OUR DAILY BREAD

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

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** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had come out of Egypt. In the desert, the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The Israelites said to them, "If only we had died by the Lord's hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death."

Then the Lord said to Moses, "I will rain down bread from Heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow My instructions. On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days."

So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, "In the evening, you will know that it was the Lord who brought you out of Egypt, and in the morning you will see the glory of the Lord, because He has heard your grumbling against Him. Who are we, that you should grumble against us?"

Moses also said, "You will know that it was the Lord when He gives you meat to eat in the evening and all the bread you want in the morning, because He has heard your grumbling against Him. Who are we? You are not grumbling against us, but against the Lord."

Then Moses told Aaron, "Say to the entire Israelite community, 'Come before the Lord, for He has heard your grumbling.'"

While Aaron was speaking to the whole Israelite community, they looked toward the desert, and there was the glory of the Lord appearing in the cloud. The Lord said to Moses, "I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, 'At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.'"

That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor. When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, "What is it?" For they did not know what it was.

Moses said to them, "It is the bread the Lord has given you to eat. This is what the Lord has commanded: 'Each one is to gather as much as he needs. Take an omer for each person you have in your tent.'"

The Israelites did as they were told; some gathered much, some little. And when they measured it by the omer, he who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little did not have too little. Each one gathered as much as he needed.

Then Moses said to them, "No one is to keep any of it until morning."

However, some of them paid no attention to Moses; they kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggots and began to smell. So Moses was angry with them.

Exodus 16:1-20

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

After God miraculously made bitter water drinkable at Marah, we see in the opening verses of Exodus, chapter 16 where the Israelites "set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin” which was located “between Elim and Sinai”. The scriptures tell us that this happened “on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had come out of Egypt."

As we see in this passage, God’s people still were a work in progress when it came to fully trusting their Lord and perhaps we’re more like them today than we would want to admit. In this instance, we read where the Israelites became hungry as they traveled through the desert, perhaps running short on the unleavened bread they brought with them out of Egypt.

Just as water is needed for survival, so too is food so it’s easy to see how the anxiety level of the people of Israel began to elevate some. Unfortunately, this anxiety manifested itself in complaining as they said to Moses:

"If only we had died by the Lord's hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death."

Here, we find the Israelites beckoning back to their days of Egyptian captivity and oppression. In their minds, although they were enslaved, they never were worried about having food to eat as they “sat around pots of meat and ate all the food” they wanted.

At the core of this issue was the truth that the people were unable to just appreciate that they were blessed to be alive, delivered more than once by their God and yet still reluctant to simply trust that He would never allow them to perish. And so, they resorted to direct their unhappiness toward Moses, accusing him of leading them to their demise rather the promised land filled with milk and honey. Indeed, within the hearts of the people of Israel, we see an attitude of complaining and blaming, two very counter-productive mindsets that only drew then further away from where God wanted them to be.

Let’s pause here for some quick self reflection questions.

For how many times do we complain about things in our own life?

Do we yearn and covet for more at the expense of appreciating what we do have and realizing just how very blessed we are?

And...have we ever chosen to blame others for our circumstances instead of facing challenges with the faith and trust that the Lord is always with us, never leaving or forsaking us and always ready to refine us and reveal His glory in due time?

I hope you can see why today’s message is important because I think it speaks to every believer and their struggles with their human condition, also referred to as the “flesh” in the scriptures.

Going back to the passage for today, the hungry people of Israel have expressed their need for food, even if it was inappropriately expressed and we find the Lord repond to their grumbling, saying this to Moses:

"I will rain down bread from Heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way, I will test them and see whether they will follow My instructions."

Friends, we serve a God who loves us and will always provide for our needs in accordance with His will. This is a truth I consider to be absolute and unchanging. As we enter each day, the Lord already knows our needs before we ask and already knows what will happen in the course of our day well before it happens. As Christian singer and songwriter, Steven Curtis Chapman, says in the song, Miracle of the Moment:

There’s only One who knows what’s really out there waiting in all the moments yet to be.

And all we need to know, is He’s up there waiting. To Him, the future’s yesterday.

In the case of the Israelites, they needed food so the Lord "rains down” manna and quail “from Heaven", providing just what they needed. The good news is that He will do the same for us as well, and if we really activate our memory in retrospect, we will see that He has been doing it through our entire life.

For the Lord still rains down His blessings from Heaven. He is the provider of every good and perfect gift from above (James 1:17) as He grants what we need to survive and accomplish His will on any one given day. And so instead of whining and complaining, we should be praying to our Heavenly Father as Jesus, His Son and our Savior, taught us, saying:

"Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven…Give us this day our daily bread." Matthew 6:10-11

Just as the Lord delivered quail and manna to Israel, He is ready to deliver just what you need, in just the right measure, and in His perfect time.

All we need to do is wait for our daily bread with patience and faith

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

OUR AWESOME GOD

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water.

When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah.) So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, "What are we to drink?"

Then Moses cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a piece of wood. He threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. There the Lord made a decree and a law for them, and there He tested them. He said, "If you listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His eyes, if you pay attention to His commands and keep all His decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you."

Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there near the water.

Exodus 15:22-27

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Water.

It’s one of the vital elements needed for survival. Our bodies need it, and in the right quantity, so they can function properly. Without water, dehydration will set in and death can follow.

As we read in today’s passage, Moses has "led Israel from the Red Sea” and “into the Desert of Shur." For three days, they traveled through the "desert without finding water."

Now ironically, the people of Israel were surrounded by walls of water as they passed through a divided Red Sea but now couldn’t find a drop until "they came to Marah" and finally found the water they desperately needed. On the surface, it appeared like all would be well for the Israelites, but there was a problem.

For the scriptures tell us that "they could not drink its water because it was bitter" and because of this "people grumbled against Moses, saying, ‘What are we to drink?’" through their words, we get a sense that the Israelite people still weren’t firm in their faith in a God who had already shown them His awesome power and love. Sadly, despite all the prior miracles that God had performed, the people didn’t even consider that He could do something about their current circumstance. So instead of crying out to Him, they complained to Moses.

I wonder if we haven’t done this at one time of another as we faced a dilemma and complained to other people who couldn’t do anything to change our circumstances instead of faithfully turning to the Lord who could. Definitely food for our spiritual thoughts.

Going back to our passage for today, we find Moses receiving the cries of the people God gave him to lead before interceding with God for them.

How did the Lord respond?

We see where he told Moses to make the water drinkable by showing him a piece of wood.

Huh?

Moses had to be thinking, “The answer to making the water safe to drink is wood?”

Well, in this instance, the answer was "yes".

For we see that as Moses placed the wood "into the water”, it became sweet." It was yet the latest miracle God performed right before the eyes of the people of Israel. And as we see, the Lord took advantage of the situation by sending a strong message to His people, saying:

"If you listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you."

In other words, God demanded that the Israelites be obedient or else. God didn’t really want to bring hardship on His people but reserved the right to do so if they failed to respect Him and follow His commands and decrees. After all, He was the one and only God, a God of great power who had delivered them from Egypt through the great miracle at the Red Sea. They also had seen where Pharaoh’s stubborn heart and refusal to be obedient to God led to the Lord bringing "diseases" on Egypt. And so, it definitely was in their best interest to follow God’s command and you think they would have learned their lesson, never again disobeying God but as we will see later, they didn’t.

Quick question:

How much are we like the Israelites today?

I mean, like them, we see miracles happening all around us all the time as God is still at work and yet we still often refuse to respect God by showing the kind of faith that says, "Lord, I know you can fix anything in my life according to Your will and I am placing my trust fully in You."

Friends, our God expects our full faith and trust to be in Him for the truth of the matter is that there’s nothing we’ll go through that He can’t handle. Over and over again, He shows that He has a solution to our problems when we have none. For He is God, our awesome God in Heaven above, who reigns and rules in unmatched and unrivaled wisdom, power and love.

He is an awesome God. Believe and trust in it, now and forever.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

REASONS TO PRAISE

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

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** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord:

"I will sing to the Lord, for He is highly exalted. The horse and its rider He has hurled into the sea. The Lord is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise Him, my father's God, and I will exalt Him. The Lord is a warrior; the Lord is His name. Pharaoh's chariots and his army He has hurled into the sea. The best of Pharaoh's officers are drowned in the Red Sea. The deep waters have covered them; they sank to the depths like a stone.”

"Your right hand, O Lord, was majestic in power. Your right hand, O Lord, shattered the enemy. In the greatness of Your majesty, You threw down those who opposed You. You unleashed Your burning anger; it consumed them like stubble. By the blast of Your nostrils the waters piled up. The surging waters stood firm like a wall; the deep waters congealed in the heart of the sea.”

"The enemy boasted, 'I will pursue, I will overtake them. I will divide the spoils; I will gorge myself on them. I will draw my sword and my hand will destroy them.' But You blew with Your breath, and the sea covered them. They sank like lead in the mighty waters.”

"Who among the gods is like You, O Lord? Who is like You—majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders? You stretched out Your right hand and the earth swallowed them.”

"In Your unfailing love, You will lead the people You have redeemed. In Your strength, You will guide them to Your holy dwelling. The nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the people of Philistia. The chiefs of Edom will be terrified, the leaders of Moab will be seized with trembling, the people of Canaan will melt away; terror and dread will fall upon them. By the power of Your arm, they will be as still as a stone—until Your people pass by, O Lord, until the people You bought pass by. You will bring them in and plant them on the mountain of Your inheritance—the place, O Lord, You made for Your dwelling, the sanctuary, O Lord, Your hands established. The Lord will reign forever and ever."

When Pharaoh's horses, chariots and horsemen went into the sea, the Lord brought the waters of the sea back over them, but the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground. Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron's sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her, with tambourines and dancing. Miriam sang to them: "Sing to the Lord, for He is highly exalted. The horse and its rider He has hurled into the sea."

Exodus 15:1-21

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

After Moses and the people of Israel are delivered out of Egypt through God's miraculous act at the Red Sea, we see in the opening verses of Exodus, chapter 15, where Moses and the Israelites burst into a wonderful song of praise. Within it, we find reasons that we too should bring our gratitude unto this Almighty, all powerful God.

This praise song contains the following highlights:

1. Praise God…for He is highly exalted.

We need to realize that God deserves our highest exaltation. No one is more worthy of it because nothing is of greater importance than our Lord. Therefore, we should worship the God who created everything above all things in life, lifting Him up while bowing down before him out of respect and admiration.

2. Praise God…for He is our strength.

None of us should think that we make it through any one day on our own strength. For the truth of the matter is that our Lord empowers us in spirit from within through the power of the Holy Spirit. This should lead us to echo the words of the psalmist David when he proclaimed:

"I love You, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold." Psalm 18:1-2

3. Praise God…for He is our song.

Do you have a favorite song? If so, why is it your favorite?

It’s probably because it moves you emotionally in some special way, holding some significance for you in life - either past, present or future. And when you hear that song, you can't help but to sing it out from the depth of your heart.

As believers, this should be the way we respond when we think of God as well. I know my favorite songs are the ones that life Him up in honor, glory and praise. Nothing helps my soul soar higher than a well written and performed Christian song, one that celebrates Him as being the most significant thing in life, one that makes us want to sing to and for Him at the top of our lungs.

4. Praise God…for He is our God.

Our God is a personal God, One who has a vested interest and love for every one of His children. Like a good father takes care of his children, our Heavenly Father stands ever ready to guide and direct us. There isn’t any time or place where we can’t find Him and He is the only One that we can truly rely and trust in.

He is our God.

5. Praise God…for He is a warrior.

Every day, believers awake to enter a spiritual battlefield where the enemy lies in wait. What a comfort it is to know that our Lord stands ready to fight alongside and defend us. He has even made special armor available for us to wear for protection (Ephesians 6:11-17) but that armor is of little use if we don’t put it on.

The good news in the daily fight with Satan is that he cannot have the victory when we have God on our side in the fight. Truly, as we find the Apostle Paul ask in Romans, the eighth chapter, verse 31, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”

The answer is no one.

6. Praise God…for His majestic power.

The scriptures make it clear that there isn't anything the Lord can't do.

He created the heavens and the earth.

He placed the stars and planets in the sky.

He made every living thing on the earth.

And as we saw in yesterday’s message, He took a sea and divided it, allowing His people to walk to freedom.

Friends, if you are up against difficult circumstances today, place the matter in the hands of the Lord, knowing and trusting that there isn't anything impossible with Him and His majestic power.

7. Praise God…for His unfailing love.

When someone wrongs us, we usually get hurt.

When that happens, sometimes we find it easy to forgive but in other instances, we may find it difficult to ever pardon the wrongdoer.

Hurting can be hard to shake and at times, people continue to hurt over and over and over again to the point where they can become emotionally numb, losing the ability to feel anything and, in the worst cases, find it hard to love.

With these truths in mind, let’s think about God and our relationship with Him for a minute. For every time we commit a sin, we hurt Him. After all, He gave up His only Son, Jesus, as a living, atoning sacrifice to pay the penalty for our sins and yet we continue to violate His Word and will, over and over and over again.

Despite that, He still forgives and loves us when we repent of our sins, essentially letting Him know we’re sorry. My brothers and sisters, our Lord shows us the proper way to deal with those who might hurt us. In some cases, it might seem hard but He will always give us the strength to do as He does. All we need to do is turn to Him.

8. Praise God…for He redeems us.

Not only is God’s love unfailing but so is His forgiveness. Out of His deep love, He didn’t wish for us to perish but rather to have everlasting life (John 3:16) but for this to happen, our pardon needed purchased and this happened when Jesus willingly died on the cross at Calvary. There, His shed blood cleansed any sinner afterwards who would simply place their belief in Him and brought the gift of redemption.

In the end translation, God didn't have to save us. He could have turned His face from us because of our sinfulness and allowed us to be separated from Him forever.

But He didn't.

Instead, He saved us through His Son and gave us the opportunity to live with them both forever instead of the damnation of Hell.

9. Praise God…for He will reign forever and ever.

Friends, there is no question who sits on the Throne of Heaven, no doubt who reigns and rules over all creation.

It is God, the Maker and master of all things, and Him alone with His Son Jesus, who sits at His right hand. God delegated all authority over Heaven and earth to His Son and one day He will return to judge the world, ushering in the new Kingdom of God, the new Heaven and earth.

With this, we know that this holy and divine Kingdom endures forever and ever, both now and when our Savior returns again. The reign of God never ends and this means we always have the most incredible all powerful, all knowing, and all present Ruler ever in charge.

Indeed, what an awesome King we have, One who is the King of Kings!

The point here is clear.

For there is a multitude of reasons why we should praise our God.

The Israelites cried out in their song, "Who among the gods is like You, O Lord? Who is like You—majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders?"

Today, we can ask the same questions.

For who IS like our God?

Who IS majestic in holiness, awesome in glory and working wonders?

The answer is no one…because no one is greater than the Lord our God. Christian songwriter and singer Chris Tomlin, one of the best Christian artists of all time, penned and sang these words, words of praise I hope you too will lift up to the Lord:

How Great is Our God

Sing with me, How Great is Our God

And all will see how great, how great is our God.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

DIVINE DELIVERANCE

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn't we say to you in Egypt, 'Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians'? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!"

Moses answered the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still."

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground. I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them. And I will gain glory through Pharaoh and all his army, through his chariots and his horsemen. The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I gain glory through Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen."

Then the angel of God, who had been traveling in front of Israel's army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long.

Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.

The Egyptians pursued them, and all Pharaoh's horses and chariots and horsemen followed them into the sea. During the last watch of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion. He made the wheels of their chariots come off so that they had difficulty driving. And the Egyptians said, "Let's get away from the Israelites! The Lord is fighting for them against Egypt."

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen."

Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were fleeing toward it, and the Lord swept them into the sea. The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived. But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.

That day the Lord saved Israel from the hands of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. And when the Israelites saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in Him and in Moses his servant.

Exodus 14:10-31

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

The Israelites thought it was all over.

They had fled Egypt and followed Moses who was leading them to the Promised Land using the God’s divine cloud by day and fire by night as their navigation aid.  But Pharaoh decided to try and recapture them for slave labor and set off in pursuit of God’s people with his Egyptian military forces. This caused great fear to come upon the Israelites who began to feel that Moses had led them to their execution, complaining about what had happened.

We should notice one key thing here. For the Hebrew people were criticizing Moses, not God. They still didn’t get it that God was the One responsible for everything that was happening to them but as we see in today’s passage, events unfolded that let them know that their Lord was at the center of it all as He puts His full power and might on display.

First, God made sure that the Israelites were shielded from the Egyptians.

Then the angel of God, who had been traveling in front of Israel's army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long.

Then, God divided the great sea in front of the Israelites so they could cross on dry land with a wall of water on either side of them, nothing short of a miraculous, awe-striking sight.

Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.

Imagine for a moment that you were one of the Israelites who had just been complaining about Moses leading you to your death. Now, you see him simply raise his staff and the body of water that was once a barrier to cross becomes parted with a pathway created to walk to the other side.

As you start to walk this new, amazing trail, you suddenly remember the words of Moses:

"Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still."

As these words rush back into your mind, suddenly things begin to make sense. You finally realize that God is indeed with you, wanting to deliver His people just as He said He would, and He was willing to do something spectacular to show it, something that would draw everyone to respect and fear His power.

Well, as soon as the Israelites had cleared the divided sea, God still had one order of business to take care of and this was the eradication of Israel’s enemy. We read in great detail how He made it happen:

The Egyptians pursued them, and all Pharaoh's horses and chariots and horsemen followed them into the sea. During the last watch of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion. He made the wheels of their chariots come off so that they had difficulty driving. And the Egyptians said, "Let's get away from the Israelites! The Lord is fighting for them against Egypt."

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen."

Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were fleeing toward it, and the Lord swept them into the sea. The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived.

So how did the Israelites respond to after witnessing this mighty act of God, one steeped in divine deliverance?

The scriptures give us the answer.

...when the Israelites saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in Him and in Moses his servant.

At least at this moment, the people of God were all in with Him and they were ready to continue their exodus toward the Holy Land, fully trusting God and His appointed leader Moses.

Friends, I think everyone has gone through times in life where they may have wondered if God was really with them while in the midst of difficult life circumstances. In a place where deliverance is needed, even the most steadfast faith can be challenged.

Maybe you can relate or maybe you are in that place right now.

This is why this passage is so important for any believer for in it, we find the Lord revealing His true character to us, showing us that He really does care for His people. Out of His deep love for us, He truly does want to deliver us from our hardship but He will only do this in accordance with His will and perfect timing.

And so, we need to trust Him, knowing that only He knows what’s best for us. We need to maintain our faith and persevere through hardship, seeing that it’s actually good and spiritually healthy for us as we learn to rely on the Lord. We also need to gain a full understanding that no one has the strength or power to escape life’s difficulties on their own but through God, a person or people can make it through anything.

In the case of the Israelites, it was a great sea of water dividing in two for them to cross safely to the other side, an act that no mere human power was capable of doing. Only God could make that happen. They also saw how that same sea came crashing down on the enemies they feared most, completely eliminating their threat. At that point, the Israelites realized they were fearing men (Pharaoh and the Egyptian forces) when they should have been fearing God.

As I get set to close, a couple of questions for self reflection:

Have you seen the amazing works of power that God has done in this world? In your life? In the lives of others?

As you read the scriptures, have you really grasped how God has shown His awesome might over and over and over again?

Finally, in considering this, have you come to the conclusion that anything is indeed possible with God, that nothing is beyond the works of His almighty Hands?

Hopefully, we will be able to say, “Yes!” to all these questions, finding ourselves in the same spirit of the Israelites as they learned to "fear the Lord and put their trust in him." For the Bible tells us this:

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To Him belongs eternal praise. Psalm 111:10

The Word of God calls all believers to be wise and to have a full fear and respect of God, complying with His expectations so to gain good understanding. For if we do, then we will have faith and trust in what He can do through His might and power, and in doing so, know He loves us and desires to provide divine deliverance when needed.

Today and every day, let us give thanks to our God.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com 

DON'T BE AFRAID, STAND FIRM AND BE STILL

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon. Pharaoh will think, 'The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.' And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord."

So the Israelites did this.

When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, "What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!" So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him. He took six hundred of the best chariots, along with all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them.

The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly. The Egyptians—all Pharaoh's horses and chariots, horsemen and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon.

As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn't we say to you in Egypt, 'Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians'? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!"

Moses answered the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still."

Exodus 14:1-14

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

If you thought that the releasing of the Israelites would be the last we would hear of Egypt’s Pharaoh in the scriptures, you would be wrong. For as we begin to look at Exodus, chapter 14, we see that there is yet one more confrontation between Egypt’s supreme leader and the God of Israel. Look again at the first fourteen verses of this chapter here:

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon. Pharaoh will think, 'The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.' And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord."

So the Israelites did this.

When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, "What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!" So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him. He took six hundred of the best chariots, along with all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them.

The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly. The Egyptians—all Pharaoh's horses and chariots, horsemen and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon.

As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn't we say to you in Egypt, 'Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians'? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!"

Moses answered the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still."

The one-sided conflict of God versus Pharaoh is not yet finished as we enter Chapter 14. God knew Pharaoh had not truly surrendered his heart to Him and would make yet one more attempt to go back on his word and return Israel to slavery. God, however, showed once again that He had other plans.

You know, we can draw a parallel between Egypt’s Pharaoh, who repeatedly sought to keep oppressing the Israelites, and Satan, who repeatedly seeks to oppress us. In the case of the people of Israel, the only way they were going to be freed from their oppressive bondage was if they completely turned their trust over to God.

Likewise, if we wish to ward off our greatest spiritual enemy, an enemy who wishes to first deceive and then destroy us, then we need to constantly place our hope and trust in the Lord, keeping Him closer to us than anything else in life. For the absolute truth of the matter is that Satan cannot stand in the presence of the Lord who has gained unchanging victory over him and so it’s impossible to be afflicted by Satan if you keep the Lord always by your side, ever near Him and Him ever near you.

Back to our scriptures now where we find God providing the following instruction to His messenger, Moses:

"Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon. Pharaoh will think, 'The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.' And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord."

As He gave these directions, God knew how Pharaoh would behave before he actually pursued Israel with his army with a hope of returning them to slavery. In Pharaoh’s eyes, the Israelites were nothing more than a labor force but God saw them in a while different way. To Him, they were His beloved nation, one He would protect her against any foe.

Like Pharaoh’s view of the Israelites, Satan sees us, the people of God, as sinful pawns that he can manipulate and move during the course of games he likes to play and win. God, however, sees us as a people in need of mercy, forgiveness and love, and He will always make good on His promise to protect and shield us from the devil, the evil one who is our foe.

So with the stage set for a coming climatic showdown between Pharaoh, his army, and the people of Israel, we see that there were more problems in play than just the fast approaching Egyptians. For we see in this passage and through their own words how the Israelites allowed themselves to lose faith in what God could and would do for them.

"Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn't we say to you in Egypt, 'Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians'? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!"

Here, we clearly see how anxiety and fear had overcome the people of Israel, just as Satan had hoped it would. For his greatest desire was that they would simply give up hope, attacking their shallow faith, and as we see his wish was being fulfilled.

I wonder if we’re not like the Israelites sometimes, experiencing life problems that come rushing toward us with the desire to entrap and hold us captive. In our human nature, we can easily find ourselves allowing anxiety, stress, and worry to lead us away from faith and toward fear.

With this, I think we can see the words of Moses speaking to believers today as much as he was the Israelites when he speaks these words at the end of our passage for today:

"Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still."

Here, Moses speaks into the frightening place the Israelites found themselves with four simple words of power:

“Do not be afraid.”

These words are found throughout the Bible in both the Old and New Testaments as God speaks into situations where His people were troubled and scared. And in the case of the words here, we find the call to be unafraid followed by words of encouragement and strength:

“Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still."

From these words, words that the Israelites would soon see God fulfill fully, we find four key truths to remember as we live this thing called life here on earth and face our own challenges:

First, we don’t need to be afraid.

We need to remember that we serve an awesome God who has promised to always watch over us, to never leave us nor forsake us, and to never give us a burden we couldn’t bear as long as we trust Him. Indeed, our God is an awesome God, an almighty, omnipotent, all holy and all loving God who we should trust in all matters because there is nothing beyond the work of His hands. All things are possible with Him and we would be well served to never forget that because it’s a truth that displaces fear.

Secondly, we need to stand firm.

When life’s difficulties arise, we need to refuse to waver in our faith.

In the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, you can revisit the account of Jesus’ disciples being afraid while in a boat underway on the sea when a great storm came. The storm caused the waves to build up and toss the boat to and fro.

While this was going on, the scriptures tell us that Jesus was fast asleep below deck and the disciples, fearing for their life, woke Him up, wondering how He could be sleeping when it appeared they were about to perish.

Do you remember what happened next?

Jesus admonishes His disciples for not having faith before quickly calming the storm and stilling the raging seas with a simple wave of His hands.

Here in these verses in Exodus, when we find Moses telling the Israelites to "stand firm", he was essentially telling them to just trust God, their mighty God who was there to help them then just as He is alive and present to help us today.

Third, the Lord fights for us and delivers us.

God wants us to be free of the life burdens that can come on us quick and plague us.  His great desire is for us to just put our faith and trust in Him, knowing that He can and will deliver us in accordance with His will. When our enemy attacks, He will fight our battles and ultimately reign victorious.

Finally, be still.

Philippians, chapter 4, verses six and seven, tell us that when we trust God to handle our problems through prayer and petition, we find the peace of God that transcends all understanding and our hearts and minds are guarded by Christ Jesus. Yet so often, we refuse to let go and let God have our issues, failing to find the peace that He has promised.

Friends, the Lord wants us to pause every day and reflect on what He has done for us, counting the blessings we have received through Him. He would want us to be still and listen to His comforting still, small voice. And He would want us to be patient and know He will help work out any situation we might be going through.

So...don’t be afraid, stand firm, and be still. All these are God’s expectations as we step out in the world each and every day, facing uncertainties while holding onto the certainty that we truly serve a powerful God who loves us so much, a God who will always fight for us and deliver us. All we need to do is maintain our faith.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

GOD, OUR GREAT GUIDE

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, "If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt." So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.

The Israelites went up out of Egypt armed for battle. Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the sons of Israel swear an oath. He had said, "God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up with you from this place."

After leaving Succoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert. By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.

Exodus 13:17-22

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

When we left off in yesterday’s message, the Israelites are leaving Egypt, on their way to Canaan, the land God had promised to their forefathers, the land He said would be a blessed place to settle as it was flowing with milk and honey.

As they set out on this journey, we know it had been a very long time since they had truly been free, having been held in captivity by Pharaoh and the Egyptians for the better part of 430 years. And so, we can know with confidence that this generation of Israelites was far disposed from the remnant of 70 people, led by Jacob and his sons, who first entered Egypt to escape the hardship of famine in the land this group of more than 600 hundred thousand would now inhabit, the land of Canaan.

Now, today, we have the luxury of using GPS (global positioning systems) to get us from place to place. All we need to do is punch in the location we wish to drive to and the GPS provides the directions to our destination.

But the Israelites back in the days of Moses had no such technology but they had something even better and more reliable. For as we see in our passage for today, they had God who would be their guide. Look again at verses 17 through 22 of Exodus, chapter 13:

When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, "If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt." So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.

The Israelites went up out of Egypt armed for battle. Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the sons of Israel swear an oath. He had said, "God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up with you from this place."

After leaving Succoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert. By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.

Think about what could have happened if the Israelites had relied on their own judgment regarding direction of travel to Canaan. I’m pretty sure they would have taken the shortest route which the scriptures tell us would have taken them “through the Philistine country.

We probably would have done the same thing because after all, aren’t we taught from a very young age that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line? It simply seems like common sense to do this but what if the path we would take took us through someplace dangerous? It wouldn’t seem to be as sensible anymore, right? I mean, what good is it to travel a shorter distance if you never make it to your destination?

This is the key point as we head back to our passage for today. For the Israelite people certainly would have walked right into peril if they had traveled had chosen the shorter path via the Philistine territory.

But here’s the thing. They didn’t realize this on their own. They needed God to intervene and save them from themselves.

And so He did. He brings an alternate plan to His people, one that would steer them clear of jeopardy, leading them “around by the desert road toward the Red Sea".

Speaking about steerage, how did the Lord show the Israelites where to walk?

We go back to the scriptures where we read how He “went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way" by day and "in a pillar of fire to give them light" by night. In other words, the Israelites were able to "travel by day or night" with the Lord’s help and "neither the pillar of cloud by day” nor “the pillar of fire by night” ever “left its place in front of the people."

In other words, God was always with them to guide them and see them through.

Brothers and sisters, we need to know and remember that this same God is ready to guide us through life today. All we need to do is walk in the way He sets forth day after day after day, knowing and trusting that He never leads any of His faithful ones astray. He will never lead us to where we are lost and if we are lost, we are never where He can’t find us and lead us back to where we need to be so we can then allow Him to be our guide.

Friends, does this not hold good news for us as we seek to navigate through this thing called life. For the very same Lord who led Israel from Egypt to Canaan by controlling the clouds and bringing fire into the night sky is the same Lord who wants to lead us today, ever working to guide us to our own personal promised land, the Kingdom of Heaven where we will live with Him and Jesus, our Savior, for all eternity.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

GIVING GOD OUR BEST FIRST

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

The Lord said to Moses, "Consecrate to me every firstborn male. The first offspring of every womb among the Israelites belongs to me, whether man or animal."

Then Moses said to the people, "Commemorate this day, the day you came out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery, because the Lord brought you out of it with a mighty hand. Eat nothing containing yeast.”

“Today, in the month of Abib, you are leaving. When the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites and Jebusites—the land he swore to your forefathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey—you are to observe this ceremony in this month: For seven days eat bread made without yeast and on the seventh day hold a festival to the Lord. Eat unleavened bread during those seven days; nothing with yeast in it is to be seen among you, nor shall any yeast be seen anywhere within your borders. On that day tell your son, 'I do this because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.' This observance will be for you like a sign on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that the law of the Lord is to be on your lips. For the Lord brought you out of Egypt with His mighty hand. You must keep this ordinance at the appointed time year after year.”

"After the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites and gives it to you, as He promised on oath to you and your forefathers, you are to give over to the Lord the first offspring of every womb. All the firstborn males of your livestock belong to the Lord. Redeem with a lamb every firstborn donkey, but if you do not redeem it, break its neck. Redeem every firstborn among your sons.”

"In days to come, when your son asks you, 'What does this mean?' say to him, 'With a mighty hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed every firstborn in Egypt, both man and animal. This is why I sacrifice to the Lord the first male offspring of every womb and redeem each of my firstborn sons.' And it will be like a sign on your hand and a symbol on your forehead that the Lord brought us out of Egypt with His mighty hand."

Exodus 13:1-16

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

There is no question that God was with and for the Hebrew people who inhabited the nation of Egypt, a beloved people who he freed from oppression and captivity through mighty, miraculous works which showcased His unmatched power. His efforts led to Pharaoh and the Egyptian people releasing the Israelites so God could send them to the "land He swore to (their) forefathers, a land flowing with milk and honey."

This was an act that God never wanted His people to forget and so He issued commands for the Israelites to do the following three things so that they, and the generations to follow, would remember His mighty act of deliverance.

1. Observe the Passover every year.

The Lord sent the following message through to His people:

"Commemorate this day, the day you came out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery, because the Lord brought you out of it with a mighty hand. Eat nothing containing yeast. Today, in the month of Abib, you are leaving. When the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites and Jebusites—the land He swore to your forefathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey—you are to observe this ceremony in this month: For seven days eat bread made without yeast and on the seventh day hold a festival to the Lord. Eat unleavened bread during those seven days; nothing with yeast in it is to be seen among you, nor shall any yeast be seen anywhere within your borders. On that day tell your son, 'I do this because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.' This observance will be for you like a sign on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that the law of the Lord is to be on your lips. For the Lord brought you out of Egypt with His mighty hand. You must keep this ordinance at the appointed time year after year."

This seven day feast of bread made without yeast would come to be known as the Feast of the Unleavened Bread and the beginning of the feast would be marked by the Passover observance.

2. Dedicate every firstborn to God.

God provided another command to the Israelites, saying:

"After the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites and gives it to you, as He promised on oath to you and your forefathers, you are to give over to the Lord the first offspring of every womb. All the firstborn males of your livestock belong to the Lord. Redeem with a lamb every firstborn donkey, but if you do not redeem it, break its neck. Redeem every firstborn among your sons.”

There is great significance within the firstborn requirement.

You’ll recall that the final plague God exercised against Egypt dealt with Him killing every firstborn in Egypt while He spared (or passed over) each firstborn child of Israel because of the blood of the lambs spread over the doorways of the Israelite homes.

Later, God Himself would give His firstborn in Jesus as a living sin sacrifice for all of mankind. The Blood of the Perfect, Unblemished Lamb, Jesus, covered all sins and assured that anyone who believed in Him would be "passed over" and delivered into eternal life, instead of being cast into the darkness, torment, and suffering of Hell for all eternity.

And so just as God would soon offer up His very firstborn, giving His best, His everything as a sacrifice to bring salvation to Christian believers, so too must the people of Israel do the same in giving their offspring to their Lord.

3. Pass down the tradition to future generations.

The scriptures show us that the Lord gives yet one more command to the Hebrews:

"In days to come, when your son asks you, 'What does this mean?' say to him, 'With a mighty hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed every firstborn in Egypt, both man and animal. This is why I sacrifice to the Lord the first male offspring of every womb and redeem each of my firstborn sons.' And it will be like a sign on your hand and a symbol on your forehead that the Lord brought us out of Egypt with His mighty hand."

It’s a truth that tradition can and will die if it isn’t passed down to the next generation. And so, God wanted to ensure that the customs that He was starting with the Israelites would be carried on, forever and ever. This would only happen if the people of Israel taught their children about the significance of the prescribed celebrations, especially in regard to God’s demand that they be continue to be observed from generation to generation.

Well, we know all this was put in place well over 2,000 years ago and we need to know that God’s requirements haven’t changed any, equally applying to us today even if the application points are slightly different. Indeed, our culture today is drastically different than it was in the time of Moses and the Israelites as they departed Egypt for the Promised Land.

And so, here are the things we can and should take away from this message so we can best carry out His Will and Way as Christians:

1. Worship and celebrate the Lord in all things, observing and giving thanks for all His significant works of goodness, love and mercy - not just on Sundays at church or on significant days of celebration highlighted in scripture - but every day.

In other words, each day that we’re blessed with should be a mini-festival of praise and gratitude as we celebrate the Lord who sustains and strengthens us to make it through our daily challenges. For truly, God’s mercies are new every morning and great is His faithfulness (Lamentations 3:22-23) and so is this not reason to rejoice and praise Him always (Philippians 4:4)?

2. Give God our best first.

Doesn’t God deserve the best we can give Him?

Shouldn’t He receive our first fruits of everything?

Don’t we experience God giving us His best every day?

In God’s Word, specifically in the Book of Proverbs, chapter 3, we find this guidance:

"Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine." Vv.9-10

In other words, when we consistently give God our best, we can expect His best in return, an abundance of blessings from Him to His faithful ones.

And so, a few questions for self reflection:

Are you giving God your best each and every day?

Are you being a good steward of what He has blessed you with, whether that might be time, talent or treasure?

In the end translation, there should be no hesitation to give God our best for He didn’t hesitate to give us the ultimate gift of salvation which was purchased through the sacrifice of His Son, our Savior, Christ Jesus.

3. Teach children about spiritual disciplines and scriptural obedience.

How will our children know how to live in accordance with the commandments of God the Father and Jesus, His Son, unless we teach them?

How will they understand the significance of Christian celebrations and observances unless they (our children) receive instruction and enlightenment?

I’ve always been convinced that the best gift we can ever give our children is to teach them all about God and Jesus so they grow up with Them, already establishing a personal relationship before they reach adulthood. If we do this right, as God expects, then we can assure that Christian heritage and tradition are never lost and always carried out and observed as the Bible commands.

In closing, God gave us all His absolute, priceless best in Jesus and continues to bless us with His best each and every day. Truly, we do see that He gives us every good and perfect gift from above (James 1:17).

Friends, is this not reason to celebrate?

Is this not reason to honor Him in any way we can, no matter the time or place?

The answer to both is a resounding "Yes!" And we can always ensure we’re properly showing our gratitude, an attitude of thanksgiving, by honoring our God with the best we can give Him. And we shouldn’t just do this because He expects or commands it. Rather, we should give Him our best first because He deserves it, both now and for generations to come.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.