05/16/2018
When we are hungry, to whom do we turn? When we are thirsty, where do we look to have our thirst quenched? When we are in need of a safe place to lay our head, whose name do we Call out to? Before we search for food, water, or shelter, we should seek God, and then obey Him as He leads us, and provides for us. This was the message to the Israelites in the desert, and it is our message today.
“saying, "If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer."”
Exodus 15:26 ESV
The other day I was on the interstate highway when I looked down to see that my gas gauge was registering empty. I had no idea how long it had been that way, nor how far it was to the nearest gas station. My first reaction was a prayer... Father help me! Jesus guide me to the closest station, and Holy Spirit give me peace in this moment of anxiousness. Immediately came the sign for the next exit, and a station where I could get gas... I knew it would be open, I knew I could make it, and I called out to God in thanks.
It was then that I noticed the sign... it was s large billboard that advertised the brand of gasoline I preferred, but it was 5 more miles away. The station at this exit wasn’t my normal brand of gasoline, and I had a decision to make... would I tempted God by trying to make it one more exit? Would I place my desire and preference before God’s provision? No... I pulled off, bought fuel for my car, and found that the owners of the station were Christians, with whom I shared encouraging words of faith. And as for my car? Well I put in the exact amount of fuel that my owner’s manual told me was the maximum my tank would hold... it was a miracle that I made it to the pump.
Doing God’s will and obeying Him in doing so brings wonderful promise to our lives. The Bible has many reassurances of this promise; let’s read another Old Testament passage because this has always been the promise... and is so to this day:
“"If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them, then I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Your threshing shall last to the time of the grape harvest, and the grape harvest shall last to the time for sowing. And you shall eat your bread to the full and dwell in your land securely. I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid. And I will remove harmful beasts from the land, and the sword shall not go through your land.”
Leviticus 26:3-6 ESV
Which of these promises do you need for God to deliver on in your life today? These are but a few, because God can provide all things if we trust in Him... even gasoline, or a word of encouragement from a stranger who shares your faith. God even promises to increase us, and give us Himself... His relationship...
“I will turn to you and make you fruitful and multiply you and will confirm my covenant with you. You shall eat old store long kept, and you shall clear out the old to make way for the new. I will make my dwelling among you, and my soul shall not abhor you. And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people.”
Leviticus 26:9-12 ESV
God’s promises for our obedience are a multitude of blessings and provision, but more than that it is a close and abiding relationship with Him. We ask for peace and He gives us His peace, we ask for water and He gives us Living Water... more than we can possibly drink; enough for every need. We ask for forgiveness and He gives us the blood of His own Son Jesus Christ!
Will we obey Him? Will we reach out to Him before we even consider our options? Call out to our God, His Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit in time of need, then trust in His promise.
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for all of your promises of sustenance and provision, and I thank you for your presence in my life each moment of every day. Let the example of your Son Jesus, and the comfort of your Holy Spirit lead me in obedience to your commandments, and in all things you ask of me. I know Holy Father that if I obey, then you will provide. You ask me to depend on you for all things, and in so doing I must not only hear your Word but do it... live it... obey it. Abiding in you is much more than reading Bible stories, and performing a few religious acts, it is desiring to please you, and wanting to be at your feet every moment. Abiding is being in your house, drinking your wine, and eating your food, but it is also obeying your rules, and doing those things that I know will please you... so that in so doing I will be lifted in your arms. Thank you Merciful Father for your promises, and give me the wisdom, the strength, and the love, to follow you all my life. Praised be your name, for Holy, Holy, Holy, are you my God, my Strength, my Provider.
“Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!”
Psalms 107:1 ESV
Rich Forbes