are the names of our princes, our Levites, and our priests.”

Mighty and Awesome

For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome

Nehemiah 4:14
And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”

Number 14:8
If the Lord delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the Lord is with us; do not fear them.”

Deuteronomy 1:29
Then I said to you, ‘Do not be in dread or afraid of them. The Lord your God who goes before you will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes, and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place. ’ Yet in spite of this word you did not believe the Lord your God,

Deuteronomy 7:21
You shall not be in dread of them, for the Lord your God is in your midst, a great and awesome God.

Nehemiah had a job laid on his heart by God. During the job, others looked on what was being done and made fun of it. Yet Nehemiah new in his heart this plan was of God and encouraged the people with how AWESOME GOD IS. It is common to have concerns and questions about life when something comes up against our health, finances, family….. Yet remember – We are children of the God of god’s. It is common to occasionally worry about tomorrow’s things that have yet to happened….. Yet remember – We are in our Fathers hands who can separate us from His love. It is common to look to the past with regret over things long past and confessed to God…… Yet remember – If we confess our sin’s He is faithful and just to forgive us. Live today in desire and purpose to serve God’s plan. Listen for the quiet small voice nudging your heart. Seek His wisdom and move forward with confidence in His awesome power, strength, and might.