Exodus 13-15

Day 34

Exodus 13-15

Exodus 15:22-25

²² Moses led the Israelites away from the Red Sea into the Desert of Shur. They traveled for three days in the desert but found no water.²³ Then they came to Marah, where there was water, but they could not drink it because it was too bitter. That is why the place was named Marah.

Whenever one finds oneself inclined to bitterness, it is a sign of emotional failure.
-Bertrand Russell

Why do we get bitter? What causes bitterness?

Jealousy causes bitterness…

*She can have children, but I cannot… (Example: Rachel and Leah)

Suffering causes bitterness…

*The Israelites suffered harshly under the rule of Pharaoh and the Egyptians and after Moses led them out of slavery on several occasions they wished they were slaves again…

Pride causes bitterness…  

*Pharisees and the Sadducees let their knowledge of God surpass their obedience to God…  If this is you – you probably rejoice when something negative happens to other leaders in different ministries because you are jealous of their ministry…  Dude you should celebrate – you’re on the same team!  Don’t hate – celebrate!

Greed causes bitterness…

*Acts 8:20-23 and Judas complained about the perfume poured over Jesus feet was worth a year’s salary…  He really was more interested in money than people.  If this is you, you’re on very dangerous ground.  People are the only eternal things on this Earth!!!  Look what happened to Judas…

Jesus is the answer to bitterness…  Give your bitterness to Him.  You can entrust Him with it!  He won’t always make it better, but He will never leave you bitter!  Look what HE did for the Israelites in verse 24-25!

. ²⁴ The people grumbled to Moses and asked, "What will we drink?" ²⁵ So Moses cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a tree. When Moses threw the tree into the water, the water became good to drink.

Exodus 7-12

 Day 33

Exodus 7-12

Exodus 10:3

³ So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said to him, “This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me?

Have you ever felt like nothing is going right for you?  Does it ever seem like you see others being blessed, but you feel like you are being cursed?  You probably know exactly how the king of Egypt felt!

It’s very simple.  When we refuse to listen to God’s commands we open ourselves up to get what’s coming to us.  In other words, we open ourselves up to getting what we deserve!

We can’t blame God when those bad things occur…  If your parent tells you not to play in traffic and what might happen to you if you play in traffic and you do it anyway.  Is it your parents fault if you get ran over?  It’s the same way with God.  His word tells us what His boundaries are and if we stay within those boundaries of His word we are safe. Once we get outside of those boundaries; you get the picture…

So the question is…  WHAT IS YOUR BREAKING POINT?  How many times does God have to tell you to do something before you give in to His wishes…?  Each time he has to tell you he is going to do a little bit more to get your attention!    

*It could be just a sign from God – Exodus 7:10

¹⁰ So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as the LORD commanded. Aaron threw his staff down in front of Pharaoh and his officials and it became a snake.

*It might be God taking away your comfort – Exodus 7:20-21
²⁰ Moses and Aaron did just as the LORD had commanded. He raised his staff in the presence of Pharaoh and his officials and struck the water of the Nile, and all the water was changed into blood. ²¹ The fish in the Nile died, and the river smelled so bad that the Egyptians could not drink its water. Blood was everywhere in Egypt.

*It could be God is going to make your efforts fruitless – Exodus 8:24

²⁴ And the LORD did this. Dense swarms of flies poured into Pharaoh’s palace and into the houses of his officials, and throughout Egypt the land was ruined by the flies.

*It could be that God will make it cost you something – Exodus 9:3

³ the hand of the LORD will bring a terrible plague on your livestock in the field—on your horses and donkeys and camels and on your cattle and sheep and goats.

*It could be that God will take away your health – Exodus 9:10

¹⁰ So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh. Moses tossed it into the air, and festering boils broke out on men and animals.

*It could be God will send a natural disaster – Exodus Chapter 10

God sent hail and locusts

*It could be God will send death – Exodus Chapter 11:4-5

⁴ So Moses said, “This is what the LORD says: ‘About midnight I will go throughout Egypt. ⁵ Every firstborn son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sits on the throne, to the firstborn son of the slave girl, and all the firstborn of the cattle as well.

Personally I wound not want to be the stubborn guy when it comes to listening to God!  God does not change!  We must keep this in mind when He asks us to be obedient… 

Exodus 4-6

Day 32

Exodus 4-6

Exodus 6:9
⁹ But when Moses delivered this message to the Israelites, they didn't even hear him—they were that beaten down in spirit by the harsh slave conditions.

We cannot teach people the apologetics of our faith if they are so beaten down by the world that:
*They no longer have a home
*They lost their job
*They have lost someone close to death
*They can’t get their basic needs of their family meet…  (Clothes, medical, food)

Andy Stanley said most adults who become a Christian do so because of a tragedy in their lives…  If this is true and I believe it is, then we have to reach out to these people. 

-Not with criticism…
-Not with condemnation…
-Not with apologetics…

But offer them in this order:
(1) Get them HELP…  (Shelter, food, medical attention, clothes)
(2) Get them HOPE… Jesus is the hope of the world and we are His instruments to show his love to those without hope.
(3) Get them HEALING… (Counseling or consoling… or both if necessary)

1 John 3:17-18
But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

We cannot drop the ball on this and expect God to be pleased with us!

Exodus 1-3

Day 32

Exodus 1-3

Exodus 3:11-12
¹¹ Moses answered God, "But why me? What makes you think that I could ever go to Pharaoh and lead the children of Israel out of Egypt?"  ¹² "I'll be with you," God said. "And this will be the proof that I am the one who sent you: When you have brought my people out of Egypt, you will worship God right here at this very mountain."

I have often felt just like Moses!  God, can you really use someone like me?  I’m not an impressive speaker, I have no degree from seminary, and I’ve been divorced… 

Look at our friend Moses…  He killed a person and tried to cover it up then fled the scene… (Genesis 2:11-15) The only thing he did not do was drive the get-away-car.   God used Moses to confront the Egyptian King with only a rod in hand to lead an entire Nation out of bondage.  An entire nation!  Not church, not a school, not even a business, but an entire nation…  Okay you got the scope of it!

God was at work in Moses' life far before he ever killed an Egyptian!  You can trace it back to when Moses was born.  His mother put Moses in a basket and sent him down the Nile River so he would not have been killed by Pharaoh’s decree to kill all male Hebrew children.  Moses eventually ends up being raised in the palace.  Just as God was at work in Moses life long before he had any idea, God is working in your life right now to bring you to a place where he can use you!  Your past cannot stop God’s plans for your future.  As of matter of fact, He likes using people with a past.  He likes using unlikely people to accomplish His plan…  It only brings him more Glory in the end!!!

Genesis 46-50

Day 31

Genesis 46-50

Genesis 50:15-17
15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?” 16 So they sent word to Joseph, saying, “Your father left these instructions before he died: 17 “This is what you are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly. Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father.” When their message came to him, Joseph wept.

Grudges are the gangrene of our souls!  I am a firm believer in this!  The spirit of person holding a grudge is slowly being eaten away because of their unwillingness to forgive.  Sometimes forgiveness is hard.  Sometimes the person we have to forgive hurt us deeply.  Sometimes the person who hurt us is dead.  No matter what the situation we have NO room for grudges in the body of Christ.  God is very clear in His word concerning grudges

(Leviticus 19:18) "You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord"


Joseph wept when he became aware of his brothers’ fear that he may hold a grudge against them after their father had died.  Why did he do that?  Because Joseph new the danger of grudges.  Here are 3 things grudges will do to the person that holds them…
NON-SPIRITUAL EFFECTS

• Grudges make you BITTER…
(Holding resentment is like drinking a poison and hoping the other person dies)
• Holding a grudge BOUNDS you to the person who wronged you
• Grudges impact our future far BEYOND the event itself…
(Sometimes even causing health issues to incur)

Here are 3 SPRITUAL EFFECTS• Holding grudges will put a BARRIER between you and God because grudges are sin…
• Grudges cause your sin to not to be BLOTTED out…  (Matthew 6:15)
15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. 
• Grudges makes us BLIND to God's love (John 4:20) If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.

The only way to release a grudge is to forgive the offender…  Not all relationships you may want to restore.  Obviously you don’t want to give someone an open door to continue any abuse.   Forgiveness is mandated, but if you want to restore the relationship that is up to you…

Genesis 42-45

Day 30

Genesis 42-45

Genesis 45:4-7
⁴ Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! ⁵ And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. ⁶ For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. ⁷ But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

How can God allow evil?  What did Joseph do to deserve being sold into slavery by his own brothers?  When people do things to us that we see as evil or hurtful the common reaction is to wonder why God allowed that to happen to us? 

·         Maybe you were a rape victim

·         Maybe you were a victim of domestic abuse

·         Maybe you were a victim of child abuse

·         Maybe you were a victim of sexual abuse

No matter what man has done to you or will do to you, God intends to use it for good…  (Genesis 50:20)  ²⁰ You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.

You see we can’t do anything that God can’t use for good!   That victim of domestic violence might be the one God uses to start a ministry that helps other victims.  Then the one act of violence saves the lives of many people…  Just as the act committed by Joseph's brothers; God used to save the lives of his Joseph's own family and an entire nation!

Genesis 41

Day 29

Genesis 41

Genesis 41:9
⁹ Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “Today I am reminded of my shortcomings.

I hate being reminded of my shortcomings.  You’ll often hear things like…

“I would of….”      or        “You should of…”

The problem with “I would of(s)….” and “You should of(s)…” is
HOW DO YOU KNOW WHO TO LISTEN TO?

Look we are going to have shortcomings…  It’s inevitable!  When we do it’s important that I get a good perspective on how I can do it right or better in some cases.  It’s important to be able to FILTER who you let advise you on how to correct your shortcomings.  I have a simple strategy that I turn to in these circumstances…  I ask these 3 questions before I will listen to anyone giving me advice about my shortcomings:

1) Does this person genuinely love Jesus Christ?
2) Does this person genuinely love me and want God's BEST for me?
3) Does this person’s background suggest he/or she genuinely knows what they are talking about!
     - In other words, “are they smoking what they are selling?”

If they meet these requirements I will genuinely listen to their thoughts and opinions about how to rectify a shortcoming of mine…

Genesis 38-40

Day 28
Genesis 38-40
Genesis 39:2-3
 ² The LORD was with Joseph so that he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. ³ When his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD gave him success in everything he did, ⁴ Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned.

Have you ever known someone whom everything they touch seems to turn to gold?  Their business is thriving in a tough economy.  Their marriage is thriving when ½ of marriages end in divorce.  Like Will Smith in Men In Black – “You know what the difference between me and you is…  I make this look good!"

I love that line…  It’s one of my all time favorites!  This brings me back to Joseph…  Here is a man that got sold into slavery by his brothers, wrongfully accused by his master’s wife, and thrown into a prison while being an upstanding man of God.  At least when bad things happen to me, it’s usually my fault… right! 

But no matter what happened to Joseph, no matter where he ended up or who he ended up with the Lord gave him success in EVERYTHING he did…  EVERYTHING…?  Yes EVERYTHING he did…  God gave him favor with his father at home.  He gave him success and put him over all things at Potiphar’s house.  While in jail as a prisoner Joseph was put in charge of all the King’s prisoners by the warden… 

Why was Joseph successful everywhere he went with everyone he met to the point that everyone put EVERYTHING in his care?  I believe there are three reasons…

·         He was a child of God  (Genesis 39:2) The Lord was with Joseph

·         He showed the character of God (Genesis 39:8) He would not sleep with Potiphar’s wife…

·         He had the capacity and competence to win favor with man (Genesis 39:4 and 39:21)

If you are a follower of Christ you already have the most powerful asset for success…  God does not want you to be unsuccessful…  Would you want your child to fail?  Of course not!

If you are like me the things I must constantly work on are working on my character – which takes accountability from other godly men in my case…  You would not want someone who has a worse character than yours, holding you accountable…

I also have to work on my ability to win favor with men! 

Well I don’t need man’s favor – I got God’s favor… 

You very well may have God’s favor, but if you have NO FAVOR from MAN, you have NO INFLUENCE with MAN either.  

-Well I’m just not willing to compromise any of my convictions in order to win any man’s favor…

God does not ask us to compromise…  HE asks us to show people HIS love!  LOVE GOD and LOVE PEOPLE… Summary of the 2 greatest commandments in the words of Jesus himself!  You know what the next question I’m going to ask is?

Are we doing that?

- Does the gay community know that I love them, or do they hear me say awful things about them as I condemn their lifestyle…?

- Does the homeless people know that I love them, or do they see me complain about not having enough while they have nothing…?

- Does the fatherless know that I love them, or do they see me barely spending enough time investing in the lives of my own children – much less someone else’s?

These are just 3 of the communities of people the church of America has lost influence with.  Unless we change something quick and drastically we will lose even more than these… 

Genesis 36-37

Day: 27

Genesis 36-37

Genesis 37:5-8

⁵ Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. ⁶ He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: ⁷ We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it.”

 ⁸ His brothers said to him, “Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?” And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said.

If God has given you a big vision for your life, don’t count on your family buying into it…  In most cases the opposite is true.  Joseph found this out quick when his brothers mocked him and tried to end his life.

¹⁹ “Here comes that dreamer!” they said to each other. ²⁰ “Come now, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we’ll see what comes of his dreams.”

After telling his family not one of them supported him.  Sure Rueben talked his brother’s out of killing Joseph, but He went along with the plan of his brothers to sell his brother to Midianite merchants…  Guess he went with the less of the two evils.

The importance of family to Jesus is revealed in his rejection of his own immediate family in

³¹ Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. ³² A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”  ³³ “Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked. ³⁴ Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! ³⁵ Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

The same thing is said in Matthew 12:46-50 and in Luke 8:19- 21.

 NO, NO, NO… I’m not trying to tell you your family does not love you or that they don’t love God!  That’s probably not the case at all. 

Whatever God has called you to do no matter how big or ridiculous it seems, you have to be willing to do it with or with the support of your family.  Don’t stop because they may not be onboard right away…  Don’t argue with your family about it either.  They don’t understand now, but they might understand later… 

Genesis 33-35

Day 26

Genesis 33-35

Genesis 35:2-3
² So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes. ³ Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.”

What is a revival?  Have you ever experienced true revival?  What causes a revival?  Can a revival be planned?  These are some of the many questions that come to mind when you hear of a revival… 

Dictionary.com defines revival as a spiritual awakening in a church or community.  History is always the best teacher so I looked at recent revivals to see what they had in common…  Here is what I found out…

·         Revivals always start with an act of obedience. (Genesis 35:1) ¹ God spoke to Jacob: "Go back to Bethel. Stay there and build an altar to the God who revealed himself to you when you were running for your life from your brother Esau."  Think about the revival that took place at Nineveh.  Jonah’s obedience to go to Nineveh that led to that outpouring of God’s mercy.

·         Revivals always lead to purification (Genesis 35:2) Jacob told his family and all those who lived with him, "Throw out all the alien gods which you have, take a good bath and put on clean clothes, we're going to Bethel.  Martin Luther basted the Roman Catholic Church concerning the authority of the church and the Pope…  His thesis helped purify the church, even though it cost him everything!  The same thing happened with Jacob…  He immediately told his family to – get rid of the foreign gods and purify yourselves and change your clothes.  Revivals always led to purity…  When Jacob told his family to change their clothes – This was an outward symbol of an inward cleansing.

You can schedule a revival on a church calendar, but if you really want a revival start with yourself.  Do what God’s is calling you to do… Pray for God to show you what your “Foreign gods” are and get rid of them.  Then look for God to begin a revival in you!

Genesis 32

Day 25

Genesis 32

Genesis 32:24-26
²⁴ So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. ²⁵ When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. ²⁶ Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

Whether or not Jacob wrestled with God or one of God’s angels, this is still a great passage!  I have never been a wrestler, but the parallel of this to my own life is scary.  I know God has called me to be a part of a church plant that is going to reach a lot of people who are far away from HIM.  I know God has called me to be a family pastor because he put a burden on my heart for the family. 

So here I am with this calling and what now?  Was I mistaken?  Did I not hear HIM right?  At times I have felt like I could see the light at the end of the tunnel and at other times I have felt like I had lost all hope…  Yet here I am…  Where is here?  Don’t know yet…  Where are you going?  Not sure…. 

Have you ever felt that way?  It’s when your vision for your life does not match your current position in life.  Pastor Steven Furtick said it best when he spoke about be prepared for the wedding.  He young man wearing a tux stops to get gas for his trip.  While pumping gas at a Texaco, he notices he is getting weird looks from people.   He feels like he needs to explain to the people that he is on his way to a wedding.  He feels overdressed and out of place…

That was when I realized - I am that guy pumping gas, I should feel out of place, and I am on my way to a where HE has called me… I’m on my way.  At this time in my life I am just passing through.  I’ve got a destination and I am determined to get there... 

You may feel like Jacob and you’re wrestling with what God has called you to do. 

·         Maybe God has called you to get your family out of debt. 

·         Maybe God has called you to be a fulltime mom and give up that second income

Whatever it is…  There is one thing I think Jacob would tell you and I agree with him.  DON’T LET GO!  When it seems like your spinning your wheels DON’T LET GO!  When that unexpected bill comes in?  DON’T LET GO!  When everyone looks at you like you are WEIRD and CRAZY – DON’T LET GO!

Don’t let go of the vision God has given you for your life!  Will it be hard?  Absolutely!  Will it be rewarding…?  It will be beyond your wildest dreams…  Will you have to wrestle strangers by campfire in the night…???  I’ll get back to you on that one, but if you do…  Don’t let go, His blessing waits!

Genesis 31

Day 24

Genesis 31

Genesis 31:38-40
³⁸ “I have been with you for twenty years now. Your sheep and goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks. ³⁹ I did not bring you animals torn by wild beasts; I bore the loss myself. And you demanded payment from me for whatever was stolen by day or night. ⁴⁰ This was my situation: The heat consumed me in the daytime and the cold at night, and sleep fled from my eyes. ⁴¹ It was like this for the twenty years I was in your household. I worked for you fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, and you changed my wages ten times. ⁴² If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, you would surely have sent me away empty-handed. But God has seen my hardship and the toil of my hands, and last night he rebuked you.”

Ever feel like you got taken advantage of?  Jacob had just left town because his mom was worried his brother Esau was going to kill her son…  Jacob goes back to his mom’s stomping grounds and meets Rachel daughter of Laban and fell madly in love…  Jacob had been working for Laban, when he offered to pay Jacob for his labor.  Jacob decided to ask Laban for the hand of his youngest daughter for his payment.  They struck an agreement and Jacob promised Laban to work seven years for the hand of his youngest daughter Rachel.  7 years is a long time to be engage to marry and Jacob became very anxious.

Genesis 29:21
²¹ Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife. My time is completed, and I want to make love to her.”

The ole switcheroo
Jacob got some of his own medicine when Laban pulled one over on him.  He gave Jacob Leah, his oldest (not so good looking daughter.)   Then when Jacob realized he’d been duped, Laban suckered into working 7 more years for Rachel’s hand…  He worked a total of 21 years for Laban and during that time Laban lowered Jacob’s wages 10 times.  To say the very least Laban squeezed every drop of sweat out of Jacob for the lowest wage!

The bible is the ultimate authority on ALL relationships; including employee – employer. 

Colossians 4:1
¹ And employers, treat your employees considerately. Be fair with them. Don't forget for a minute that you, too, serve a Master—God in heaven.

Colossians 3:22-24
²² Employees obey your earthly bosses in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. ²³ Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for man, ²⁴ since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

Remember whether you’re an employee or an employer, we are all working for a higher power!

Genesis 29-30

Day 23

Genesis 29-30

Genesis 30:1-2

¹ When Rachel realized that she wasn't having any children for Jacob, she became jealous of her sister. She told Jacob, "Give me sons or I'll die!"

 ² Jacob got angry with Rachel and said, "Am I God? Am I the one who refused you babies?"

This is a story about a “let’s see whose is longer” match between Jacob’s two wives Rachel and Leah…

I’m going to give you the basic definition of jealously in regards to marriages.  It derives itself from fear.  It is the fear of abandonment! 
Have you ever been jealous in a relationship?  Ultimately the feelings of jealousy you were having stemmed from the fear of losing your partner…  The feeling you need to check behind them.  Maybe go through their phone to look for text messages or missed calls.  You are worried about being abandoned. 

Is jealousy is a sin?  Absolutely not…  Our God is incapable of sin and He calls Himself a jealous God when it comes to the love of His people. 

(Exodus 20:4-5)
⁴ “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. ⁵ You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me

However, our actions when we are jealous can most definitely be sin.  Unfaithfulness or infidelity in a marriage can bring on an onslaught of jealous feelings…  How can we overcome jealousy in a marriage relationship?
First of all, I don’t suggest you follow in the footsteps of Leah and Rachel…  Oh you know I was going to say it!
To beat jealousy in a marriage you must give up the 3 P’s to regain the trust…

·        Passwords – In a marriage there is nothing in your email that your spouse should not be able to read….

·        Phone – Your text messages and call history should be open for her anytime your spouse wants to see it, and not after you deleted the history…

·        Postponing – Your next move should be towards restoring confidence, so putting the first 2 p’s on hold only makes you look worse buddy…  Your marriage is worth way more than your privacy.

 

Always talk with other married couples who have overcome this issue – that is always a big help!  They can help you avoid the mistakes they have made!

Genesis 28

Day 22

Genesis 28-29

Genesis 28
¹⁵ I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”

If you have ever been in a waiting room, you know the feeling I'm talking about...  First you waste a few minutes pretending to read a Golf Digest magazine.  Then comes staring at the clock....  Wait!  The anticipation when the door opens.  I think they are about to call my name!....  Nope they call the woman's name who just walked in the door 2 minutes ago.  You have been waiting an hour at the very least, and the seat she was sitting in is not even warm.  What's next is the worst part of waiting...  You guessed it - pacing!

What about when you were a kid and you kept bugging your parents from the back seat on the long vacation trip to Disney World...  "Dad, are we there yet?" not yet kids, "Dad, are we there yet?"

Now we can sometimes act the same way with God...

• God I know you have got a husband for me, you've been preparing me for him for 30 years... ARE WE THERE YET?
• God I have been praying for my marriage to get better and have done all I can do.... ARE WE THERE YET?
• God I know you have called me to start a church to reach 1000's of people are far from You.... ARE WE THERE YET?
• God you been preparing us to be godly parents for 8 years and this is our 3rd miscarriage... ARE WE THERE YET?

Don't give up...!  Don't walk away...!  Don't throw in the towel...!  My friends Jesus keeps his promises!  He has never broken one...  He keeps them on His time and on His terms, but He will keep them.... 

• Sarah was 90 before she gave birth to Abraham's son
• David got spears thrown at him by Saul before he became King
• Noah suffered ridicule for years while building the arc before God made good on His promise... 

Lean on His promise.... Trust in His calling...  Hold tight to the vision He gave you for your life...  You never know when that door will open and HE will call your name...  Stay in the waiting room or you might miss it!

Genesis 27

Day 21

Genesis 27

Genesis 27:11-12
¹¹ Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “But my brother Esau is a hairy man while I have smooth skin. ¹² What if my father touches me? I would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse on myself rather than a blessing.”

"I would appear to be tricking him,"... SERIOUSLY  - That's candy coating it a bit don't you think!  Your swindling your brother and straight up lying to your pops...  Granted his brother Esau did not value his birthright, he still wanted the blessing that came with it.

We want to receive God's blessing, but our choices would reveal otherwise. That so reminds me of the foulest 3 letter word in the dictionary.

I want God to bless my health, BUT - I just can't stop shoveling unhealthy crap in my mouth.  Sometimes I even have the audacity to pray to God; "Lord bless this Big Mac to the nurishment of my body. -AMEN!..."

I want God to bless my marriage, BUT - I won't stop looking at porn... Guys - Your wife loves you...  That porn star does not know you exist...   

I want God to bless my finances, BUT - I just won't spend less than I earn...

I want God to bless my life, BUT - I just wont trust him with one dollar out of every ten...

I want God to bless my ___________, BUT - ___________________...

EVERYDAY we have a choice set before us...  BLESSING or CURSE...  Our decisions will determine our direction and our direction will ultimately determine our destination!  Is your BUT keeping you from your Blessing?

Genesis 26

Day 20

Genesis 26

Genesis 26:26
²⁶ Meanwhile, Abimelech had come to him from Gerar, with his personal adviser and the commander of his forces. ²⁷ Isaac asked them, “Why have you come to me, since you were hostile to me and sent me away?” ²⁸ They answered, “We saw clearly that the LORD was with you; so we said, ‘There ought to be a sworn agreement between us’—between us and you. Let us make a treaty with you

Have you ever had someone be hostile toward you?  Maybe they were jealous or insecure.  The bible does give us good counsel on how to hand those people… 

The natural reaction is to defend yourself when you feel attacked for no reason…  I can think back to when the church I attend now was only a year old.  The church was different from most churches in the area.  We had a rock & roll style worship band.  We meet at a building that used to be a Kmart…  The ceilings were painted black…  We had no steeple…  No stained glass windows… No pews… No Sunday School (We did small group communities)

So many Christians spread straight up rumors about our church…  Saying things like we did not preach the truth…  We were a cult…  My favorite was, “Yeah don’t go to that church, they worship aliens…” 

None of this was true, but our church never attacked back or defended our name against these ridiculous claims which held no truth…  Instead we saw that a church in the community was in need of a new roof.  We sent over a team of men, bought all the materials and they had a new roof and they could continue meeting in their sanctuary.  Another Baptist church had just built a new multi million dollar sanctuary and was struggling to make their monthly payments…  Since we did not have a large cost to maintain our building, we gave the other church a check to help them make their monthly payment…  WHY DID WE DO THAT???

BECAUSE WE ARE ON THE SAME TEAM!!!

Denominations are not of God and they are man made factions…  Satan has used them for years to put Christians against other Christians and he has been very successful at it!

We have a bible believing church on every street corner in most cities and if they would all work together we could change the planet…

Eventually because we did not attack back we won favor with God and through our actions we won favor with the community…  Today our church is continuing to see the results of those actions, as we continue to grow and reach out to others…  The community had the same reaction to us as Abimelech did to Isaac – Don’t give up doing the right thing, God will bless obedience!  They will see the Lord is clearly with you!  

Genesis 25

Day 19

Genesis 25

The "Birthright" is the right which naturally belonged to the firstborn son.  The birthright consisted of a double portion of inheritance after the death of the father.  The birthright included livestock, land, and valuable possessions.  The birthright also gave the first born son a blessing, which put him in a favorable covenant relationship with God…

Esau was the first born to Isaac’s wife Rebekah…  He was the natural owner of the birthright passed down from his father.  Jacob came out clutching the heel of his brother Esau.  You are about to witness the first case of a male child being overly bonded with his mother.  In the south we like to call that “a mom’s boy!” 

Genesis 25:27-28
²⁷ The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was content to stay at home among the tents. ²⁸ Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

Jacob was staying in the tents with momma while big brother is learning to be a man’s man… One day he comes in famished and asks Jacob for some stew.  Jacob asks for a straight up trade…  Esau’s birthright for a bowl of stew…  I think if Jacob were alive today he would be a car salesman cause that seems like the worst deal of the century.  No offense car salesmen, but some of you have to have problem sleeping at night…

The problem is Esau did not value his birthright!
Genesis 25:33-34
³³ But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. ³⁴ Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright.

Isn’t that a picture of us sometimes?  We are so quick to trade God’s blessing for the immediate gratification this world has to offer…  I know countless people who claim to be Christians, but are totally disconnect from the body of Christ because it interferes with fishing trips.  People who claim they don’t have time to read their bibles, but they have time to watch like trash on T.V. Jersey Shore…  Seriously!  Your creator can’t even get 10 minutes of your day… 

The bible tells you how much HE loves you, the way we live our lives tells how much we love HIM.

I despise the best life God has for us when I   (Fill in the blank____________?)   

Genesis 23-24

Day 18

Genesis 23-24

Genesis 24:50
⁵⁰ Laban and Bethuel answered, “This is from the LORD; we can say nothing to you one way or the other.

Note to self - If God is doing something; don' try to stop it you will only get run over!  I am constanly hearing about churches who were on fire for God experiencing the reality of this statement!  At Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC a furniture store successfully and legally blocked the church from opening a campus next door.  Everyday Pastor Steven Furtick passed by the build he would claim it for Elevation Church in Jesus name...  In a few short months the furniture store went out of business and not just the store, but the entire chain of stores collapsed...  Elevation got their building...  In 6 short years elevation church has seen over 10,000 salvations and over 3,000 baptisms as of 2010...  They have opened up 4 new campuses in the Charlotte area including the Matthews location... 

We saw the same thing happen at my home church.  Our church was going so fast and we were running into parking issues.  The video store next door was complaing about the parking so our church reserved parking spaces for their comstomers and put up signs for those spaces.  They were still unhappy and we heard about it frequently...  After 2 years of complaining the video store went out of business....  We still have a parking problem though even with the extra spaces.  Every week more first time vistors are coming and getting connected to the body of Christ.  We have seen marriages restored, addictions broken, and lives changed.  As of today over 500 baptisms since Easter 2007... 

Wow!  Does that excite you that no one can stop what God has planned! Go GOD!

Isaiah 14:27
For the LORD Almighty has purposed, and who can stop him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?