Look Back and See Who's Got Your Back

[S] Deuteronomy 6:10-12 -- (boldface and font color added)
10 "Then it shall come about when the Lord your God brings you into the land which He swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you, great and splendid cities which you did not build, 11 and houses full of all good things which you did not fill, and hewn cisterns which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant, and you eat and are satisfied, 12 then watch yourself, that you do not forget the Lord who brought you from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 

[O] The key operand here is "I don't deserve" what God blesses me with because none of them are what I earn for but instead are provided for me simply because I commit my heart set apart to follow God by remembering His message of love for me.  All these blessings are what this society is pursuing after (umm, including myself) on our own efforts, stomping each other to get ahead.  This passage is followed by the Ten Commandments.

[A] I took a moment of silence after reading this passage as I meditated on how awesomely great my God is for me.  I've been learning about "surrendering" who/what I am in order to be "lifted up" in His timing and ways and this passage hit home about how He's got my back for good.  I must continue to surrender areas of my life so that I will only reflect His image without smearing it with my own.  Just like how God warned His people not to forget (in pink color), I must not forget His awesomeness.

[P] Dear Father, I want to learn to let go of the things I hold on to so I would decrease and You would increase.  Thank You for providing all I need as I surrender these things while remembering what You did for Your people throughout history.  May my faith increase such that I would rise above the culture of pride and selfishness for Your sake.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Do Not Seek Bethel and Gilgal

[S] Amos 5:3,5 --
3 This is what the Sovereign Lord says to Israel:
"Your city that marches out a thousand strong will have only a hundred left;
your town that marches out a hundred strong will have only ten left."
5 do not seek Bethel, do not go to Gilgal, do not journey to Beersheba.
For Gilgal will surely go into exile, and Bethel will be reduced to nothing."

[O] Bethel and Gilgal were the safe houses for the Israelites but God is warning them not to put their trust in those places but in Him because He is going to reduce them to nothing.  Just in last few days we had some natural disasters in US of flooding, excessive heat, and storms threatening lives and taking out power to millions of people.  Without power there isn't a whole lot we can do these days and these power outages can happen in a flash without any warnings.  That's how things can change from good or normal to disaster -- in a blink of an eye no matter how disaster-prepared we are.

[A] Examine my heart for my "Bethel and Gilgal" where I put my trust as a safety net.  There is nothing wrong with having safety nets to mitigate crisis as a measure of having margins around life's edge points, but I need to be careful not to trust in them more than I trust in God's provision and guidance for my life.

[P] Dear Father, through Your Holy Spirit please convict my heart of areas where I've built up my Bethels and Gilgals so that I won't lean on those that can become nothing in a flash.  Let my heart be trusting You alone 100%.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

My Trailblazer

[S] Isaiah 45:2 --
2 "I will go before you and make the rough places smooth;
I will shatter the doors of bronze and cut through their iron bars.

[O] Since I cannot tell the future which I'm dashing into, this promise of God to His people is very assuring and hopeful because He is going before me to prepare the path that I will be walking.  I don't believe the smoothness implies trouble-free list for me, but the fact that He will watch over my future is the key factor that I can bank on.  Also, the challenges I will face -- doors of bronze and iron bars -- will also be taken care by God who is ahead of me.  He will be my trailblazer.  (As a footnote, this preparation is referring to King Cyrus of Persia who will be used as His instrument to carry out His purpose.)

[A] When I take a moment to stop and think about my future and well as my family members' future -- kids growing up into adulthood, etc. -- it is quite stifling.  However I need to remember again and again about how God is going before me (speaking in terms of this world's timeline) and I need to slip into His presence at all times without worries or trying to take things into my own hands.

[P] Dear Father, I want to give You my total trust when it comes to my future.  I want to know how I may please You in the moment I live in rather than trying to plan the future too much.  I humbly ask in Your name.  Amen

Don't Settle for Muddy Ground

[S] Joshua 3:17 --
17  And the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan while all Israel crossed on dry ground, until all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan.

[O] What amazes me is how the mud at the bottom of the river became dry ground for the Israelites to walk across. That is, couldn't God have just let the people walk across through the muddy ground?  This is where I am so blessed by God's perfect and complete provision for us in order to fulfill His purposes and to reveal His glory in the midst of that.  God doesn't just put together some solution to barely meet the goals.  He will provide it all and in completion. Serving such a God is a good thing but the only catch is that we need to fully abide in Him in order to receive His complete blessings.

[A] Don't settle for a muddy ground when God has a dry ground for me to walk on.

[P] Dear Father, I want o pursue Your perfect provisions for my life and not settle for the muddy ground.  I want to do that by learning Your heart through Your word.  Please show Your grace for my life to be molded for Your glory.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

A Complete Blessing Package

[S] Deuteronomy 28:3-6 --
3  "Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country.
4  "Blessed shall be the offspring of your body and the produce of your ground and the offspring of your beasts, the increase of your herd and the young of your flock.
5  "Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl.
6  "Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.

[O] God really wants to bless me in every facets of my life.  He's got it all covered: My country and city I live in, children, family/home, even offspring of my pets (if I have any), possessions, workplace, commuting or traveling to places.  This is all possible as long as I abide by His ways of honoring Him first and centering my life and value system around His principles.

[A] I need to affirm daily that God wants to bless me in all facets of my life.  He's already promised me that as long as I surrender my life to Him daily.

[P] Dear Father, You are so awesome in caring for what I do here on earth.  Please continue to remind me that You indeed want to bless all aspects of my life so I will always give You the honor for providing everything for me.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Recognizing What God Already Provided Me

[S] Genesis 21:19, 22:13 --
 ¹⁹Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water; and she went and filled the skin with water and gave the lad a drink. 
 ¹³Then Abraham raised his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him a ram caught in the thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram and offered him up for a burnt offering in the place of his son.

[O] In these two instances God allowed them to see His provisions for the circumstances they each were in because in the midst of their crisis moment, they were unable to notice them initially until God opened their eyes -- Hagar needed drinking water and saw the well of water while Abraham in need of a sacrificial animal saw the ram.  I am wondering if God's provisions for my needs are already near me but I'm unaware of them.  In any event, the key take away is God knows my needs and will provide them.  It's a matter of my recognition and giving my gratitude to Him.

[A] Ask God to open my spiritual vision to recognize what He's doing around me.  Don't get too focused on my own tasks or struggles such that I won't see what God's already provided for my needs.

[P] Dear Father, thank You for knowing exactly where I am and what needs I have; in fact, thank You for providing what I need the most.  May my eyes be looking for Your provision in faith instead of writing off the situation based on my own assessment.  You are indeed my God who takes care of me all the time.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

No Collateral Damage

[S] Numbers 31:3,48-52; Mark 9:22-23 --

³Moses spoke to the people, saying, "Arm men from among you for the war, that they may go against Midian to execute the LORD'S vengeance on Midian.
⁴⁸Then the officers who were over the thousands of the army, the captains of thousands and the captains of hundreds, approached Moses,
⁴⁹and they said to Moses, "Your servants have taken a census of men of war who are in our charge, and no man of us is missing.
⁵⁰"So we have brought as an offering to the LORD what each man found, articles of gold, armlets and bracelets, signet rings, earrings and necklaces, to make atonement for ourselves before the LORD."
⁵¹Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold from them, all kinds of wrought articles.
⁵²All the gold of the offering which they offered up to the LORD, from the captains of thousands and the captains of hundreds, was 16,750 shekels.

²²"It has often thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!"
²³And Jesus said to him, " 'If You can?' All things are possible to him who believes."

[O] What a successful victory! After the leaders of the army reviewed the damage report they were thankful for not losing any soldiers during the war. Perhaps they did this as part of the military discipline but nevertheless it displays their care for their men. And since God was fighting in behalf of them, no one was missing (i.e., hurt). These officers and captains knew that such a war can cause a lot of damage including the lives of their men and so when they found the good report of no one missing, they gave credit to the Warrior who went ahead of them to fight this battle for them because from verse 3 we can see that Moses made it clear whose battle this belonged to. So many times I'm too focused on the task at hand in doing ministry for God I lose focus of whose ministry I'm taking part in and when things are moving along "successfully" my desire is to grab all the attention and credit instead of doing what the leaders of this army did by giving credit to God through their offerings. In light of this realization, there were thanksgiving, unity (everyone gave), and sacrifice. How am I doing in these fronts, I wonder....

[Sidebar] Mark 9:22-23 is not really related to the Numbers portion but this section gives me the goose bumps every time I read it because that "If you can?" is quite piercing to me. In New Living Translation (NLT) it says, "What do you mean, 'If I can?'" I can just imagine the facial expression of Jesus saying this. In today's lingo it'd be something like, "Hey Dude! What d'you mean I can?" This is piercing to me because I say to Jesus "If you can ..." everyday. I have too many doubts in His power and strength playing out in the routines of my life.

[A] Remember at all times, we've embarked on the small group ministry at our church by God's commission and therefore I must recognize that He is in full control and fights ahead of us even the spiritual warfare we face. As I take my own "census" I also should be thankful for His provisioning power and the unity of the leaders, and then offer my sacrifices to Him because He deserves them all.

[P] Dear God, so thankful for going ahead of my life, my family members' lives, and our ministry because if You didn't do that, everything would fall on our own power and efforts which I know to be short-sighted, short-lived, and full of holes. Please continue to abide in the midst of us even though we come short so many times. In Jesus' name. Amen.

First: Walk and Carry His Commandments

[S] Leviticus 26:3-4,8-9  --

 ³'If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments so as to carry them out,
 ⁴then I shall give you rains in their season, so that the land will yield its produce and the trees of the field will bear their fruit.

 ⁸five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand, and your enemies will fall before you by the sword.
 ⁹'So I will turn toward you and make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will confirm My covenant with you


[O] Quite an encouraging passage outlining how my obedience to keep His commandments will result in the abundance of His blessings and provision for all of my needs as well as the strength to push forward against all odds.  As I think about the actual ROI of this statement, it's simply mind boggling because not only this goes against the what the society strives for but it also seems too easy to do -- I don't have to work hard at all but just keep God's statues and commandments.  (BTW, past Sunday's sermon was on this concept based on Psalm 37:4 -- Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart.) As I ponder on this thought, my mind's peaking into the heart of God -- what He desires from me in priority order.  I admit that God can do anything so the part about His provisioning to all of my needs shouldn't surprise me.  In fact He wants to do that for me as long as my heart is aligned with His.  As long as I'm in pursuit of His purposes for my life.  He wants my heart.  Then He will guarantee the rest.  Is it that simple and easy?  On paper it seems so but speaking from experience it ain't that easy.  In fact, in subsequent verses (Leviticus 26:14-46) God lists the consequences of disobedience with multiple "If you fail to follow me ..." statements but I won't go there now because I want to end on a high note this morning enjoying the concept of receiving the abundant provision from Him.  I want to end with the encouraging thought of following His commands today and knowing that He will delight in my obedience.  I want to be driven by this encouraging thought today.

[A] Identify an area of my life that I'm striving very hard to achieve greater results and surrender to Him the outcome of that effort while committing to first follow His commands of learning, meditating, and applying His word into my life.

[P] Dear God, what a wonderful thought to start the day after a long weekend holiday.  Allow me to live out this week to taste Your sweet blessings in my and my family members' lives because we desire to follow Your commands foremost.  Please guide and guard my children's hearts this week and let them be focused on Your leadership.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.d

Apple of His Eye on Eagle's Wings

[S] Deuteronomy 32:9-12 --

⁹ For the LORD's portion is his people, 
       Jacob his allotted inheritance.

 ¹⁰ In a desert land he found him,
        in a barren and howling waste.
       He shielded him and cared for him;
        he guarded him as the apple of his eye,

 ¹¹ like an eagle that stirs up its nest
       and hovers over its young, 
       that spreads its wings to catch them 
       and carries them on its pinions.

 ¹² The LORD alone led him; 
       no foreign god was with him.

[O] God guarded His people like the apple of His eye, and cared for them as an eagle catching them and carrying them on its pinions.  This picture is really vivid in my mind as I was reading this passage and encourages my soul tremendously.  I see the life I go through like the desert land, barren and howling waste.  I can be all discouraged about it while I tread through it on this earth or put on the mind of being His people whom He thoroughly cares and protects.  I really can do all things as long as I am called His people.  The LORD ALONE LED ME.

[A] When I face a challenge this week, just fall into the wide-spread wings of God instead of worrying about it too much.

[P] Dear Father, Your amazing care and protection blessed me so much today.  I am the apple of Your eye!  Thank You for this encouraging words for me today and may my life reflect that to many others around me.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Right Rain In Its Season

[S]  Deutronomy 11:14 --

¹⁴ then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and oil. ¹⁵ I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.

[O] The backdrop of this scene is about how God will provide for His people in the Promised Land.  The key section that jumped out at me was "I will send rain your land in its season."  Even today, the rain is something we cannot control because the "Mother Nature" is in charge of that.  We've seen one too many cases where either too much or too little rain impacts the community that today's technology cannot alter.  So most likely no one has any issues about how little we can do to control the rain but reading this passage presents to me a picture of how God will provide the rain in right timing as well for people who are dedicated to follow Him.  I will have many different "seasons" throughout my life and I must trust that God will send appropriate rain for each season I will go through.  This may be an obvious information but today, the concept of God providing for me in every season comforted me a lot.

[A] Surrender my environment and circumstances to God because in the end I don't really have any control anyways.

[P] Dear God, thank You for sending the right rain for the right moments in my life.  I am so glad You know what you're doing because I sure am not in full control of my life even though I try my best to as much as I can.  May my life be more dependent on You such that my life will be aligned to Your plan for me.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.