Things Could Be Worse; Repent!

And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way of the Red sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way.

And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.

And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.

Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord, and against thee; pray unto the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.

And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.

And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.

                                                                                (Numbers 21:4-9 KJV)

Life can be a major struggle even as getting to the promised land was a struggle for the Israelites. The path that God leads us on is not always as easy as we would like it to be. We don't get everything we want and we are often not willing to make the slightest sacrifice to reach the desired goal. 

God had led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. When they did not have the food that they desired, God sent them quail and manna to eat every single day. But, they didn't particularly like the manna that they called "light bread" and they complained. So, the Lord sent serpents to bite the people to apparently teach them that they had not had it so bad. Things could be worse. Sometimes, it is most beneficial to be thankful for what the Lord has provided us with. 

As multitude died from this pestilence the people woke up and repented of their sins of complaining about God and what He had given them. The Lord told Moses to make a serpent made of brass and hang it upon a pole; that if anyone was bitten by a serpent they should look at it and they will be healed. And... it was so.

Humankind continues to take the gifts of God for granted. We speak against Him often. We act against His will continuously. Simply put, we take Him for granted. Yet, all who would repent of their sins against Him; all who would turn to the cross of Christ, to Christ who was hung on the tree for us, will be forgiven their sins and be made whole.

Maybe it's time to quit complaining and thank God for what He has given us. Let us never take the good gifts of God for granted but be ever grateful that He has released us from bondage; He has healed us, by the blood of Jesus the Christ.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Enlarge Our Borders

Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. His mother had named him Jabez, saying, “I gave birth to him in pain.” Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.” And God granted his request.  1 Chron 4:9-10 NIV

Among the descendants of Judah, is one Jabez.  In the middle of the list of Judah's descendants is a description of this one obscure son. He is born in pain.  He is a humble man who prays to the God of Israel, "Oh that you would bless me and enlarge my border, and that your hand might be with me, and that you would keep me from harm so that it might not bring me pain!" (4:10) God answered his prayer. It does not say how.  It just says he answered this prayer.

Now, I'm thinking the fact that he prayed for these things and God answered has to be pretty important; otherwise, wide would this obscure man's prayer be placed in the middle of this genealogy? I have heard many negative critiques of this prayer.  Yet, I pray it often for others whom I love. It is a simple prayer. Jabez asked God to bless him, to keep him from harm and to enlarge his borders or his territories. The critique I've often heard is that enlarging the territories is about riches as in silver and gold or maybe houses and cars or airplanes. Some would turn Jabez' humble prayer into a selfish prayer. 

However, for the Christian our borders are on the mission field. We do not look at this prayer as a magical means to fill our pockets; but as a prayer that God would bless us with missions, with opportunities to reach out to the whole world with the same love He has for us so that others might come to know him. Evangelism is the purpose for which we pray our borders to be expanded. 

Who would not want their loved ones to be blessed by the LORD, to be kept from harm and know no pain and to have ever expanding borders to proclaim the praises of God? Oh, LORD, expand our territory so that we might reach out to even more, to the multitudes, with the Good News of your Kingdom, through Jesus Christ, our LORD.

God's Peace - Pr. J

In God's Time

But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.  2 Peter 3:8-9 NIV

I can become very impatient. There are times when I feel a sense of urgency. There are days when I think, "OK, Lord, isn't it about time to take all of your children home? Enough is enough!" But, apparently it is not time, yet. He apparently does not want anyone to perish so everyone gets another chance and another and another to turn to Him.

There are times when I consider that my time is really short here on earth and I just don't have enough time left to reach out to all who I would reach out to. But, then I have to remember that although my time may be short here on earth, God's is not. He is with all people at all times. He continues to call all people to Himself.

No matter what is going on around you; no matter how self-serving and chaotic life around you seems to be, remember:  "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."  (Rom 8:28) He has a good plan. We might desire that He hurry up with His plan. But, we're going to have to wait for Him to act in His own good time and His time is not our time.

We don't know His whole plan. But; be assured, He does have a plan and that plan encompasses much more than our personal life spans. After all, He has eternity in His hand.

God is patient with us. He is a loving God. May we all quit taking His patient love for granted and turn to Him for our salvation.

God's Peace - Pr. Judy