Reflections on Numbers 8

Numbers 8:7-11

…and said to the entire Israelite assembly, "The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. If the LORD is pleased with us,[then is implied] he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will swallow them up. Their protection is gone, but the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them." But the whole assembly talked about stoning them. Then the glory of the LORD appeared at the Tent of Meeting to all the Israelites. The LORD said to Moses, "How long will these people treat me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the miraculous signs I have performed among them?

Dear Lord,

Here I am again trying not to worry about not getting an interview at xxx. Osmel has asked me everyday if I have head anything and I don’t want to tell him about xxxxx getting an interview. My passage once again is about not complaining. TRUST! That is the message. The Children of Israel were fearful and untrusting despite the way the Lord had provided for them and had given them shelter. They complained and grumbled and now they were wanting to stone those that were trying to encourage them to believe in what God could do, would do, and had promised to do.

The message of encouragement was to not be afraid but trust. Those words are ringing in my ear unlike the phone call that I am hoping for. School starts on Monday and I had really hoped for something so I could start on the first day of school. I had hoped for a classroom that was opening before the kids started. I HATE taking someone else’s class. Oh God… help me to be strong and trust in YOU.

Lord, I give this to You and I ask that You work it out. As You know, my desire is to have a full time position. My desire is to be in the classroom. My desire is that You would give me a job before the school year starts, but I give it all to You and ask that You would work it out in the way that is best for me. Help me Lord to trust You. To trust that You have my best interest in mind, and that You really know what is best for me.

Reflections on Deuteronomy 8

Deuteronomy 8:1-6

Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase and may enter and possess the land that the LORD promised on oath to your forefathers. Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years. Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God disciplines you. Observe the commands of the LORD your God, walking in his ways and revering him.

Dear Lord,

I know that these years of testing at the end of each year are to teach me to follow You… but can I please have a job? I am afraid that You don’t have a that for me this year, and I don’t know why but that scares me. I want to have a classroom… and my head knows that whatever You provide is what is best, I need to trust right now. God, I ask for a full time position.

Deuteronomy 8:7-11 For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land--a land with streams and pools of water, with springs flowing in the valleys and hills; a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills. When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the LORD your God for the good land he has given you. Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.

Dear Lord,

I pray that this is Your way of confirming that I will indeed get a job. I don’t know if this is true, for this period, but I do know You are faithful. This was the passage I was meant to read today, I ask that You would make it true. That the wilderness experience is over and that today You are telling me, I am to enter into the promised land… a new phase with our children coming into our home and starting a family.

Deuteronomy 8:12-20

Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down,

and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. He led you through the vast and dreadful desert, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. He gave you manna to eat in the desert, something your fathers had never known, to humble and to test you so that in the end it might go well with you. You may say to yourself, "My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me." But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today. If you ever forget the LORD your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed. Like the nations the LORD destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the LORD your God.

Dear Lord,

I am thankful, that You take every precaution to prevent our hearts from turning away from You. My heart’s desire is that I would never put anything before You, though I know I am just as Israel is… I remember my prayer when getting married was to never put my husband before You. I ask today, that if You do bless us with a family, me with a job, that You would continue to do the work to keep my heart dependent upon You and to keep You as first in my heart and in my life. I love You Lord and though I am unfaithful in my heart of hearts, it is Your grace and Your patience that keeps me humble. As I am praying this prayer, I am afraid of what I might do, and how You might respond to answer my prayer.

I am fully aware of what I am without You- nothing.

I am fully aware of what I would have without You- nothing.

I am fully aware that without You life is worth- nothing.

Deuteronomy 9:1-3 Hear, O Israel. You are now about to cross the Jordan to go in and dispossess nations greater and stronger than you, with large cities that have walls up to the sky. The people are strong and tall--Anakites! You know about them and have heard it said: "Who can stand up against the Anakites?" But be assured today that the LORD your God is the one who goes across ahead of you like a devouring fire. He will destroy them; he will subdue them before you. And you will drive them out and annihilate them quickly, as the LORD has promised you.

Dear Lord,

I love this passage. It confirms that without You we can do nothing, but with You nothing is impossible. My job situation seems impossible… but it isn’t. I am hoping that these passages from Deuteronomy 8 and 9 are in fact a message for me. Help me to trust You Lord when things seem impossible!

Deuteronomy 9:4-6

After the LORD your God has driven them out before you, do not say to yourself, "The LORD has brought me here to take possession of this land because of my righteousness." No, it is on account of the wickedness of these nations that the LORD is going to drive them out before you. It is not because of your righteousness or your integrity that you are going in to take possession of their land; but on account of the wickedness of these nations, the LORD your God will drive them out before you, to accomplish what he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that the LORD your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stiff-necked people.

Dear Lord… I love that it is not about me or my deserving of anything… it is about You and Your glory and Your grace. Having said that, I am hoping that You are speaking to me!

I love You Lord,

Karen

Background: The Promise of Something Great... (this is a taste of the introduction)

I continued to throw myself into ministry. I began teaching in a Christian School and I started working in Children’s Ministry Leadership at my church. Life was good. It was rich. I was content (most of the time). God was using me and I could see it, I could feel it, I was moving forward. It is only in the Lord that we can move forward as we wait. I was waiting on God to do a work in my life. During these years, God did 3 significant things for me to help me on my way, to confirm to me that He had a plan and a good work for my life.
A word from God: There was a friend of mine that came to me and told me that he felt God has spoken to him about me:
Joel 2:23-25- so rejoice, O sons of Zion, and be glad in the LORD your God; For He has given you the early rain for your vindication. And He has poured down for you the rain, the early and latter rain as before. The threshing floors will be full of grain, and the vats will overflow with the new wine and oil. "Then I will make up to you for the years That the swarming locust has eaten, The creeping locust, the stripping locust and the gnawing locust, My great army which I sent among you.
It took me awhile for me to understand this passage and what it meant for me. What a strange word. As I meditated upon it, and prayed over it, I realized- it was a promise of restoration. The relationship that I had been in with Mr. Wrong, and the things that I needed to purge as a result, would be redeemed. There would be blessings to come. The Lord had given to me other messages along the way that helped me to understand that this was a promise of hope for marriage. This empowered me, strengthened my resolve, helped me to press on, and increased my desire to wait for God’s best and never settle. Never settle!
One of the things that God used was through a gift received from a friend. She had a book with beautiful illustrations. She cut the illustrations from the book, framed them, and gave them to the ministry leaders as gifts. She assigned each frame a number, wrapped them up and we cast lots for the pictures. The picture that I received was of a black man who was encased in stone, like a statue being carved and the hand of God was chiseling him, taking his form out of the block of stone and making it into something to be beautiful. I remember when I received it, I cried, because I thought it was God’s way of confirming to me, that He was chiseling my life, making me into something useful for His good pleasure. I placed the picture on the mantle in the living room where it remains to this day.
The final word from God was through my quiet time. I was reading in the book of 1 Kings and when I read the following passage:
1 Kings 6:7 The house, while it was being built, was built of stone prepared at the quarry, and there was neither hammer nor axe nor any iron tool heard in the house while it was being built.
God is so funny! I love the way He works and the way He makes His word alive! As I read the verse, I knew there was something there for me. I could hear His voice, He was prompting me to dig and to meditate. As I did, my attention was drawn to the picture of the man on the mantle, the man being chiseled. OK, I am starting to get it. This isn’t me; this is he, it is my husband. He is being chiseled for me. In fact, we are being chiseled simultaneously to bring us together, ready for one another. As I continued to meditate I came to understand something about this passage; the stones were being chiseled, formed, and quarried away from the site of the temple. They were not even being quarried together. They were being formed away from each other so there would be no sound of an axe, or hammer, or any other tool; and when they came together, there would be a perfect fit. Most of my friends were married way before I was, I knew how hard marriage could be, therefore, I knew that the more work God had to do to me in the middle of my marriage, the harder it would be. That made the waiting easier. God had given me a beautiful picture and with it, a promise. Once again felt hopeful regarding my future, my husband, and my marriage. I didn’t know to whom, but I understood the fact that I probably didn’t know him yet, and if I did, we weren’t going to know what our future together was until the Lord had prepared us for one another. Now, my job was to NOT look for him, but to wait until the Lord brought us together.