Daily Bible Study for Tuesday
November 22, 2016
By: Hanny Lynn Stearns
Fish N
Loaves Ministries, Inc.
“Multiplying
God’s Word Around the Globe”
Chapter Reading
for Today: Please read in
your Bible before proceeding. Note that most translations are considered
paraphrases. The Young’s Literal Translation provides a more accurate
translation since he is the one who authored a concordance. Others are helpful
for seeing a different perspective, but we cannot always depend on their
wording. I trust this is helpful to you. If you are studying in another
version, that is fine. I am studying from the KJV.
***Please
note a change! We will look at everything for our basic study from the King
James Version going forward. It is helpful to stay with one solid version as we
study so as not to cause confusion. I may add other translations for specific
scriptures as the Lord directs.
One final note: I will put the scripture in italics to differentiate from my
own writing. I am adding red to the letters when
it is Jesus talking – just like the Bible. Thank you.
Bible Gateway Verse of the Day
Colossians 3:15
And let the peace of God rule
in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye
thankful.
Psalm 105
Provision & Preparation
At first glance when reading the first two verses I spoke it
out loud, “This is why I live!” And as we read the first several verses of this
glorious Psalm, we can see what the redeemed of the Lord are called to do in
several key words:
Give thanks
Call upon His name
Make His deeds known
Sing to Him
Talk about the wonderful things He has done
Glory in His holy name
Let our hearts rejoice
Seek Him, His strength, His face
Remember what He has done and what He has said
Friend, this describes the Christian life in a “nutshell”,
doesn’t it? Hallelujah! This is such a wonderful chapter to review and an
excellent follow up to the past few days we have studied. It is no coincidence,
we can be certain. Let’s pray…
Heavenly Father:
Thank You for Your faithfulness to a thousand generations.
You are so good and You are a covenant making, covenant keeping God. Father, I
ask You for the utterance and the anointing to speak Your word with boldness,
clarity and accuracy. Bring us wisdom, insight and revelation through Holy
Spirit as we meditate on Your wonderful works. Help us to remember the
marvelous things You have done in our own lives as we look at Your faithfulness
in this chapter. Give us fresh eyes to see wondrous new things in Your word
today. Father, we are Your people and we do not want to let a day go by without
thanking You for all You have done for us. I ask You to cause this message to
reach across the globe You created to touch the hearts of Your children from
the east to the west, and from the north to the south. May this go out
unhindered and unchecked by any outside force or my flesh. Bring glory to
Yourself as we study and changes to our lives as we listen and learn. We
purpose to be doers of Your word and not forgetful hearers. Thank You for
always watching over Your word to perform it in our lives when we obey what You
tell us in Your laws. Thank You in advance for the answers to this prayer. We
believe we receive them in Jesus name. Amen.
There’s so much in this chapter that we could dive in a thousand
times and find new treasures each time – glory to God! The first several verses
really depict what the Christian life should really look like. Praising and
thanking the Lord, seeking Him, singing His praises and telling others what He
has done for us. It is a joy to talk about the wonderful things He has done,
isn’t it? Amen! There is no topic of conversation as exciting to talk about as
who our God is and what He does for His chosen people – us.
This is a great review of Israel’s history – and this includes
you and me because we became grafted in to be a part of Israel the day we
believed in Jesus as our Lord and Savior. The same Lord is Lord of all, whether
Jewish or Gentile. Thank You, Lord! When we look at verses 7 - 11, we see that
God made a covenant with Abraham, and how He promised us the Promised Land – a
land for the free, flowing with milk and honey (all good things, abundant
provisions!).
The Lord chose the tiniest of all people and took them on a
journey to a place of provision and preparation. Their stop in Egypt was just
the beginning of their journey to the Promised Land – a place not all that far
away geographically. They would have to be prepared for what they were about to
step into. And, as the Lord well knew, they would need provisions to do what He
was calling them to do. Today, as we go, we will look at what it takes as we
wait to step into what God is calling each of us to do in His kingdom work. At
the time, He was taking them to Egypt, He was making a way for them to have
abundant provisions. How many of us really realize that when God wants us to do
something for Him, He is well able to supply our every need to do it?
In those days, the enemy just happened to have all that God’s
people would need to survive the upcoming famine. The goods sitting in Egypt
would sustain His people so they would not be destroyed. The Lord was taking
them there to snatch the good stuff right out of the enemy’s hand – hallelujah!
God’s power was quickly revealed when this whole thing
started. First, He got them there, and He used one man to be the forerunner to
lead them. His name was Joseph. He had placed a call on Joseph’s life to be the
one God would use to save His people from total annihilation. Joseph is a
“type” of Jesus who the Father would send to keep people from being destroyed
by the enemy in hell. Joseph, like others, was used to be a deliverer – exactly
what Jesus is – our Deliverer. He came to deliver God’s people from their sins –
spiritual famine.
God would not allow the enemy to harm Joseph; see verse 15.
When the Lord is calling us to do something for Him and we are obeying that
call, He will not allow anyone to harm us. His powerful right arm will block
every attempt the enemy makes to take us out – ask me how I know this! Glory to
God, He saved me from death so many times that I cannot count, and that’s just
the times I know about. How many of us realize that the enemy has tried and
failed countless times that we are not even aware of to take us out of this
life?
In God’s sovereignty, He can maneuver circumstances to work
out His good will for His people. Keep in mind He is never controlling anyone –
He is working in and through people and as they are led, He gets things done
like no man can ever do. Looking at Joseph’s life, we see an amazing example of
a man of faith in God.
He went through some stuff, didn’t he? As a young boy, the
Lord gave him a dream about things that would not happen for many years. When
he opened his mouth to tell his family, it only served to earn him a free
ticket to the pit. But we see how the Lord didn’t let him stay there and die
like his brothers had hoped he would. God had a plan for Joseph and He was not
going to let those jealous brothers of his mess up those plans. Let’s read
Genesis, chapter 37 starting in the first verse…
Genesis 37:1-27
37 And Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father
was a stranger, in the land of Canaan.
2 These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph,
being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad
was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives:
and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report.
3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his
children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many
colours.
4 And when his brethren saw that their father
loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak
peaceably unto him.
5 And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his
brethren: and they hated him yet the more.
6 And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this
dream which I have dreamed:
7 For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the
field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your
sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf.
8 And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed
reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him
yet the more for his dreams, and for his words.
9 And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it
his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the
sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.
10 And he told it to his father, and to his
brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream
that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to
bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?
11 And his brethren envied him; but his father
observed the saying.
12 And his brethren went to feed their father's
flock in Shechem.
13 And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy brethren
feed the flock in Shechem? come, and I will send thee unto them. And he said to
him, Here am I.
14 And he said to him, Go, I pray thee, see whether
it be well with thy brethren, and well with the flocks; and bring me word
again. So he sent him out of the vale of Hebron, and he came to Shechem.
15 And a certain man found him, and, behold, he was
wandering in the field: and the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou?
16 And he said, I seek my brethren: tell me, I pray
thee, where they feed their flocks.
17 And the man said, They are departed hence; for I
heard them say, Let us go to Dothan. And Joseph went after his brethren, and
found them in Dothan.
18 And when they saw him afar off, even before he
came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him.
19 And they said one to another, Behold, this
dreamer cometh.
20 Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and
cast him into some pit, and we will say, Some evil beast hath devoured him: and
we shall see what will become of his dreams.
21 And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of
their hands; and said, Let us not kill him.
22 And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but
cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him;
that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again.
23 And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto
his brethren, that they stript Joseph out of his coat, his coat of many colours
that was on him;
24 And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and
the pit was empty, there was no water in it.
25 And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted
up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a company of Ishmeelites came from
Gilead with their camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it
down to Egypt.
26 And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is
it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood?
27 Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites,
and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his
brethren were content.
As the Lord would have it, He sent people along at just the
right time to get Joseph out of that pit. Do we realize how often the Lord
sends people along in our lives to help point us in the right direction, or to
help us out of a serious jam we are in? God works through people and
circumstances to help us on our way. The devil can lead us off track and throw
us a curve ball here and there, but God is stronger and wiser in every way.
What the devil meant for harm to Joseph in this situation was only an opportunity
for the Lord to show His mighty power to help. Hallelujah! Let’s move on…
Genesis 37:28
28 Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew
and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for
twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt.
There it was. Help – and right on time! How many are not
paying attention when the Lord sends the help, and then keep crying out to God
asking why He is taking so long? It is so pitiful it is almost laughable if it
were not so sad. We get into trouble and ask the Lord for help, and then when
He sends it, we miss it or reject it, and then blame God because we are still
in the pit. Oh the foolishness of man. God had a big plan for Joseph and He was
right in the middle of making sure that this plan would come to pass. How
relaxed would we all be if we just listened to the Lord, accepted the call He
has placed on our lives and then trusted Him to get us to the point where it
would be time to step into that calling?
And instead of wondering how we are
going to pay for it, we need to trust God. He knows better than we do! There’s
plenty of examples in the Bible of people who had a major role in their lives
that God was calling them to fulfill, and they had to wait for decades to see
it even begin to come to pass? More on that in a bit. Think about that, won’t
you? LOL!
Joseph ended up in Potiphar’s house and became a leader
there. Most of us know how his wife had tempted Joseph and he ran form the
scene. He stayed faithful to God in a trying situation. It looked like he ended
up on the losing side of the deal, but even then, Joseph continued to praise
God while he waited on the Lord to deliver him from the snares of the enemy
working through Potiphar’s wife. His waiting would be a lot longer than he
anticipated. Let’s review the events…
Genesis 39 (The Entire Chapter) All of this is exciting
reading and it is a great refresher!
39 And Joseph was brought down to Egypt; and
Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him
of the hands of the Ishmeelites, which had brought him down thither.
2 And the Lord was
with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master
the Egyptian.
3 And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that
the Lord made all that
he did to prosper in his hand.
4 And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he
served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put
into his hand.
5 And it came to pass from the time that he had
made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian's house
for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the Lord was
upon all that he had in the house, and in the field.
6 And he left all that he had in Joseph's hand;
and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a
goodly person, and well favoured.
7 And it came to pass after these things, that his
master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me.
8 But he refused, and said unto his master's wife,
Behold, my master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he hath
committed all that he hath to my hand;
9 There is none greater in this house than I;
neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his
wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?
10 And it came to pass, as she spake to Joseph day by
day, that he hearkened not unto her, to lie by her, or to be with her.
11 And it came to pass about this time, that Joseph
went into the house to do his business; and there was none of the men of the
house there within.
12 And she caught him by his garment, saying, Lie
with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out.
13 And it came to pass, when she saw that he had
left his garment in her hand, and was fled forth,
14 That she called unto the men of her house, and
spake unto them, saying, See, he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mock us;
he came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice:
15 And it came to pass, when he heard that I lifted
up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled, and got him
out.
16 And she laid up his garment by her, until his
lord came home.
17 And she spake unto him according to these words,
saying, The Hebrew servant, which thou hast brought unto us, came in unto me to
mock me:
18 And it came to pass, as I lifted up my voice and
cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled out.
19 And it came to pass, when his master heard the
words of his wife, which she spake unto him, saying, After this manner did thy
servant to me; that his wrath was kindled.
20 And Joseph's master took him, and put him into
the prison, a place where the king's prisoners were bound: and he was there in
the prison.
21 But the Lord was
with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the
keeper of the prison.
22 And the keeper of the prison committed to
Joseph's hand all the prisoners that were in the prison; and whatsoever they
did there, he was the doer of it.
23 The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing
that was under his hand; because the Lord was
with him, and that which he did, the Lord made
it to prosper.
How many are out there who have heard the call that the Lord
had placed on their lives and because it seemed too long in coming, or too high
a price to pay made up their minds to go in a different direction? Doing that
will land a person in some sort of pit – this we can be sure of. I didn’t know
what God’s call was for me until I was in my 50’s, but the pit I had been in
was one I had voluntarily flung myself into. I knew about God and I knew there
was a better way, but I chose the tough way. It looked at one point as if there
was absolutely no way out.
As the events unfolded, after a very long time in a prison
cell where Joseph honored God in the worst of conditions, the Lord sent in the
people He could use to help rescue him from the dungeon he was in and bring him
to the palace. Because the cupbearer did not talk to Pharaoh like he had promised Joseph he would,
Joseph had to sit in that prison a couple more years. Read Genesis 40 on your
own and then look at what happened in Genesis 41. By the time we get to Genesis
42, we see Joseph’s family going to Egypt for food, lest they would die. God
had strategically placed a “deliverer” in the land of plenty so that provisions
could be made for His people.
The Lord is always way out in front of us on everything. When
will we start to really trust Him for this? Hmmm…. Something to think about. And,
do you suppose that Joseph was in that prison because God wanted him there? The
answer is no. He spilled the beans about a dream that, had he kept it to
himself could have spared him a lot of grief. Joseph had some serious learning
to do in the process of time in his life.
The Lord brought all of Joseph’s family to Egypt, and while
they were there He greatly increased them to the point where they outnumbered
the Egyptians. Oh, how strong our God is. Things got ugly for the Israelites in
Egypt after the Pharaoh who knew Joseph died. Everything went in an entirely
different direction and God’s people were now slaves in the land and treated
terribly! We know that Egypt represents the enemy – the devil. The people of
Egypt worshiped all kinds of “gods” but not the One True God.
Oh, but the Lord
came in and thrashed them with the things they worshiped such as they had never
been thrashed before. The Lord kept coming at them with all of His mighty
strength and power. The enemy would stand his ground for a while and then the
Lord came right back around with another punch of His holy wrath. The enemy
didn’t stand a chance – and he never would. It took hitting the Pharaoh where
it hurt the most to get him to bend and let God’s people go – but he finally
did.
I was rejoicing when I read this. I was shouting, “Look out
devil! God is on my side – ha!” The next thing we see in today’s chapter is how
the Lord then sent in some anointed shepherds to lead God’s people out of the
hand of the enemy. Moses was a type of Jesus too – a shepherd. Jesus is our
Shepherd. Moses was used to lead the people on their journey to the Promised Land.
And God gave him a helper – Aaron, his very own brother. And the stick that Moses
used – the rod in his hand, that was Jesus; a sign and a wonder for all to see!
He is the Rod in all our hands against the wiles of the devil
– hallelujah! He is the name above every name. The Lord went in to the enemy
territory and smote those Egyptians with their own false gods, and took His
people out of there. He left the enemy wishing he had never messed with these
people. Do you know that the Lord can help you make it the same way? If we will
follow God and His plan, He can pull a person out of the lowest pit and place
them in a palace, making the devil out to be a laughingstock, getting whipped
so badly he wished he had barked up someone else’s tree. LOL! Praise the lord.
I thought about how the Lord has brought me out of the hand
of the enemy. I thought about Jesus and what He has done for us. He whipped the
devil once and for all time, making a public spectacle of him. After the Lord
showed Himself strong against Egypt, this is where it really gets good. God
brought the people out of bondage in Egypt with great spoil – hallelujah! Verse
37 shows us that the Lord brought the people forth with silver and gold
(abundant provisions) and there was not one among them that was feeble. In
other words, God brought them out the enemy’s camp with lots of cash for their
needs and He brought them out healthy!
Again, I rejoiced as I thought about this. I began to cry as
I thought about the way I was just a few years ago. I was so bound up by the
devil. My heart, my soul, and my body were a mess. I was 95 pounds overweight,
sick all the time, depressed and all the while I was calling myself a
Christian! It is crazy what I was dealing with after Jesus had already defeated
satan and every evil force that’s out there. I was living like a slave in a
foreign land while God was right there calling me out, saying, “Hanny, come on
over here. It is a beautiful place. I have every provision you will ever need.
I can comfort you, heal your broken heart and your ailing body. In fact, I
already did it for you. Can you see it? It is right here sweetheart! I have
everything you need and in abundance. Come on over to the Promised Land I have
waiting for you.”
But it took me 11 years after I surrendered to the Lordship
of Jesus before it finally started to sink in. I began to realize the power of
God in my life. I saw how His word works for those who have faith in Him. I
began to see that I already have the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Why
was I hanging around in Egypt when the Promised Land is only a “stone’s throw”
away?
It is almost as if a bolt of lightning went off in my head. I
suddenly began to understand – thank You Holy Spirit. I began to see that all
the addiction I was battling was just me in a ring with no one but myself
swinging at the air. You see, Egypt is desolate. It is empty. God demolished it
through Jesus. There is nothing there. The Promised Land is right here – right now,
within our reach and readily available. God gave us all the cash we would ever
need. It is already here in the earth. He healed us with the stripes of Jesus
so we don’t have to be poor or sick anymore. Read Isaiah 53 if you need a
reminder of all that Jesus has already done.
Then He gave us all we would need through Holy Spirit (cloud
by day and fire by night) to follow after God’s plan and ways so we could live
a successful Christian life. The Lord shows us clearly in this chapter the many
ways that He provided for His people. He led them, He fed them, He quenched
their thirst, He filled their pockets and He gave them the best places to live.
Glory to His name forever! This should make any Christian jump up and start
shouting. Sadly, most Christians on the planet today think that to be a follower
of Jesus, they have to be broke and do without any good things. This is a lie
from the pit of hell. The only one who belongs in the pit is the devil – not a
child of God! He gives us richly all things to enjoy…
1 Timothy 6:17
Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded,
nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;
People get the whole “being rich” thing real mixed up. They
confuse and twist the scriptures to make them say something they do not. Do we
not think that God knows this world system requires money to get things done?
How do you make a house payment, or buy your food and clothes? What about a car
to drive or any other personal need you have? What about equipment to work
with? Back in the day, they traded goods like sheep and cattle, etc. to buy
from one another. But now we use cash. Don’t we think God knows what we have
need of?
We are talking about the same God who brought the Israelites
out of the bondage of the Egyptians with a lot of cash. And we see it
throughout the Old Testament. There are numerous stories of how the Lord gave
His people great spoil (goods) from the enemy. God not only knows we need
money, but He has already provided it. We just need to take it. This is another
teaching altogether. Maybe we will get to it one day as the Lord directs.
By the time we get to verse 42, we are reminded once again
that God keeps His promises. According to our timetable it may seem a long time
in coming. But if we think of it according to “God time” it is but a moment and
it is a done deal. The Lord never, never, never fails to keep a promise. Can
you imagine how the people felt when they were snatched out the enemy’s hand in
Egypt? We can know there was some shoutin going on that day – amen! He brought
them out with joy and gladness. What a cause to celebrate and praise the Lord –
hallelujah!
And here is the topper. Back to the financial abundance
conversation in case you weren’t paying attention a moment ago (laugh out loud!).
The Lord gave the people lands they didn’t even have to work for. Yep! He
snatched that stuff right out of the hands of the heathen and gave them to His
own chosen people which makes us think of this verse…
Ecclesiastes 2:26
For God giveth to a man that is good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge,
and joy: but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he
may give to him that is good before God. This also is vanity and vexation of
spirit.
Glory to God! He gives us houses we didn’t have to build and
vineyards that have already been planted, estates that have already been
established. All we have to do is load up our camels full of loot and move on
in! What a deal! Glory to His name forever! This is how good our God is. He
wants to deliver you and me form the hand of the enemy and give us a rich,
healthy, abundant prosperous life, along with an important calling and purpose
in the kingdom so we can be a great big blessing to everyone we meet.
In that,
the people around us can see the goodness of God in the land of the living.
When they see us loving them, and giving them great things, like paying off
their houses or cars, or buying them food and clothing, they will come to know
how big, how awesome, how loving and wonderful our God is. They will stand up
and take notice that the things that are happening in our lives had to do with
a power far greater than us, and they will start asking questions.
Jesus died on the cross, went to hell for us, and was raised
from the dead on the third day. He had the keys of death and hades. He had
fully and completely whipped the devil, stripping him of all power and
authority. The only thing we need to do to receive this rich inheritance is to
ask Jesus to be the Lord and Savior of our lives. After that, what He said on
the cross to the sinner who humbled himself in his dying moments can be a
promise for anyone to grab a hold of…
Luke 23:43
And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.
Friend, the Lord did all of this for us and He only requires
such a small thing from us. Personally, I spent far too long in Egypt! I would
much rather be in paradise with Jesus and enjoy the blessings contained therein.
The last verse says it all…
Psalm 105:45
That they might observe his statutes, and keep his laws. Praise ye the Lord.
What He has called us to do He
will equip us to do. It is that simple. It may take some time. We must be
patient. Our lives are short enough as it is. But, if we will serve the Lord by
serving others as we seek His will each day, He will get us to the place where
we can be grown up and responsible enough to be trusted with doing a great and
effective work for Him. People who are called to do His work have to be mature
and responsible.
Imagine what might have happened if the Lord had called Moses
to lead the people out of Egypt right after he had killed the Egyptian. Do you
think the Lord would have seen the same results as He did from Moses after
having him do some growing up on the back side of the desert for 40 years? Not
likely! LOL!
And let’s not forget about
Joseph. Don’t think for a minute that he didn’t have some growing up to do
before he would be assigned to take the role of second in command in all of Egypt
over Pharaoh’s house. He had opened his mouth when he should have been silent.
He had a lot to learn to while he sat in that prison. The good thing was that
the whole time he was there, he continued to praise the Lord. How many realize
that praising God will break anyone free from the prison walls? Hallelujah!
Learning to praise God, honestly, from the heart in the worst of times is a sure-fire
way to arrive at the best of times.
I think of the short time it
has been since I decided to surrender to the Lord’s way of doing things. It
doesn’t seem like all that long now after that happened when He started to show
me what my calling in my Christian life was supposed to be. And when he first
started showing me the dreams and giving me the word through the Bible and
through people, I got so excited. I was saying, “OK, Lord – let’s go, let’s do
it. Here I am – I am ready. Send me.” Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!
That is so laughable
I can only imagine the smile on the Lord’s face when He saw my excitement and
heard my cries to go and do it. I had the dreams, just like Joseph had a dream.
The Lord really began to show me some awesome things about my future and my
calling. I was so full of excitement at the thought of it, I could hardly
contain myself. Sort of like telling a kindergartner they are going to the zoo
tomorrow. LOL!
But we can just about hear Him
saying, “Not so fast kiddo! You have got a lot of learning to do before I will
be able to use you. Right now, you are like a wild, untrained stallion running
around the barnyard. Just relax and trust Me and let Me work some of that
immature flesh out of you and help you to do some growing up. Then, if you are
willing and obedient, you will eat the good of the land. If you show Me that I
can trust you with a few things, then I can promote you to handle some bigger
things. One day at a time my beloved, one day at a time. I called you to it – I
can certainly get you there.” Look at this…
2 Timothy 1:6-12
6 Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou
stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.
7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear;
but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
8 Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony
of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of
the gospel according to the power of God;
9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to
our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in
Christ Jesus before the world began,
10 But is now made manifest by the appearing of our
Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and
immortality to light through the gospel:
11 Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an
apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.
12 For the which cause I also suffer these things:
nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to
keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.
And here is another verse the Lord has called to our
attention today…
Romans 11:29
For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.
What God has called us to do is permanent. If we don’t
necessarily like the call, get over it! God is not going to change His mind
because we are looking at our flesh and screaming, “Oh God, I can’t do that!” More
laughing saints! Laughter is good for your heart! I have been so eager to step
into this wonderful call the Lord has given me for my life and ministry assignment; however, I can assure you that as I approach my 61st birthday,
I can tell you with all certainty that I was in no way ready to do the bigger
things. The Lord had a lot of “little” things to work out of me and some big
things to blend into me. We will always be a work in progress as long as we are
alive – or at least we should be. We never stop learning. The great thing is
that while He has us on the “back side of our desert” as He prepares us to help
His people in whatever capacity He is calling us to fulfill, He can use us to
sprinkle the seeds of His love all along the way. How many flowers will grow
because you passed by someone’s life and scattered the seed of God’s word?
Our journey never has to be dull. We learn as we grow. It is
a wonderful deal. The obedience brings the blessing. Being willing helps us to
grow up quicker and be used sooner. God cannot send out boys and girls to do
men’s and women’s jobs. It doesn’t make sense in our family life - why would it
be any different in the kingdom work. God needs grown up Christians to “big boy”
and “big girl” jobs – amen. So, while you are on your journey friend, may I
encourage you to take the time to enjoy your “right now?” If you do, you will
find that the road to the goal was a wonderful trip and it will go so much
faster because time really does fly when you are having fun – praise his name
forever!
There are four main points to
consider from today’s study…
We live to praise, honor serve and rejoice
in God our Savior all along the way
God keeps His promises
The Lord can bring anyone out of the
hand of the enemy with great riches and joy (if they are willing to do the
work)
The only thing the Lord requires is
that we do things His way - a small price to pay
Questions:
What meant the most to you in this chapter?
In what ways can you relate to Joseph or Moses?
Are you clear on what God has called you to do for Him in
your life and ministry?
How will you handle the “waiting period” on your journey to
fulfill your calling?
Who can you share this study with?
What has
God called you to do to serve in His kingdom?
Let’s pray…
Heavenly Father:
Thank You for helping me to see things
differently by the study of Your word. Father, forgive me for my impatience and
for giving in to my flesh along the way. I know so little and You know all
things. You know the right time for everything and all I have to do is trust You.
Father, I ask You to show me who I can bless along the way. Lord, if I have
gotten off of the path You have shown me, I ask for Your forgiveness and Your
direction so I can get back on. Thank You in advance for Your help. Like our
lesson said today, I live to praise You, obey You, seek You and thank You as I remember
all the marvelous things that You have done for me. In Jesus name. Amen.
And God Said… You fill in the blanks.
Psalm 40:1-3
40 I waited patiently for the Lord;
and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.
2 He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry
clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.
3 And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God:
many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.
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