relationships (Deuteronomy 31:1-30) Real Trust

(Deuteronomy 31:1-30) So Moses went and spoke these words to all Israel. 2 And he said to them, “I am 120 years old today; I am no longer able to go out and come in, and the Lord has told me, ‘You shall not cross this Jordan.’ 3 It is the Lord your God who is going to cross ahead of you; He Himself will destroy these nations before you, and you shall dispossess them. Joshua is the one who is going to cross ahead of you, just as the Lord has spoken. 4 And the Lord will do to them just as He did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when He destroyed them. 5 The Lord will turn them over to you, and you will do to them in accordance with all the commandments which I have commanded you. 6 Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or in dread of them, for the Lord your God is the One who is going with you. He will not desert you or abandon you.”

7 Then Moses called to Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you will go with this people into the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you will give it to them as an inheritance. 8 And the Lord is the one who is going ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not desert you or abandon you. Do not fear and do not be dismayed.”

9 So Moses wrote this Law and gave it to the priests, the sons of Levi who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel. 10 Then Moses commanded them, saying, “At the end of every seven years, at the time of the year of the release of debts, at the Feast of Booths, 11 when all Israel comes to appear before the Lord your God at the place which He will choose, you shall read this Law before all Israel so that they hear it. 12 Assemble the people, the men, the women, the children, and the stranger who is in your town, so that they may hear and learn and fear the Lord your God, and be careful to follow all the words of this Law. 13 And their children, who have not known, will hear and learn to fear the Lord your God, as long as you live on the land which you are about to cross the Jordan to possess.”

14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, the time for you to die is near; call Joshua and present yourselves at the tent of meeting, and I will commission him.” So Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves at the tent of meeting. 15 And the Lord appeared in the tent in a pillar of cloud, and the pillar of cloud stood at the entrance of the tent. 16 The Lord said to Moses, “Behold, you are about to lie down with your fathers; and this people will arise and play the prostitute with the foreign gods of the land into the midst of which they are going, and they will abandon Me and break My covenant which I have made with them. 17 Then My anger will be kindled against them on that day, and I will abandon them and hide My face from them, and they will be consumed, and many evils and troubles will find them; so they will say on that day, ‘Is it not because our God is not among us that these evils have found us?’ 18 But I will assuredly hide My face on that day because of all the evil that they will have done, for they will have turned away to other gods.

19 “Now then, write this song for yourselves, and teach it to the sons of Israel; put it on their lips, so that this song may be a witness for Me against the sons of Israel. 20 For when I bring them into the land flowing with milk and honey, which I swore to their fathers, and they eat and are satisfied and become prosperous, then they will turn to other gods and serve them, and spurn Me and break My covenant. 21 Then it will come about, when many evils and troubles find them, that this song will testify before them as a witness (for it shall not be forgotten from the mouth of their descendants); for I know their inclination which they are developing today, before I bring them into the land which I swore.” 22 So Moses wrote down this song on the same day, and taught it to the sons of Israel.

23 Then He commissioned Joshua the son of Nun, and said, “Be strong and courageous, for you will bring the sons of Israel into the land which I swore to them, and I will be with you.”

24 It came about, when Moses finished writing the words of this Law in a book until they were complete, 25 that Moses commanded the Levites who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, saying, 26 “Take this Book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, so that it may remain there as a witness against you. 27 For I know your rebellion and your stubbornness; behold, as long as I have been alive with you until today, you have been rebellious against the Lord; how much more, then, after my death? 28 Assemble to me all the elders of your tribes and your officers, that I may speak these words in their hearing and call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against them. 29 For I know that after my death you will behave very corruptly and turn from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will confront you in the latter days, because you will do that which is evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking Him to anger with the work of your hands.”

30 Then Moses spoke in the hearing of all the assembly of Israel the words of this song, until they were complete:

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

Moses already feared the Lord, and even though he was about to die soon without being able to cross over the Jordon, he really had nothing to fear.  He was about to "cross over" into heavenly rest.  What better place of promise???!!!

Meanwhile, The Israelites were told not to fear, as they were about to cross over the Jordon River into the promised land - without Moses - their "fearless" leader.  They were only to fear the Lord.  Of course, God asks people to step up to serve and lead.  And so, even though Joshua was now going to take over Moses' leadership role, the people were still to only fear the Lord and trust in Him!  It says in verse 16 that putting our faith in anyone or anything else is to "play the prostitute" so this is a very serious error!

Far too often, Christians will put their focus, hope, trust and faith on their spiritual leaders or other people or their jobs...  As well, Christians will often put someone ahead of God and look to them to "complete", satisfy and fulfill them and their lives.  But people are not holy, they make mistakes!  People will care and love us, but not perfectly!  People are not omniscient, so they don't know everything!  People are not omnipotent, so they cannot do everything and anything!  People are not omnipresent, so they cannot be there for you 24-7... And people eventually die!

To fear the Lord is to have the utmost poignant respectful reverence towards Him.  As we put this word "fear" into context of the entire Bible, it is very consistent.  As children of God, we are told that as we fear the Lord, we do not have to fear anyone or anything.  We are not to worry or fret.  We are not to be anxious for any reason.

As a Christian from the age of 4, I understood this very well.  And as I have lived in some areas that have extremely high crime rates, I put this into practice.  I learned to pray without ceasing.  And as I went out, I was strong and courageous, while exercising wisdom, even when walking past murder scenes or having rocks hurled at me because of my color or being surrounded by gang members...

Interestingly, once I was living in "safer" communities, I experienced PTSD.  Studying up on this, the experts say that one really cannot be free of this, but one can figure out coping strategies.  Okay, my coping strategy was obviously to pray and trust God.  Yet still... I would have these anxious moments when there wasn't any reason!  Decades later, as I was praying for someone else who struggled with PTSD, I had an ah-ha moment!  "Tanis, look at the log in your own eye!"  I did not trust God to protect me from potential danger?  I did not trust God to protect me from nothing???!!!  "Lord, that is a sin and I confess that!"  

Immediately, a weight literally lifted off my chest.  And just for an example, when the house was empty, and the Tanis BEFORE this prayer went to take a shower, I would lock the bedroom door, and then lock the bathroom door, and often I'd turn the water off, wondering about some noise I just heard.  There were times I would towel off and dress, in order to case the entire house before being able to continue my shower.  And then I'd hear another noise...  But now, the Tanis after confessing my sin, could leave all the doors wide open and shower in amazing peace.

Getting to know God on a very personal level through reading and studying His word, as well as hearing other people's testimonies, as well as experiencing the amazing things God does in our own lives - we will see and know that He goes before us.  Because He is omnipotent, when we ask Him and allow Him, it is the Lord who fights our battles.  Because He is omniscient, we can go to Him with any problem and trust that He knows the solution.  Because He is omnipresent, He is with us always, and will never desert or abandon us.

relationships (Deuteronomy 30:1-20) Being Consistent

(Deuteronomy 30:1-20) “So it will be when all of these things have come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have placed before you, and you call them to mind in all the nations where the Lord your God has scattered you, 2 and you return to the Lord your God and obey Him with all your heart and soul in accordance with everything that I am commanding you today, you and your sons, 3 then the Lord your God will restore you from captivity, and have compassion on you, and will gather you again from all the peoples where the Lord your God has scattered you. 4 If any of your scattered countrymen are at the ends of the earth, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there He will bring you back. 5 The Lord your God will bring you into the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it; and He will be good to you and make you more numerous than your fathers.

6 “Moreover, the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the hearts of your descendants, to love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul, so that you may live. 7 And the Lord your God will inflict all these curses on your enemies and on those who hate you, who persecuted you. 8 And you will again obey the Lord, and follow all His commandments which I am commanding you today. 9 Then the Lord your God will prosper you abundantly in every work of your hand, in the children of your womb, the offspring of your cattle, and in the produce of your ground, for the Lord will again rejoice over you for good, just as He rejoiced over your fathers; 10 if you obey the Lord your God, to keep His commandments and His statutes which are written in this Book of the Law, if you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and soul.

11 “For this commandment which I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it far away. 12 It is not in heaven, that you could say, ‘Who will go up to heaven for us and get it for us, and proclaim it to us, so that we may follow it?’ 13 Nor is it beyond the sea, that you could say, ‘Who will cross the sea for us and get it for us and proclaim it to us, so that we may follow it?’ 14 On the contrary, the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may follow it.

15 “See, I have placed before you today life and happiness, and death and adversity, 16 in that I am commanding you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, so that you may live and become numerous, and that the Lord your God may bless you in the land where you are entering to take possession of it. 17 But if your heart turns away and you will not obey, but allow yourself to be led astray and you worship other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today that you will certainly perish. You will not prolong your days in the land where you are crossing the Jordan to enter and take possession of it. 19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have placed before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants, 20 by loving the Lord your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding close to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days, so that you may live in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them.”

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

Everyone wants justice and everyone wants good things.  God desires to give us good things and work things out for us;  but so often people try to bargain with God, saying, "If YOU do this for me, THEN I will believe and be obedient."  But this isn't a good way to have a close relationship with anyone, let alone God!  It just doesn't work that way.  Yet God wants us to have a good life filled with love and joy!

Because God loves the world, He already has done the most amazing thing for us.  Because there is no way we can reach up to heaven... He, Himself, came down to earth in flesh (to be 100% man while still being 100% God) to pay for our sins on the cross.  He rose again to have victory over death, so that anyone who believes in Him will have eternal life.  

God has also given us His word so that we can fully know and understand salvation and HIs will.  And God has made it very "easy" to know Him personally and to follow Him.  He pretty much does it for us.  All that is required of us is giving Him our heart and soul - which is trusting, believing and having faith in Him.  

In our love and thankfulness, we will desire to love, listen, serve, and obey the Lord.  Even in this, God makes it "easy".  When we become believers, God immediately seals us with the Holy Spirit of promise, indwelling our hearts and souls, to guide us and prompt us.  All that is required of us is our willingness to respond, and us allowing God to work in and through our hearts, to change us from the inside out.

God knows that we will still mess up, yet He will never tire of us returning and returning to Him!  No matter how often or far away we might allow ourselves to be "scattered"!  When we do stray, we need to remember God's words, and return to Him, and strive to be obedient - with all our heart and soul - in every aspect our lives.  THEN (as verse 3 says) God will restore us and continue to work in our hearts that we may love and live.

God's love is unconditional and everlasting.  His blessings and compassion are based on our response/s to His love.  So our consistency in responding to God's love is all about striving to remain obedient, in His love.  Because of His love, we will want to consistently keep getting back on the path to following and serving Him, all in His strength and wisdom, to His glory.

relationships (Deuteronomy 29:1-29) Real Success

(Deuteronomy 29:1-29) These are the words of the covenant which the Lord commanded Moses to make with the sons of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the covenant which He had made with them at Horeb.

2 And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, “You have seen all that the Lord did before your eyes in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and all his servants, and to all his land; 3 the great trials which your eyes have seen, those great signs and wonders. 4 Yet to this day the Lord has not given you a heart to know, nor eyes to see, nor ears to hear. 5 And I have led you in the wilderness for forty years; your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandal has not worn out on your foot. 6 You have not eaten bread, nor have you drunk wine or other strong drink, in order that you might know that I am the Lord your God. 7 When you reached this place, Sihon the king of Heshbon and Og the king of Bashan came out to meet us for battle, but we defeated them; 8 and we took their land and gave it as an inheritance to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of the Manassites. 9 So you will keep the words of this covenant and do them, in order that you may be successful in everything that you do.

10 “You stand today, all of you, before the Lord your God: your heads, your tribes, your elders and your officers, that is, all the men of Israel, 11 your little ones, your wives, and the stranger who is within your camps, from the one who gathers your firewood to the one who draws your water, 12 so that you may enter into the covenant with the Lord your God, and into His oath which the Lord your God is making with you today, 13 in order that He may establish you today as His people, and that He may be your God, just as He spoke to you and as He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

14 “Now it is not with you alone that I am making this covenant and this oath, 15 but both with those who stand here with us today in the presence of the Lord our God, and with those who are not with us here today 16 (for you know how we lived in the land of Egypt, and how we passed through the midst of the nations through which you passed; 17 moreover, you have seen their abominations and their idols made of wood and stone, silver and gold, which they had with them); 18 so that there will not be among you a man or woman, or family or tribe, whose heart turns away today from the Lord our God, to go to serve the gods of those nations; that there will not be among you a root bearing poisonous fruit and wormwood. 19 And it shall be when he hears the words of this curse, that he will consider himself fortunate in his heart, saying, ‘I will do well though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart in order to destroy the watered land along with the dry.’ 20 The Lord will not be willing to forgive him, but rather the anger of the Lord and His wrath will burn against that person, and every curse that is written in this book will lie upon him, and the Lord will wipe out his name from under heaven. 21 Then the Lord will single him out for disaster from all the tribes of Israel, in accordance with all the curses of the covenant which is written in this Book of the Law.

22 “Now the future generation, your sons who rise up after you and the foreigner who comes from a distant land, when they see the plagues of that land and the diseases with which the Lord has afflicted it, will say, 23 ‘All its land is brimstone and salt, burned debris, unsown and unproductive, and no grass grows on it, like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the Lord overthrew in His anger and in His wrath.’ 24 All the nations will say, ‘Why has the Lord done all this to this land? Why this great outburst of anger?’ 25 Then people will say, ‘It is because they abandoned the covenant of the Lord, the God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt. 26 And they went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods that they have not known and whom He had not assigned to them. 27 Therefore, the anger of the Lord burned against that land, to bring upon it every curse which is written in this book; 28 and the Lord uprooted them from their land in anger, fury, and in great wrath, and hurled them into another land, as it is this day.’

29 “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, so that we may follow all the words of this Law.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

God warns the Israelites that no individual should think that they can secretly be rebellious and still be recipients of His blessings.  For the covenants to be fulfilled, God looks at the nation of Israel's obedience as a whole.  But for salvation, God looks at the hearts of each individual.  God sees and knows everything.  

So it doesn't matter if you grew up in a Christian nation, or if you were born into a Christian family, or if you attend church regularly, or if you are a "good person"...  We all have one choice to make:  to not believe, or to believe.  The only way to heaven is to put our faith and trust in Jesus!  And when we do, our names will be written in the book of Life for all eternity.

Meanwhile, we have this life to live here on earth.  So what is "success" in life?  While God will bless the Israelites both spiritually, emotionally and physically, God doesn't teach a prosperity gospel.  But things will go well for us when we are living in His will, while striving to grow in our relationship with Him.  It is God who establishes us and equips us.  Therefore, our personal relationship with God is success at its finest.