March 2, 2023
 Daily Reading – Numbers 6-7 / Mark 7

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Numbers 7:3 And they brought their offering before the LORD, six covered wagons, and twelve oxen; a wagon for two of the princes, and for each one an ox: and they brought them before the tabernacle.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

    Our church took some time and went through 1st & 2nd Corinthians chapter by chapter. I recall sitting in my office reading over the passage for the week in my bible when I came to the passage in 2 Corinthians 9:7 & 8 “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:” It occurred to me that many of the people in our congregation were giving, but they may be missing out on the blessings of giving because of the way they did so. I began to think, have I failed these people because I have not clearly conveyed to them that it was more important how they gave, than what they gave. I purposed in my heart that day to take just a moment before every offering to try to point peoples heart and therefore their offering to God. The only way to give cheerfully is to be mindful of who we are giving to. Remembering, it was God who gave us what we are about to offer back to Him as offering.

 

    The opening line of today’s verse says “And they brought their offering before the LORD.” They physically brought the offerings to Moses in the tabernacle. However, spiritually they brought it to the Lord, and Oh how He blessed all that they brought. It was always enough..

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

    Our church may never be wealthy in the eyes of the world. Our people may not be rich according to earthly standards. Yet I believe if they paused, prayed, and praised God each week before giving offerings to Him, well, we always have enough. 

 

Is God’s enough, enough for you?

 

 

 March 1, 2023
 Daily Reading – Numbers 3-5 / Mark 6:32-56

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Numbers 5:2-3 Command the children of Israel, that they put out of the camp every leper, and every one that hath an issue, and whosoever is defiled by the dead: Both male and female shall ye put out, without the camp shall ye put them; that they defile not their camps, in the midst whereof I dwell.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

    If you have ever been around young children who play outside in the summer, or you can remember back to when you were a child, you may remember a conversation that went something like this. Mom – “Go get in the bathtub and clean yourself up.” Child – “I am not that dirty.” Mom – “your hands and face are filthy, now get in the tub.” Child – “I will do it in the morning.” MOM – “YOU WILL DO IT NOW, RIGHT NOW, AND QUIT TALKING BACK.” Child – “ok.” To the child who had been playing in the dirt all day; they could not see the immediate need. This dirt looked ok all day, how bad can it be? To the mother who saw this cloud of dirt and dust swirling through the house, all she could see was dirty sheets, dirty hand towels, dirty pajamas, in fact a dirty anything they came in contact with.

 

    God gives a command to the children of Israel. Those who are defiled, or diseased must be put out of the camp until they are clean. Why? Well, there was the issue of contamination of others. Also, in the desert with no medical facilities to speak of, a real health issue could arise if they are not quarantined immediately. However, there is another reason that is just as important in the last line of Numbers 5:3. It says, “in the midst whereof I dwell.” Simply put, anyone who might come in contact with God’s tabernacle, the place where His glory would rest, must be clean.  

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

    Many times, we are contaminated daily by the sin of the world. Sin is around us all day and we may not notice how dirty we are. That is until we read the soul cleansing Word of God. Like the disciples’ feet, we need to wash off the sin of the day by repentance.

 

Is it time for a Holy bath?

 

 

 February 28, 2023
 Daily Reading – Numbers 1-2 / Mark 6:1-31

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Numbers 2:34 And the children of Israel did according to all that the LORD commanded Moses: so they pitched by their standards, and so they set forward, every one after their families, according to the house of their fathers.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

    During each year, I have the privilege of organizing a few group retreats. I so enjoy being around those people and seeing God work in their lives. However, it takes some organization to make it all seem to flow. We print literature with schedules on them. We have put the schedule on the back of the name badges. We announce at almost every gathering what the next few events might be. Then after all that, we still have some who come up and say, “what is next?” “Where am I supposed to be?” Or the most asked question… “When do we eat again?” At times it feels as if you are trying to herd a bunch of cats. Organizing a crowd is not always easy.

 

    Now multiply that by over a million people. No printing press to print schedules, no name badges, and no public address system to tell everyone at once, “we are turning left at the next mountain!” God had devised a system to keep things in order. Everyone knew what side of the tabernacle they were to pitch their tents on. They all knew where in this huge caravan they were expected to be. Surprisingly, one of the only things we do not hear the children of Israel complaining about, is where they were supposed to be when setting up camp or in line. No one saying, “I want to pitch on the east this time, you always get that side it is my turn.” No, God had well organized a crowd of people and they actually did what He said. Guess what, IT WORKED! 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

    God has well organized so many areas of our lives. How much better would life be if we were to do what Numbers 2:34 says the children of Israel did? “And the children of Israel did according to all that the LORD commanded.”

 

What area of your life will you let God direct?

 

 

 February 27, 2023
 Daily Reading – Leviticus 26-27 / Mark 5:1-43

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Leviticus 26:3-4 If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them; Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

    Decisions, Decisions. What to do. Do I get up and get started with the day, or do I sleep in just a few more minutes. Cold cereal, eggs, or oatmeal? What do I wear today? Every day is filled with decisions. Sometimes those decisions make very little difference in our life. If you eat oatmeal or eggs will probably not matter ten years from today. However, some choices we are given matter greatly. They can change your life.

 

    God gave Israel a life altering choice in Leviticus 26. It was actually pretty basic. If you follow my directions for life, you will enjoy a great life. I will pour out blessing upon blessing on you and your generations to come. Then later in the chapter He tells them if they choose rather to be like the rest of the world, well, they will not only miss out on His blessings, but He will begin to work against them. You see, He had rescued them. They cried out, save us, and He did. They watched as He defeated their greatest enemy. They collectively said, we want you to be our God and we will be your people. They were no longer like everyone else. Therefore, if they willfully went back on what they had promised, God would do what was necessary to show them the error or their choice. He would afflict them in order to bring them back to Himself. Cruel? Oh no, this is pure Love. They were offered a choice. To enjoy life, even more abundantly than you may imagine, just follow the guide to life I have given you. Simple choice, right? 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

    We face the same choice today. John 10:10 “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” Choose Christ and choose real life.

 

What choice will you make?

 

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Leviticus 25:4 But in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath for the LORD: thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

    REST! There is nothing better in all the world after a hard day’s work than a good night of rest. Our body demands it. Just to stop, breathe, relax, and let our bodies recover to prepare for the next day. Yet, we have become so busy, our minds so cluttered, that resting has become difficult. Sleep aids are often our best friend. Not only do our bodies need rest, but farmers will tell you the land needs rest as well. After years of planting the same crops, the soil becomes depleted of its nutrients. Alternating crops or just leaving a field empty if possible is the best thing for the land. It will give you bigger and better crops in the years you plant if you can just give it some rest.

 

     Before science figured out the resting principle, God already knew. He created times of rest for a reason. When Jesus was walking the earth teaching His disciples, we read in Mark 6:31 “And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: …” Rest was necessary to minister well. God also promises rest when we give our lives to Him. Matthew 11:28 “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” So, if rest is so important, why do we neglect it? Trying to get one more day on the job, one more adventure on the weekend, one more thing done around the house, when we should take the time of rest that God created and intended for us to take. I hear a call to REST!

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

    Our call to REST implies that we are to rest from something. It is not a call to do nothing. Rest is rewarding only if you have done something to rest from. Matthew 11:30 “For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” You see, there is still a yoke!
 

Do you rest as you should?

 

 THE WEEK IN REVIEW:

    Oh, what a comfort we have in knowing just how much God cares for us. We have seen it this past week in:

 

  ● Our Continual Reminder
  ● Our Coming Remission
  ● Our Caution Required
  ● Our Curiosity Restrained
  ● Our Consistent Ruling
  ● Our Call To Rest

    What peace, what joy, what comfort in knowing the All-Knowing God is watching out for our lives. Knowing He has our best interest at heart. Our Comfort Is Real!

 

     Enjoy today with your church and hear what God has prepared in the heart of His man for you this week.

   See you tomorrow.  

 

 SUNDAYS:

    Today we suggest you read and study whatever the Lord has laid on your Pastors heart. Whatever scripture he uses for today’s messages were given to him by God for your specific needs.

 

February 27, 2023	Leviticus 26-27	Mark 5
February 28, 2023	Numbers 1-2	Mark 6:1-29
March 1, 2023	Numbers 3-5	Mark 6:30-56
March 2, 2023	Numbers 6-7	Mark 7
March 3, 2023	Numbers 8-9	Mark 8:1-21
March 4, 2023	Numbers 10-11	Mark 8:22-38
March 5, 2023	No Passages Assigned

Our Comfort Is Real