Multiplied – Praying Pint

50.v. Wilderness – 15.a. ” Take care lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside”

Deu 11:16-21  Take care lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them; then the anger of the LORD will be kindled against you, and he will shut up the heavens, so that there will be no rain, and the land will yield no fruit, and you will perish quickly off the good land that the LORD is giving you. “You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens are above the earth.

Luke 21:8    And he said, “See that you are not led astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and, ‘The time is at hand!’ Do not go after them.

Luke 21:36   But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

Hebrews 2:1    Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.

Hebrews 3:12    Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God.

Hebrews 4:1    Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it.

Hebrews 12:15     See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;

James 1:26 If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.

Deuteronomy 30:17 But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them,

God had to warn Israel against the deceptions of prosperity. The person who turns from God in prosperity is simply deceived. They believe they are somehow responsible for the blessings received and become proud and self-reliant. The constant need for rain kept Israel in constant dependence on the LORD. It is good for us to have things that keep us in constant dependence on the LORD. We should never despise those things and long for the day when we will no longer need to depend on God as much.

God called Israel to not only read the Word of God and to know the Word of God, but to treasure it. In the same way, we should love God’s word and miss it when we are separated from the Word of God. We should call it to mind with longing, having laid it up in our heart and soul. God’s Word was to be the topic of their conversation. We can fairly measure our love for God’s word by how much we will talk about it with others. God doesn’t want us to have a secret love relationship with His word. (Guzik)

But if, on the other hand, their heart was foolish to turn away from the Lord and serve other gods, the wrath of the Lord would burn against them, and God would shut up the heaven, that no rain should fall and the earth should yield no produce, and they would speedily perish. Let them therefore impress the words now set before them very deeply upon themselves and their children. “The promise to give the land to Israel for ever was not made unconditionally.” (Keil)

There are many things that can draw us away from God, doing things for God, studying God’s Word, trusting and relying upon God, and seeking and following after God. Nothing more so than that which pulled Sodom away. (Ezekiel 16:49) “Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy.” In prosperity and ease of life, they abandoned God and followed after the lusts of the flesh. They no longer saw the need for God or a reason to worship Him. They had a good life. Their land prospered, they had plenty of food, and they had money. In this they became arrogant, greedy, and lovers of the lusts of the flesh.

We live in such a time as this and must study God’s Word, examine our hearts and minds, and seek wisdom from God to discern right from wrong and good from bad to ensure that we are not pulled into it. Pornography is called and defended as “Adult entertainment” and this world calls it the right of an individual to gaze upon it. Abortion is called and defended as “Women’s Right to Choose” and this world calls it an inherent right of all women. LGBQT is called and defended as an “Alternative lifestyle” and proclaims it “hate speech” to address it as sin. Divorce is deemed a fact of life for at least 25% of marriages. Sex outside of marriage is deemed a natural occurrence and accepted. What Celebrities from sports and movies say and do are given more credence than the Word of God. The “Rich” are deemed a “self-made” man/woman. They are sought after to find their secrets to success. Elected officials are followed after and every word is trusted or rejected depending on the party affiliation. Social and News Media outlets are followed and trusted as truth on any given subject. YouTube influencers make a living off of trying to influence you to do or buy something or think some way. Sports are supported and followed more than the Word of God and things of God. People know team and player stats, and what politicians say and promise more than they know the Word of God. Physicians treat symptoms rather than finding the source of the problem. Obesity is rampant. Drug use is a problem. Assault crimes are common. Confusion, anxiousness, fear, anger, pride, arrogance, boastfulness, greed, etc…… are common.

We are to live in this world and all it has to offer without being influenced by it or joining in it. How long will God’s wrath against such depravity be withheld? Far too many Christians, I fear, have already chosen to live as close to this world as they can. They talk sports, news, politics, and weather more than they speak the Word of God. What would happen to their thinking if they shut off the TV, Sports, and Social Media in their homes?

Think about it. What life change or decision today is made from spending time in these areas of worldly influence? Where do you think confusion, anxiousness, fear, anger, pride, arrogance, boastfulness, greed, etc…… come from? Can you even discern they’re the source of these in your lives? Do you care? Is your heart sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s leading? Can you even discern the Holy Spirit’s conviction, encouragement, or teaching? It is never too late to repent and turn away from the influences of this world in your lives.

The hymn “Turn your eyes upon Jesus”

O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There’s light for a look at the Savior,
And life more abundant and free!

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.

Through death into life everlasting
He passed, and we follow Him there;
O’er us sin no more hath dominion—
For more than conqu’rors we are!

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.

His Word shall not fail you—He promised;
Believe Him, and all will be well:
Then go to a world that is dying,
His perfect salvation to tell!

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.

40.v. “A land flowing with milk and honey”

Exodus 3:8 I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

Deuteronomy 8:7-9    For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing out in the valleys and hills,  a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey,  a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper.

Nehemiah 9:24  You multiplied their children as the stars of heaven, and you brought them into the land that you had told their fathers to enter and possess.

Jeremiah 2:7   And I brought you into a plentiful land to enjoy its fruits and its good things. But when you came in, you defiled my land and made my heritage an abomination.

Jeremiah 32:22   And you gave them this land, which you swore to their fathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey.

Ezekiel 20:6   On that day I swore to them that I would bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land that I had searched out for them, a land flowing with milk and honey, the most glorious of all lands.

A good land and a large.—The land promised to Abraham (Genesis 15:18) well deserves this description. Besides Philistia, and Palestine on both sides of the Jordan, it included almost the whole of Syria from Galilee on the south, to Amanus, Taurus, and the Euphrates on the north and north-east. This tract of country is 450 miles long, and from sixty to a hundred and twenty miles broad. Its area is not much less than 50,000 square miles. Although some parts are unproductive, it is, on the whole, a region of great fertility. (Ellicott)

And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians,…. Which must be understood consistent with the omnipresence of God, who is everywhere, and strictly speaking cannot be said to remove from place to place, or to descend; but such a way of speaking is used, when he gives some eminent display of his power or goodness, as here in a wonderful manner he appeared in a burning bush, and manifested himself in a way of grace and kindness to his people, signifying that he would shortly save them: so Christ in our nature came down from heaven to earth, to save his spiritual Israel out of the hands of all their enemies and to bring them out of that land; the land of Egypt, where they were in bondage, and greatly oppressed. (Gill)

The purposes, plans, and will of God are at best a mystery which He exposes to whom He and when He chooses. He knows the beginning from the end. Everything in the future is known to Him. Nothing is hidden. Nothing is new. Nothing is beyond His knowing. He orchestrates His creation for His pleasure which is clothed in righteousness, holiness, justice, grace, mercy, and love. Paul, trying to explain this says; “we are the clay and He is the potter, who are we to question what He chooses to do with the creation of His hands”

His promises for His chosen people are clear. The timing of fulfilling these promises is not. However, the fact that God gave the promises means with no uncertain terms, they are already fulfilled if not seen by man. Eternal life is promised to those who believe. Eternal hell and torment are promised to those who do not. Though they are not yet realized, they are in fact already executed by the Promises given. Denying or rejecting promises does not make them void. They are sure to come because God has given them. You can know the promises of God but not believe them, just as you can know the commands of God and not follow or obey them. Belief and faith in God’s promises are essential for a person to come to repentance and salvation through Jesus Christ. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whosoever would believe in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” Belief and faith in this promise change a person. they are born again, a new creation, for the honor and glory of Jesus Christ in all they think, say, and do. Belief and faith in the promises of God change a person from a destination of eternal hell and torment to eternal life.

The promise of a land flowing with milk and honey in this life is but a small glimpse of what awaits us in heaven within the presence of the Holiness of God.

40.k. “Because the midwives feared God”

Exodus 1:15 Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, “When you serve as midwife to the Hebrew women and see them on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall kill him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live.” But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live. So the king of Egypt called the midwives and said to them, “Why have you done this, and let the male children live?” The midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.” So God dealt well with the midwives. And the people multiplied and grew very strong. And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families. Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, “Every son that is born to the Hebrews you shall cast into the Nile, but you shall let every daughter live.”

We are not to think that these were the only midwives to so many thousands of Hebrew women, but they were the most eminent among them; and it may be, for their excellency in that profession called to the service of some Egyptian ladies, and by them known to Pharaoh, who might therefore think by their own interest, and by the promise of great rewards, or by severe threatenings, to oblige them to comply with his desires; and if he met with the desired success by them, he meant to proceed further, and to engage the rest in like manner. (Poole)

But the midwives feared God: They probably feared Pharaoh and his power; but they feared God more. For them, the choice was clear. The civil government commanded something that was clearly against God’s command. The midwives did the only right thing: they obeyed God rather than men. Though generally we are called to obey the government and honor civic rulers (Romans 13:1-5), we are never called to put government in the place of God. Therefore, if the government tells us to do something against God’s will, we are to obey God first. (Guzik)

Here are the problems with many people today;

Having discernment to know the difference between right and wrong
Knowing scripture
Fearing God more than man
Seeking and desiring to hear the quiet whispers of the Holy Spirit directing thoughts and actions
Seeking and desiring to honor and glorify Jesus Christ

As election time has recently passed I am amazed at the issues people gravitate towards. Reproductive rights is used to disguise killing babies in the womb and people cannot discern the insanity of this murder of innocent babies. People are actually cheering for this right to kill. This was the number one issue causing many to vote. Is there no fear of God in these people? Have they become so calloused and heart hardened that the horrific action of killing babies in the womb is a right? What about the rights of the unborn? Who speaks for them? What kind of person thinks this is right, true, and just?

Lost people. People who have no light in their heart. People who are living in darkness. People who seem to have no other course of action. People who are afraid. People who are worried. They are lost and following the lead of “what seems right” in the eyes of those promoting this darkness.

Is it possible for these lost to come to the understanding of sin, salvation, forgiveness, and eternal life? YES, YES, YES!!!! We certainly do not need to be hating these people nor the ones promoting abortion. They are lost and in darkness. We can be the light and are called to be the light reflection the grace, mercy, and love of Jesus Christ. We can certainly hate, despise, and be angered at the killing of unborn babies. Having a heart that is sensitive to this and being upset is normal. It is out of this “being upset” that we can pray more earnestly, live more kindly, speak more lovingly, and proclaim hope to the lost.

40.i. “But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly”

Exodus 1:1 These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, each with his household: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin, Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. All the descendants of Jacob were seventy persons; Joseph was already in Egypt. Then Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation. But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.

From the call of Abraham, when God first told him he would make him a great nation, to the deliverance of his seed out of Egypt, were four hundred and thirty years; during the first two hundred and fifteen of which they were increased to seventy, but in the latter half, those seventy multiplied to six hundred thousand fighting men.(Benson)

During more than 200 years, while Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob lived at liberty, the Hebrews increased slowly; only about seventy persons went down into Egypt. There, in about the same number of years, though under cruel bondage, they became a large nation. This wonderful increase was according to the promise long before made unto the fathers. Though the performance of God’s promises is sometimes slow, it is always sure.(Henry)

The first verses of Exodus reach back some 430 years. The story of the Exodus begins where the story Genesis ends: a large family with a crucial place in God’s plan of the ages and their migration to Egypt. Joseph was the remarkable great-grandson of Abraham who saved Egypt – and the world – from terrible famine because he listened to God’s voice speaking through Pharaoh’s dream. Because of his wisdom and administration, he was lifted to high and honored office in Egypt. Yet eventually, Joseph died and the status his family enjoyed died with him. (Guzik)

The promise given to Abraham concerning a great nation coming from his family was God’s plan and promise. We look at the time from promise to Abraham until Joseph and there are 70 up till then. In three plus generations the family grew to 70 and were put in a place of protection and blessings in Egypt. These blessing continued for many years until the heart of the Egyptian Pharaoh at that time became hard against them. This time laps (~430 years) brings us to the Exodus. God’s chosen are now going to start their journey to the promised land that was proclaimed to Abraham.

Never let circumstances and time give you reason to doubt the promises of God. He is God and all of His plans and purposes will come to be in His perfect timing.

19.g. “O LORD my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;”

John 21:25 Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.

John 20:30-31    Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book;  but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Psalms 71:15   My mouth will tell of your righteous acts, of your deeds of salvation all the day, for their number is past my knowledge.

Job 26:14   Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways, and how small a whisper do we hear of him! But the thunder of his power who can understand?”

Psalms 40:5    You have multiplied, O LORD my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us; none can compare with you! I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told.

Ephesians 3:20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us

If it were possible to write volumes of books that contained the works of Jesus, the world could not contain them. The righteous acts of God and His deeds of salvation exceed our knowledge. Though we have been given God’s Word, it appears to be a vast writing with unlimited knowledge of God. We could spend a lifetime reading it and our understanding of God would still be but a whisper of who and what God is, let alone His power, might, strength, grace, mercy, wisdom, knowledge, ……….. Understanding of God can not be something that is read and understood, it must be revealed to us by the Holy Spirit. “To whom will he teach knowledge,

and to whom will he explain the message? For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little.”

God has given deep in our hearts a beginning knowledge of Himself. He has revealed Himself to us through creation. He has revealed Himself through His Word. He has revealed Himself through Jesus Christ. He has revealed Himself through mighty and wondrous works of His power. He has revealed His grace, mercy, and love through Jesus. When we think of the limitlessness of God, then His Word and what we can see of His Creation speak but a whisper to our minds. What He has revealed should not be considered a whisper though. It should be considered a SHOUT, a thunderous SHOUT to each and every soul. It is a SHOUT of love and of warning. It is a SHOUT of eternal life and eternal torment and hell. It is a Shout of the Heavenly and worldly. It is a SHOUT of righteousness and wickedness, good and bad, faithful and unfaithful, truth and lies. It is a SHOUT of hope, refuge, power, strength, and courage, and of fear, anger, hate, and confusion. It is a SHOUT of redemption, salvation, and forgiveness, and of judgment, condemnation, and rejection.

It is a loud thunderous SHOUT to every soul. On judgment day no one will be able to say I didn’t know or I never heard for it will be clear to them than just how many times in their lives they rejected and denied the thunderous SHOUTS of God’s warnings and love.

1.x.

2 Chronicles 12:1 When the rule of Rehoboam was established and he was strong, he abandoned the law of the Lord, and all Israel with him. In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, because they had been unfaithful to the Lord, Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem with 1,200 chariots and 60,000 horsemen. And the people were without number who came with him from Egypt—Libyans, Sukkiim, and Ethiopians. And he took the fortified cities of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem. Then Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and to the princes of Judah, who had gathered at Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said to them, “Thus says the Lord, You abandoned me, so I have abandoned you to the hand of Shishak.’” Then the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The Lord is righteous.” When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah: “They have humbled themselves. I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance, and my wrath shall not be poured out on Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. Nevertheless, they shall be servants to him, that they may know my service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.”

So Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem. He took away the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king’s house. He took away everything. He also took away the shields of gold that Solomon had made, and King Rehoboam made in their place shields of bronze and committed them to the hands of the officers of the guard, who kept the door of the king’s house. And as often as the king went into the house of the Lord, the guard came and carried them and brought them back to the guardroom. And when he humbled himself the wrath of the Lord turned from him, so as not to make a complete destruction. Moreover, conditions were good in Judah.

So King Rehoboam grew strong in Jerusalem and reigned. Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city that the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel to put his name there. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite. And he did evil, for he did not set his heart to seek the Lord.

Deuteronomy 8:10-14    And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the LORD your God for the good land he has given you.  “Take care lest you forget the LORD your God by not keeping his commandments and his rules and his statutes, which I command you today,  lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them,  and when your herds and flocks multiply and your silver and gold is multiplied and all that you have is multiplied,  then your heart be lifted up, and you forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery,

Deuteronomy 32:18    You were unmindful of the Rock that bore you, and you forgot the God who gave you birth.

1 Kings 9:9     Then they will say, ‘Because they abandoned the LORD their God who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt and laid hold on other gods and worshiped them and served them. Therefore the LORD has brought all this disaster on them.’”

Jeremiah 2:31   And you, O generation, behold the word of the LORD. Have I been a wilderness to Israel, or a land of thick darkness? Why then do my people say, ‘We are free, we will come no more to you’?

Hosea 13:6-8    but when they had grazed, they became full, they were filled, and their heart was lifted up; therefore they forgot me.  So I am to them like a lion; like a leopard I will lurk beside the way.  I will fall upon them like a bear robbed of her cubs; I will tear open their breast, and there I will devour them like a lion, as a wild beast would rip them open.

After 5 years of prosperity and blessings, Rehoboam abandons God. Remember for three years the Levites, priests, and others who fled the idol worship brought on by Jeroboam gave security to Rehoboam. He received and the influx of God-honoring, God following, and God obeying fellow Israelites. What has happened that drew Rehoboam away from following God and all of the blessings that had come during Solomons time?

We never know how slippery the slope is away from God. We never know what it is that fills the first void of the heart that no longer seeks and desires God. What we do know is that we need to be on guard of our heart and mind. We must take inventory of what is actively trying to pull us away. It would be nice if this pulling came like a roaring lion and gave plenty of notice of how it will attack our seeking and desiring God. We would have reason to fear and run to the arms of Jesus Christ. We would know of our pending destruction and see a reason to stay close to God.

However, it is never like this. The pull comes like the sweet taste of honey and what can be wrong with a bit of honey? It slips into our inner being disguised and satisfies some natural desire or lust. It plants a seek and we don’t even know it and before long the seed has taken root in our heart and mind. The leaves blind our eyes and plug our ears so that we no longer see things of God or hear His call to us. We have been over grown by what appeared to be sweet honey because we chose that first step away from God. Had we stayed close to Him we would have tasted and known the bitterness temping us. It would have been clear as the sun at noon.

Why do you think these examples were given to us in God’s word? They were given to us to keep us aware of the temptations of our heart and soul if we do not intentionally choose to give all our heart, soul, and mind to God. Seek and desire Him above all else and He will give you the desire of your heart. How many lives come to disaster by the lure of the sweet taste of honey?

Have you been deceived

“ for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.”

“ And here he is, speaking openly, and they say nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Christ?”

John 7:46 The officers answered, “No one ever spoke like this man!” The Pharisees answered them, “Have you also been deceived? Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed.” Nicodemus, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said to them, “Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?”

Luke 4:22 And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth.

John 9:27 He answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples? And they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” The man answered, “Why, this is an amazing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” They answered him, “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out.

Matthew 11:25 At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children;

1 Corinthians 1:20 Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?

Acts 6:7 And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.

There are always going to be those who do not believe even though the deaf hear and the blind see. Each choose their path from the same observation(s). One heart is hard and their mind is closed to things of God. The other heart and mind is open with a desire to know God and humbly serve, honor, follow and obey Him. Each of these lives start with a belief that Jesus does or Jesus does not exist and that He alone is the redeemer of the lost. Culture, pride, and fear all play a part in denying Jesus. It takes faith, trust, and commitment to surrender all to Him. Choosing to follow, honor, obey and serve Him is a way of life for each day. Our life has purpose and meaning. The fulfillment of this continues each day as we walk with Him.

My Mouth Will Tell

“My mouth will tell of your righteous acts, of your deeds of salvation all the day, for their number is past my knowledge.”

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

Psalms 40:5 You have multiplied, O LORD my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us; none can compare with you! I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told.

Psalms 136:4 to him who alone does great wonders,

Exodus 15:11 “Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?

Job 5:9 who does great things and unsearchable, marvelous things without number:

Job 26:14 Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways, and how small a whisper do we hear of him! But the thunder of his power who can understand?”

Psalms 92:5 How great are your works, O LORD! Your thoughts are very deep!

Psalms 139:6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it.

Psalms 139:17 How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you.

Jeremiah 29:11 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.

What is our thoughts about God and His love, mercy, power, and grace? Do we think about this? Are we living close enough to Him that we experience it? Do we acknowledge Him and what He has done, is doing, and will do? The creator has not only reach out to us and made Himself known, He has given us great precious promises so that we through faith would have hope, joy, peace, rest, love, forgiveness and eternal life with Him. Why are we content with living on the edge of this? What keeps us from desiring to be in and always experiencing His presence in our daily lives? Scripture says out of the abundance of the heart our mouth will speak. What goes in is what comes out. Stay close to Him. Stay in His word. Meditate on it. Proclaim it. Desire it.

Thankful Worship

“choose this day whom you will serve”

“But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD”

” Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

Psalms 5:7
But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love, will enter your house. I will bow down toward your holy temple in the fear of you.

Joshua 24:15
And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

Psalms 55:16
But I call to God, and the LORD will save me.

Psalms 130:4
But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.

Acts 9:31
So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.

Hebrews 12:28
Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.

1 Peter 1:17
And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.

Psalms 132:7
“Let us go to his dwelling place; let us worship at his footstool!”

Hebrews 4:16
Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Choose this day whom you will serve, worship, honor and glorify. This was spoken by Joshua near the end of his life as another reminder to those he was leading. David said I will call on the Lord who will save me. And because he knew this and believed it he said Lets go to His dwelling place and worship Him. These are summed up by the writer of Hebrews in Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. How hard is it to stay near God? What is His grace and mercy like to you? What does it mean to worship Him? How do I know if I am worshiping Him? We must recognize that we by nature want to be separated from God and we must choose to draw near and stay near to Him. This is a choice all day, every day. When we make this choice we find or see more and more blessings from the hand of God and we are able to acknowledge and thank/worship Him. It is hard to stay near to Him without being in His word. It is hard to find someone you are not looking for. It is hard to thank/worship one you do not acknowledge.