What Refuge

Reading: Deuteronomy 9-10, Psalm 143, and 2 Corinthians 8

Scripture: Psalm 143:9-10, Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord! I have fled to you for refuge. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God! Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!

Thoughts: It is way to easy to run to a refuge that we see or we know when we are experiencing adversity, yet the easy way and many time those refuge that we know so often leads to further pain and strife. When we seek refuge in Christ we open ourself to the teaching of Holy Spirit, that teaching and leading that will lead us on a level ground and walking in His will. Let us seek to walk in his will all the days of our lives and seek to be taught by Him daily. 

Prayer: Father God, you are my refuge and my strength, you lead me beside clear waters, I shall fear no evil. I thank you that’s you are leading me, that you have blessings and not cursing for me. I thank you that you are molding and refining me. Help me to walk in your ways and seek your refuge and not my own. 

Complaints???

Reading: Deuteronomy 5-6, Psalm 64, and 2 Corinthians 6

Scripture: Psalm 64:1-3, Hear my voice, O God, in my complaint; preserve my life from dread of the enemy. Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked, from the throng of evildoers, who whet their tongues like swords, who aim bitter words like arrows,

Thoughts: At different times in my life I know that I have had wrong views of God. We have a God that loves us enough that he sent his Son, a portion of himself, to come to earth to overcome sin so that we could have the opportunity to accept that gift and be in relationship with him. There were times where I felt that the only way to talk to God was praise and worship and the occasional help request. Here in this Psalm it is David crying out to God in a complaint. God is a big God and he tells us in Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” We can complain to God, but we also need to praise him in the middle of the storm as well. 

Prayer: Hear me O God, I am tired and weary, and feel lost. You are the creator of all things and your love endures forever. I thank you that you are molding me and refining me. I thank you that you are leading and guiding me. I ask that you give me the strength to overcome the trials that I’m going through, help me to be the father and husband you call me to be. 

Our Earthen Vessels

Reading: Deuteronomy 3-4 and 2 Corinthians 5

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:6-7, So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight.

Thoughts: Paul writhing to the Corinthian Church reminding them that our bodies are only our earthen vessels and that our home is in Heaven awaiting the time that we are loosed from our bodies and taken to our true home. We are reminded that we are sojourners here on this world that we are to be God’s ambassadors and sharing the love of God every were. When we are home in this body there are going to be trials, pain, and attacks, yet we are to have the courage to walk out that faith, knowing that this is not our home. Let us live life in a way that honors our true home and that others can’t help but wonder what it means. In a world full of hate we need a beacon of light that is Love.  

Prayer: Father God, you are love and you pour that love onto and into each of us. I thank you that you are pour that love into me that I can pour it our onto others. Help me to be more free with that love that I may more accurately point people to you. 

Go and take it!!!

Reading: Deuteronomy 1-2 and 1 Corinthians 4

Scripture: Deuteronomy 1:29-30, 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,

Thoughts: We have been give a promised land, a calling, a direction in our lives, yet we have fear and doubt when it comes to where we are going. Sure many times we are only given a step or two in a direction but unless we have the entire picture we don’t step out. Here Moses was reminding everyone what got them into the situation there are currently in, getting ready to go into the promised land 40 years after he first was going to take them in. They were told not to be afraid to go in and take the land but they were stirred up into a bundle of fear and had to wait those 40 years. What are we waiting on or rebelling against that God wants to bless us with? Strive to walk the path He has placed before you, no matter if the blessings are in this world or the next there will be great blessings when we walk His path and not our own.

Prayer: Father God, you known me better than I know myself, you know the darkest parts of my heart and the things that are worthy of praise. I thank you that you have chosen me and are leading me. I thank you that you are the potter and the smith who refines us. I ask that you help me to see the things in my life that need changing or removing and overcome those changes in your name and in your power. 

Who am i

Reading: Numbers 34-36 and 2 Corinthians 3

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 3:1,Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you, or from you?

Thoughts: How often do we loose perspective on who God called us to be and who he sees. It is just as easy to get puffed up as it is to think we are no good. We need to keep our perspective and listen to the voice of God speaking through Holy Spirit and His word. Who are we listening to, those who speak hurt pain and condemnation into our lives or those who speak love, joy, and encouragement? On the other hand who are we being the one who speaks life or death?

Prayer: Father God you are the one who knows us better than we know ourselves and yet you sent your son to die for us anyway, I thank you for all you have done and all you are doing. I ask that you help me to keep your perspective on who I am and not who I think I am or who the world tells me I am. 

That lot shall be his!!

Reading: Numbers 33, Psalm 65, and 2 Corinthians 2

Scripture: Numbers 33:54, You shall inherit the land by lot according to your clans. To a large tribe you shall give a large inheritance, and to a small tribe you shall give a small inheritance. Wherever the lot falls for anyone, that shall be his. According to the tribes of your fathers you shall inherit. 

Thoughts: I was drawn to the second to last sentence of this passage in Numbers, it is easy to look at the abundance of others, or our perception of abundance. In the USA we typically view abundance as more than we have, many nations view the poor here as rich. We each have a different perspective on where that abundance line is, but we each have a lot that was granted to us large or small. God has given it to us and he can adjust what he gave us. 

Prayer: Lord God, you own it all, you lead us and guide us, you pour out you peace and joy on us. I thank you for that which you gave me to steward. I thank you that you are molding me and growing me, I ask that you continue to refine me help me of remove the dross in my life and be purified. 

Reading: Numbers 11-12, Psalm 148, and 1 Corinthians 4

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 4:8, I have applied all these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, brothers, that you may learn by us not to go beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up in favor of one against another.

Thoughts:Not knowing all the questions and issues that caused the writing of this letter from Paul to the church at Corinth, all we get is the rebukes and corrections from someone that describes himself as a loving father in the faith. Earlier he was telling them not to argue over who taught them or who baptized them but to focus on what is written and not to go beyond the scripture. I have seen and heard of traditions in a church that got to the point of the tradition being just as important as the gospel. We start having issues when we speak where the word of God is silent and remaining silent where the word calls us to speak. May Holy Spirit fill us with discernment, cover us with wisdom and help us to overcome these things that even Paul placed the burden upon himself, Apollos, and all the believers. 

Prayer: Father God, I thank you for your word, the inspiration that you give to those who have written scripture and the revelations and discernment that you give us today. I thank you that you are leading us that you have a plan that we can be apart of. I thank you that you that you are leading and guiding us. I thank you that you are molding and refining me. Help me to remove the parts of my foundation that cause issues and replace them with things that reflect you and help me to be that father and husband you call me to be. 

Reading: numbers 7 and 1 Corinthians 2

Scripture: 1 Corinthians‬ ‭2:14-16, The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. 

Thoughts: When I read this passage I was reminder of a sermon talking about carrage and how we need to be bold even our families and friends. What hit me was the courage and how much courage it takes to not just believe the world and the walk in our faith. It's easy to just listen to the worlds explanations of what we are experiencing. The world wants us to see things only with our eyes end only hear with the ears that hear what they think we should hear. May the spirit fill us with the joy and discernment that we can better listen and hear the voice of God.

Prayer: Father God, you are so wonderful,you are the good shepherd, you lead us and guide us. I thank you that you have overcome and you offer us redemption. I thank you that you are molding me and refining me, , I ask that you fill me with you strength and corragel that I may overcome all things in your name.

What did you say???

Reading: Numbers 3 and Luke 23

Scripture: ‭‭Luke‬ ‭23:39-40, One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?

Thought: there is an old saying that a man’s last words gold. The words of great value we would think of Christ’s lasts words and the effort that it would take to even say them. I thought it was interesting that these two thieves were using these breaths that would have cost them dearly to take in to argue over who Jesus was, the pain and anguish it would have put them through to push themselves up using the nail in their feet to release enough strain on their arms and chest to take a couple breaths just to argue. When it comes to Christ there was the thief who mocked and the me who believed. We are just at guilty at those thieves are we going to be the one mocking someone or are we going to proclaim Christ through the pain and to the end?

Prayer: Father God, you are worthy of it all, you have created it all, you own it all and you are worth all my life. I thank you that you saw my worthy of redemption and have bought me out of my sin. I ask that you continue wot lead me and guide me, that mold me and refine me. I ask that you help me to remove the old faulty foundation of my life and help me to rebuild start anew. 

What are you lacking?

Reading: Numbers 2 and Luke 22

Scripture: Luke 22:35, And he said to them, “When I sent you out with no moneybag or knapsack or sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “Nothing.”

Thoughts: I have been easily distracted by the extra finances that God has blessed my family with. We have had our ups and downs and have had times of plenty and times of scarcity, I feel like we just came out of a time of want into a time of plenty, and I am being asked to recall that I have lacked nothing even when I was off work for a couple months, we had more than enough. The next verses Jesus tells the disciples that now they can take extra money and swords because there is going to be adversity coming. When we are seeking God and walking out his plan there will be adversity, no matter if it is from a person or group apposing us or if we are finding ourselves with opportunities to be tempted or fall into sin, there will be something trying to stop us. That is why we need that sword. Let us always remember to take up the sword that God has given to us.

Prayer: Father God, you are the provider, you are the protector, you aren’t the one who owns it all and over comes it all. I thank you that you are taking care of us and that you are leading and guiding us. Thank you that you are molding and refining me into the man you have called. I still struggle and need your refining and the growth you have for me. I ask that you lead me in all that I do, help me to grow in my love for you and the strength to overcome the temptations that are surrounding me.

What have I done now,

Reading: Leviticus 20-21 and Luke 16

Scripture: Luke 16:15, And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.

Thoughts: Jesus talking to the Pharisees, these religious elitists, telling them to stop judging themselves by others and by how good they present themselves because God knows everything they do in secret. It is the same for us, we present ourselves with perfect lives and we have it all together, we don’t make mistakes or fall down, just look at my Facebook and Instagram. No matter how pretty of a picture we paint for others to see, God still knows the mess we have made and the dark and dirty things in us. What are we hiding? Of those things in our live that are being hidden, who are trying to hide them from? We all have a purpose and are called to something greater that what we think we are capable of. Let us lay down those things that we are holding onto and find the release from the things we hold ourselves to and let God speak life into us. Let us stop looking to the world for acceptance and exaltation and seek the one who can raise up for eternity and not just for a fleeting moment.

Pray: Lord God, you are the one who leads us and guide us, you know the hairs on my head, the chains that I hold onto and the things I have burdened myself down with. I thank you that you are the light and that you are my strength, you are the power that flows through me and calls me into a greater authority. I thank you that you are working in me, you are molding me and refining me that I can be the man you have called me to. I ask that you help me to see the places in my life where I have things to let go of, places that need your help and strength to overcome. Help me to root our any lies that I have built my life on that I can grow in your truth. 

The old is good?!?!?!?

Reading: Exodus 40, Leviticus 1, and Luke 5

Scripture: Luke‬ ‭5:38-39‬, But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine desires new, for he says, “The old is good.”‭‬‬

Thoughts: As I read this morning, the saying here at the end of Luke 1 really stood out to me. “The old is good,” there is something in almost every one of us that says “I don’t like change,” the comfort of what we know can cloud us to the benefits of the opportunity that comes with change. I know in my life there are chains and strong holds that I struggle to let go and strive for the change that we are called to. In my strength I can do nothing I would sit and drink my old wine of sin and never know the grace and peace of the new wine of Jahovah Uzzi, The Lord my strength. Are we going to surrender our old wine and wineskin to the one who can give us the strength and power to overcome those strong holds and throw those chains away?

Prayer: Father God, you are my strength, you are my comfort in times of need and you own the cattle on a thousand hills. You are the provider of all things you lead and guide us, you give us the strength and abilities to overcome all adversity, even when it does not look like what I think it should. I thank you for all that you do, the provisions that you give us, the blessings you pour out on us, and the refining and molding you are doing in each of us. 

Called out

Reading: Exodus 38-39 and Luke 4

Scripture: Luke 4:33-34, And in the synagogue there was a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, “Ha! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.”

Thoughts: I never noticed that this man with the unclean spirit was in the synagogue on the sabbath, in the presence of the awesome power of the Son of God, this spirit could not keep quiet and was compelled to yell at Jesus. There are many thoughts and beliefs throughout the global Church on the demons and spirits, I have seen manifestation of people who are being oppressed and tormented but something not of this world. Through out the Word we see time like this where spirits recognize and call out Jesus for who he is before he has made himself know. We need to be aware there is a spiritual world and it is a raging war. Let us not be caught too far to one side or the other, ether saying there are not spirits or daemons, or getting to the point where we are blaming everything that is bad on the daemons and spirits around us. 

Prayer: Father God you are so wonderful. I thank you that you pour your spirit of discernment onto us, that you lead us and guide us. I thank you that you are molding me and refining me. I ask that you help us to have an open heart and mind to the leading of your spirit and the schemes of the evil one. I ask that you lead me and guide me all my days. 

I can do it my self!!!

Reading: Exodus 18-19 and Romans 8

Scripture: Exodus 18:13-14, The next day Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood around Moses from morning till evening. When Moses’ father-in-law saw all that he was doing for the people, he said, “What is this that you are doing for the people? Why do you sit alone, and all the people stand around you from morning till evening?”

Thoughts: We have all had those moment when we say to someone or even just to ourselves, “I will just do it myself.” There are many situations where deciding to do it yourself is a valid options but most of the time when we say it is when someone it not doing something to your standards or fast enough for you. Just this weekend I spent my time doing little building projects with my kids. My 7-year-old daughter built a bird house, and my 5-year-old son built a wood racecar. There were lots of times where I wanted to take the hammer and nails away from them and just do it, because they didn’t know how, they are weaker and inexperienced in swinging a hammer, so they were very slow. If I would have taken over and just put them together, they would not be proud of these projects and they would not have learned anything. Moses was being the judge for Israel and not letting the people learn and grow but setting up the levels of judges and Moses was working himself into an early grave. We need to take the advice of Jethro and not take on every burden and every thing out there. Not only are we not called to carry the burdens of the world and do it all ourselves, along with our brothers and sisters in Christ, God has said that we are not going in alone we have Holy Spirit with us whom that Lord will channel his power through. 

Prayer: Father God, you are our wise councilor, you are the rally point, and the strength to overcome. I thank you that you are here with me every day, that you sent your son to pay the price that I can have the opportunity to walk with you as Adam once did. I thank you that you are here molding me and refining me into that man you have called. I thank you that you called the all and will equip those willing to step out and walk in that calling. 

It is coming!!!

Reading: Genesis 37-38 and Acts 20

Scripture: Acts 20:22-23, And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, constrained by the Spirit, not knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me.

Thoughts: It has been my experience, and has been throughout the Bible that when we are given a direction and call from God, we tend to get of find opposition. When I heard God say to go pray for my aunt, I found all sorts of opposition within myself. Some were I had not talk to my aunt in years, I didn’t really feel like driving 300 mile one way, and it was a work day. Paul was set to go to Jerusalem and all along his trip everyone kept telling him that he was heading to prison and affliction. We may not be going to face imprisonment and affliction the way Paul did, but like Paul we have a calling to share the Gospel every were we go, and sometime we have a specific call like me to my aunt. I got to be a part of God healing my aunt because I listened despite all the thoughts and obstacles I saw. What have you been putting off and is it time to take that step? 

Prayer: Lord God you are the one who lead me and guides me. You own the cattle on a thousand hill, you created and love all, yet you still know me and the hairs on my head. I thank you that you are hear with me and leading me and guiding me. I thank you that you are molding and refining me every day. I thank you for you provisions and blessing that you pour out on us to steward. I thank you for the ability and opportunity to steward my family. I ask that you help me to continue to listen and walk the path you call me to. That you help me see the next steps as you promised when you said “I am the light to your path”