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Exodus 19

Jan29

Good morning y’all. Today we are looking at Exodus 19.

Be blessed 🙂

“Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to me”.(Exodus 19:5 NLT)

We are Gods special treasure. A treasure is defined as ‘a valuable or valued item’. To God, we are very valuable and important.  The amplified version says “… My own peculiar possession and treasure…”. Even though God owns the whole earth, He has decided in his mercy to make us his own treasured possession. This is awesome to know that God who created the whole earth delights in us and sees us as people to be treasured 🙂

Before we get carried away, there is a condition to the above promise. The condition is OBEDIENCE. The beginning of verse 5 says “Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant….”. That is, we have to yield ourselves in obedience to God. We have to follow his instructions and do all he has commanded us to do, then we can enjoy all of the promise that He has for us.

“And you will be my kingdom of priests, my holy nation.’ This is the message you must give to the people of Israel.”(Exodus 19:6 NLT)

A kingdom of Priests – Priests are Gods representatives to the world. As christians we are to represent God here on earth like Jesus did. We are to yield ourselves in obedience to him and let him use us to evangelise the world.

A holy nation – That means we are to be set apart for his use. As christians, we are called to holiness. 1 Peter 1:15- 17 says:
“But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.” And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time here as “temporary residents.”(NLT)

Verse 5 and 6 of this chapter reminds me of 1 Peter 2:9.

“But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light”.(NLT)

Gods desire His children is to be priests and a holy nation who serve him in obedience and holiness.

The question today is: are we being a representative of God and living in the holiness he has called us to or are we spending our time serving and representing the kingdom of this world?

Remember the condition in verse 5 to obey Him. Let’s be people who will use our freedom to obey God.

“Then the lord told Moses, “Go down and prepare the people for my arrival. Consecrate them today and tomorrow, and have them wash their clothing. Be sure they are ready on the third day, for on that day the lord will come down on Mount Sinai as all the people watch”.(Exodus 19:10-11 NLT)

God is a holy God and as such when we approach him we must do so with holy reverence. Jesus has made it possible for us to have access to God 24/7 but we still need to show God the honor and reverence due His name whenever we come into His presence.

God asked for them to be consecrated. That is, they needed to be set apart from those things that distract them from seeking God wholeheartedly. It’s the same for us too, we need to daily consecrate ourselves to God and set ourselves apart from anything that distracts us from God. We are called to holiness.

“On the morning of the third day, thunder roared and lightning flashed, and a dense cloud came down on the mountain. There was a long, loud blast from a ram’s horn, and all the people trembled”.(Exodus 19:16 NLT)

God said He was going to come down on the 3rd day and He did just that. He came down on the third day to meet with the people. This tells me that God is reliable and dependable. He can be trusted to do exactly what He says He will do. God has integrity. So whatever God has told you, know that He is able and will do just that. Numbers 23:19 says:
“God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?”(NLT)

Prayer:
Dear Lord we thank you for today. Thank you for delighting in us and choosing us to be your treasured possession. We ask for grace to yield ourselves in obedience to you. Pls help us daily consecrate ourselves to you and rid us of anything that distracts us from you. Thank you dear Lord. In Jesus Name we prayed. Amen.

Thank you for joining today.

Have a blessed day 🙂

***With God all things are possible***

Exodus 18

Jan28

Good morning y’all.  Today we looking at Exodus 18.

Be blessed 🙂

Testimony time

“Jethro was delighted when he heard about all the good things the Lord had done for Israel as He rescued them from the hand of the Egyptians. “Praise the Lord ,” Jethro said, “for He has rescued you from the Egyptians and from Pharaoh. Yes, He has rescued Israel from the powerful hand of Egypt! I know now that the Lord is greater than all other gods, because He rescued His people from the oppression of the proud Egyptians.” Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, brought a burnt offering and sacrifices to God. Aaron and all the elders of Israel came out and joined him in a sacrificial meal in God’s presence”.(Exodus 18:9-12 NLT)

Their testimony caused Jethro to praise God and offer sacrifices to Him. We know Jethro was a priest but not sure if he was a priest of the living God or some foreign god, but after Moses’ testimony of all that the Lord had done for them, Jethro declares God as the greatest God.

We too should be quick to testify of God’s goodness in our lives. Our testimony might be what will lead others to the presence of God.

Revelations 12:11 says: “And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb and by their testimony. And they did not love their lives so much that they were afraid to die”.(NLT)

Psalmist in Psalms 71:15-16 says: “I will tell everyone about Your righteousness. All day long I will proclaim Your saving power, though I am not skilled with words. I will praise Your mighty deeds, O Sovereign Lord. I will tell everyone that You alone are just”.(NLT)

Leadership lessons

1) We need to be open to advice. We shouldn’t resist or ignore advice from others. If Moses had rejected his father in laws advice he probably would have burnt out from the workload he had.
Proverbs 11:14 says: “Without wise leadership, a nation falls; there is safety in having many advisers“.(NLT)

Proverbs 15:22 says: “Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many advisers bring success”.(NLT)

2) As leaders we cannot carry the burden alone. We need to learn to delegate to competent people who can help lighten the load. In Moses’ case, he was struggling to cope with the load. He didn’t realise that he could delegate some of the work to others in the camp.

3) Busyness doesn’t mean fruitfulness. If we are not careful we can easily burn out trying to do everything. We need to learn to delegate and prioritise our responsibilities.

A statement that struck me in verse 23.
“If you follow this advice, and if God commands you to do so, then you will be able to endure the pressures, and all these people will go home in peace.”(Exodus 18:23 NLT)

Jethro gives his advice but he clearly states to Moses “…if God commands you to do so…”. That is, ‘this is my advice, but above all, do what God has asked you to do’. We should always take God’s word above others. If we have received advice and it doesn’t tally with Gods will for us, we shouldn’t say that because the advice came from someone we hold in high esteem we will obey even though we know it’s not what God wants.

Prayer:
Dear Lord we thank you for today. We ask for boldness to testify about all that you have done for us. Give us wisdom to know when to delegate and help us get our priorities right. Thank you dear Lord.  In Jesus Name we prayed. Amen.

Thank you for joining today.

I’m blogging through the bible with Good morning girls. Check us out at http://www.goodmorninggirls.org

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Have a blessed day 🙂

***With God all things are possible***