Monday's Blessing
Deuteronomy 28:1-2
"If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God."
It was forty years that the Israelites wandered in the wilderness. Finally, they were about to enter the Promised Land. But it was a new generation that would cross the river Jordan. There were only three men over the age of 20 when they left Egypt that survived. Most of the older men and women passed on by then. One of the three men was Moses. Unfortunately, he would never set foot on this land. He did get to set eyes on it, but died on Mt. Nebo before all could cross. Today's verse is part of his final message to his people.
God intended to bless the Israelites in the Promised Land. Moses speaks volumes of this, but he warns his people in the chapters that follow. He lets them know what will happen if they turn their backs on God. He warns of the serious consequences if they are disobedient. And if you read the Bible following Deuteronomy, you will see hundreds of years of turmoil. For five hundred years the Israelites experienced a roller coaster ride of periods of blessings followed by years of conquest and devastation.
God wants nothing more than to bless you. He shows the righteous path that must be traversed in order to live in that maximized blessing zone. All we have to do is put him first. Just last week I was feeling overwhelmed with a majority of things collapsing at my home. Those days you just shut down, unavailable to move forward as you are bombarded by obstacles you can no longer step over. I thought to myself, "I need to be more direct with my prayer." And so I did! I had one flat tire and two tires losing air. Now my car has 22" inch mags on it. No, I didn't have the wheels added to look "fly". It just came with'em. Any car buff out there knows how expensive these tires are. I prayed a MORE direct prayer, "God, I have less than $200 to fix these tires. Please let my bill be less than $200". Crazy, I said to myself, simply impossible, but my faith waved on. I thought, "Alright God, as you asked, I'm giving it all to you. I am putting you first. You take it."
The next day I went to a tire dealer. Miraculously, somehow, the bead needed to be reset on the front tire only. Two other tire facilities told me that it could not be fixed and needed a new tire. Also, I had two used tires I purchased in the trunk previously that had little tread on them. The dealer offered me $85 for the two used tires, and gave me an Internet sale price I suggested that was $30 lower than each tire he was offering. I was certain he'd never agree! With the two used tires subtracted, and a new LOW price on each tire, the bill came to $183.00. I was completely baffled. The Lord works in mysterious ways I thought. Thank you, Jesus! I was set.
Father, I pray today that you help me
live in a way that I can be close and trust you totally
by experiencing your blessing.
I open my life to you. Take it.
Live in me when I pray. Amen.
Deuteronomy 28:1-2
"If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God."
It was forty years that the Israelites wandered in the wilderness. Finally, they were about to enter the Promised Land. But it was a new generation that would cross the river Jordan. There were only three men over the age of 20 when they left Egypt that survived. Most of the older men and women passed on by then. One of the three men was Moses. Unfortunately, he would never set foot on this land. He did get to set eyes on it, but died on Mt. Nebo before all could cross. Today's verse is part of his final message to his people.
God intended to bless the Israelites in the Promised Land. Moses speaks volumes of this, but he warns his people in the chapters that follow. He lets them know what will happen if they turn their backs on God. He warns of the serious consequences if they are disobedient. And if you read the Bible following Deuteronomy, you will see hundreds of years of turmoil. For five hundred years the Israelites experienced a roller coaster ride of periods of blessings followed by years of conquest and devastation.
God wants nothing more than to bless you. He shows the righteous path that must be traversed in order to live in that maximized blessing zone. All we have to do is put him first. Just last week I was feeling overwhelmed with a majority of things collapsing at my home. Those days you just shut down, unavailable to move forward as you are bombarded by obstacles you can no longer step over. I thought to myself, "I need to be more direct with my prayer." And so I did! I had one flat tire and two tires losing air. Now my car has 22" inch mags on it. No, I didn't have the wheels added to look "fly". It just came with'em. Any car buff out there knows how expensive these tires are. I prayed a MORE direct prayer, "God, I have less than $200 to fix these tires. Please let my bill be less than $200". Crazy, I said to myself, simply impossible, but my faith waved on. I thought, "Alright God, as you asked, I'm giving it all to you. I am putting you first. You take it."
The next day I went to a tire dealer. Miraculously, somehow, the bead needed to be reset on the front tire only. Two other tire facilities told me that it could not be fixed and needed a new tire. Also, I had two used tires I purchased in the trunk previously that had little tread on them. The dealer offered me $85 for the two used tires, and gave me an Internet sale price I suggested that was $30 lower than each tire he was offering. I was certain he'd never agree! With the two used tires subtracted, and a new LOW price on each tire, the bill came to $183.00. I was completely baffled. The Lord works in mysterious ways I thought. Thank you, Jesus! I was set.
Father, I pray today that you help me
live in a way that I can be close and trust you totally
by experiencing your blessing.
I open my life to you. Take it.
Live in me when I pray. Amen.
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