Study from God’s Word… Deut 31: 48-52; Deut 33: 1 – 29: Deut 34; 1 – 12; … Passage for Reflection: Deut 32: 52 … NIV 52 “Therefore, you will see the land only from a distance; you will not enter the land I am giving to the people of Israel."
My Journal for Today: I have been up on the crowning point of Mount Nebo where Moses was led to go to see the promised land [see Deut. 32: 48-52 - linked here], into which he would not set foot in his physical lifetime. We know why Moses didn’t cross the Jordan, as would Joshua later, leading God’s people into that ever so elusive Promised Land, from which God’s People had been restrained for 40 years of wandering so that they would be purged and ready to claim for God’s glory. Moses was restrained from setting foot in the promised land because of the ramifications of past sin.
But as I looked out over the expanse of that Promised Land on that day in Jordan when I was up on Mount Nebo, being where Moses must have stood, I could not get a grasp on the disappointment and emotional discouragement Moses must have felt, knowing that it was nothing but the consequences of his own sin which kept him from entering into that wonderful promised land which God had set before His people. Then as I looked out over that expanse of green and fertile lands, I remembered, … Moses may have physically been restrained from entering that land of promise; but the Promised Land of God will be Moses’ eternally because of his faith.
Yes, there would be another leader of God’s people, the Chosen People, Who would die before He would physically see the realization of God’s plan for His glorious elect. And that One, Whom we would know as our Savior, must’ve felt even more “hope-filled disappointment” when He languished in the garden of Gethsemane that night before His crucifixion.
Sometimes we encounter someone in this life who seems to die “before their time.” Maybe it’s a younger parent or grandparent who never gets the physical/emotional opportunity to see their children or grandkids blossom fully. Perhaps it’s someone who had a great idea which was developed after his death by someone else. I think of Martin Luther King, who had “a dream,” which is now unfolding, … but only after he was so ignominiously and precipitously killed. But, as F. LaGard Smith points out, there is no such thing as a “premature death,” … a concept which is really a spiritual oxymoron; because if someone had a small part in God’s will or His plan for God’s people, that promise will be fulfilled; and that person, who may have died before realizing that dream in this life, will see the fruit of his/her efforts in glory. As Smith writes it, ”No dream or efforts made that are consistent with God’s own good pleasure will be unfulfilled or wasted.”
The question becomes what are we doing NOW which is from or part of God’s will for our lives or for the future God has for His people. And we should (well, really, we MUST) know that anything which is launched or hatched today in God’s Name, of which we are a part, will be realized in God’s future; and being a part of His chosen ones, you or I will see the fruit of our labors growing, if not in this life, … in glory.
So, what we must do is seek to live within God’s will and for His purpose … for as long as we can; … and to move His dreams and plans forward as much as we can. We may not see the endpoint in this life; but as Moses will see the Promised Land and walk in it with his Savior, so we will be able to see our completed future unfold in eternity with God.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, point me in Your direction; and may I do all I can to see my part of that glorious plan unfold in my lifetime. Amen
Showing posts with label dreams. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dreams. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
Monday, January 18, 2010
2010 – Day 18. Jan. 18 – Dreams That Come True
Study from Genesis 39 - 41; Passage for Reflection: Genesis 41: 32 … NIV The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon.
My Journal for Today: My devotional author, F. LaGard Smith, takes an interesting tack in his entry for today, focusing on Joseph’s interpretation of Pharaoh’s dream in Genesis 41. In those days, in reading the Old Testament and from historians of the day, we learn that the Middle Eastern people were heavily influenced by dreams and dream interpretation. Pharaoh had his magicians, seers, and soothsayers to help him interpret the dreams which were perplexing to him to help him move forward into the future. And Joseph was brought in to help in this dream interpretation process because Pharaoh’s cupbearer remembered Joseph interpreting a dream for the cupbearer earlier in prison. Enter God’s man, Joseph, who interpreted Pharaoh’s dream; and the rest is history, as they say.
But do we rely on dreams as God’s messengers today they way mankind did in Joseph’s day? I think not; and Smith, in his devotional today points out that though God certainly could do what he did in Joseph’s day and communicate with His people through dreams, it is less likely that He would need to do that. And in asking why this is so, we only need to look at the inerrant source of truth, the Bible, which God has given mankind as His primary messenger to guide us. I firmly believe that God’s “M.O.” [i.e., primary method] of communication in this age of grace, the New Testament dispensation, does not reveal that many instances of dream communication from God as in the Old Testament times. Why? Well, it’s because God has given us His word; and He wants us to be guided by its powerful precepts and directions.
And we see the language and reality of dreams has changed in our culture from the pre-biblical times. When we, i.e., postmodern man, speak of “dreams,” we do so, as Smith points out, in such concepts as a “dream house,” or maybe a woman finding the “man of her dreams,” or quite possibly an NBA fan speaking of the “dream team.” All of these concepts point to the use of our “dreams” being ideal conditions or some idea we hold out as a goal or aspiration for the future. You hear motivational speakers ask, “What are your dreams?” Or maybe you might hear such a one saying, “What you dream, you can achieve!” And in doing so, they are trying to point the mind and heart of their followers in a future drive or motivation which can affect choices and behavior.
But I think it’s clear that we do not hold out dream interpretation in these days in the same way a Pharaoh did in Joseph’s day. We try to glean from our consciousness what our “dreams” might be for the future; and we then try to set ourselves on a goal path to achieve our dreams. So, I might ask you, my fellow Christian, “What are YOUR dreams?” And Jesus addressed this, did He not, when He spoke to His disciples (as He speaks to us today), in Matt. 6: 21, saying, “… where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” And Paul addressed what drives us to action as well when he wrote (in Phil. 2: 5), “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.”
And what these two truths say to me is that we need to set our “dreams” (i.e., our goals and aspirations) on the things which we find our Savior leading us to think, say, or do. We shouldn’t be relying heavily on modern-day motivational gurus, like Oprah Winfrey, to get us to think selfishly and pursue self-driven “dreams.” No, we should be pursuing THE “dream” of thinking and being more like Christ; and Jesus even told His disciples how to do this when He said to His followers of His day, “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me. [in Luke 9: 23, NKJV which I have memorized] That is the “dream” which should drive us to know our God, in the Person of Jesus, and to move us to obey His word and follow His path for our lives. That is my “dream prayer” for us all.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, help me to formulate my “dreams” so that they coincide with Your will; and then empower me to follow in Your path. Amen
My Journal for Today: My devotional author, F. LaGard Smith, takes an interesting tack in his entry for today, focusing on Joseph’s interpretation of Pharaoh’s dream in Genesis 41. In those days, in reading the Old Testament and from historians of the day, we learn that the Middle Eastern people were heavily influenced by dreams and dream interpretation. Pharaoh had his magicians, seers, and soothsayers to help him interpret the dreams which were perplexing to him to help him move forward into the future. And Joseph was brought in to help in this dream interpretation process because Pharaoh’s cupbearer remembered Joseph interpreting a dream for the cupbearer earlier in prison. Enter God’s man, Joseph, who interpreted Pharaoh’s dream; and the rest is history, as they say.
But do we rely on dreams as God’s messengers today they way mankind did in Joseph’s day? I think not; and Smith, in his devotional today points out that though God certainly could do what he did in Joseph’s day and communicate with His people through dreams, it is less likely that He would need to do that. And in asking why this is so, we only need to look at the inerrant source of truth, the Bible, which God has given mankind as His primary messenger to guide us. I firmly believe that God’s “M.O.” [i.e., primary method] of communication in this age of grace, the New Testament dispensation, does not reveal that many instances of dream communication from God as in the Old Testament times. Why? Well, it’s because God has given us His word; and He wants us to be guided by its powerful precepts and directions.
And we see the language and reality of dreams has changed in our culture from the pre-biblical times. When we, i.e., postmodern man, speak of “dreams,” we do so, as Smith points out, in such concepts as a “dream house,” or maybe a woman finding the “man of her dreams,” or quite possibly an NBA fan speaking of the “dream team.” All of these concepts point to the use of our “dreams” being ideal conditions or some idea we hold out as a goal or aspiration for the future. You hear motivational speakers ask, “What are your dreams?” Or maybe you might hear such a one saying, “What you dream, you can achieve!” And in doing so, they are trying to point the mind and heart of their followers in a future drive or motivation which can affect choices and behavior.
But I think it’s clear that we do not hold out dream interpretation in these days in the same way a Pharaoh did in Joseph’s day. We try to glean from our consciousness what our “dreams” might be for the future; and we then try to set ourselves on a goal path to achieve our dreams. So, I might ask you, my fellow Christian, “What are YOUR dreams?” And Jesus addressed this, did He not, when He spoke to His disciples (as He speaks to us today), in Matt. 6: 21, saying, “… where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” And Paul addressed what drives us to action as well when he wrote (in Phil. 2: 5), “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.”
And what these two truths say to me is that we need to set our “dreams” (i.e., our goals and aspirations) on the things which we find our Savior leading us to think, say, or do. We shouldn’t be relying heavily on modern-day motivational gurus, like Oprah Winfrey, to get us to think selfishly and pursue self-driven “dreams.” No, we should be pursuing THE “dream” of thinking and being more like Christ; and Jesus even told His disciples how to do this when He said to His followers of His day, “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me. [in Luke 9: 23, NKJV which I have memorized] That is the “dream” which should drive us to know our God, in the Person of Jesus, and to move us to obey His word and follow His path for our lives. That is my “dream prayer” for us all.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, help me to formulate my “dreams” so that they coincide with Your will; and then empower me to follow in Your path. Amen
Sunday, May 24, 2009
2009 – Day 143.May 24 – The Best I Can
2009 – Day 143.May 24 – The Best I Can
Passage of the Day: 1St Chronicles 28: 1 – 11 … Passage linked for study …
My Journal for Today: Today’s passage is a great illustration of a dedicated servant of the Lord who could have expressed regrets and wallowed in self pity, but rather chose to acknowledge God for what he was allowed to do in his life and praise His Lord for what God will do through others to see His kingdom glorified. And I totally identify with David in this scenario as he passes the mantle of God’s will on to his son Solomon.
Perhaps you’ve lived with a big dream which, at this stage in your life, you realize God has put on hold for someone else to accomplish. Perhaps you’ve had to endure some personal challenge in life; and you realize that only in heaven will you be free of some thorn or handicap. Perhaps God had said “No” to your dream of romance or marriage; and you will only find fulfillment in your eternal relationship with our Savior now or in Glory. And you must, as did David in today’s passage, move onward without realizing the fulfillment of your dream.
I’m there, my dear one. For years I’ve dreamed of seeing big numbers of Christians walk out of the self-induced prisons of habitual sexual sin and into the freedom they can find by surrendering to follow Christ. And in my later days, I’ve come to recognize that God has entrusted me with a much smaller effort in this regard than I would have liked to see for His glory so that someone else, one day, can be blessed to see great numbers walk free in Christ. Battle Plan Ministries [website link provided], the calling which God has ordained me to lead, has been blessed to lead many, mostly men of God, to become more Godly Christians and to find the freedom path which can only come by following Christ (see Luke 9: 23, which, by now, I hope you have memorized). And I have yet to identify, as David did, a successor who could lead big numbers of Christians to freedom and to move away from self imposed prisons of sin.
But I praise God that He has allowed me, as He did David, to acknowledge and confess my own sin; and to sing praise to my God in my lifetime for finding and taking the path of honesty and vulnerability so that I might show others that God way is the only way to follow in this life and on into the next. And I praise God that He has allowed me to build the plans for God’s dream, as did David, where others can see what lies ahead for God’s glory. And I praise God that, as David did, I’ve been given the charge to pass this dream on to someone else, one who can move God’s kingdom plan and will to another level.
And if such a place is where you are in life, I pray that you can praise God and revel in what you’ve been allowed to do and what lies ahead for the glory of God. … David did; and so can we.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, thank you for allowing me to see Your dream and to get it started. Amen
Passage of the Day: 1St Chronicles 28: 1 – 11 … Passage linked for study …
My Journal for Today: Today’s passage is a great illustration of a dedicated servant of the Lord who could have expressed regrets and wallowed in self pity, but rather chose to acknowledge God for what he was allowed to do in his life and praise His Lord for what God will do through others to see His kingdom glorified. And I totally identify with David in this scenario as he passes the mantle of God’s will on to his son Solomon.
Perhaps you’ve lived with a big dream which, at this stage in your life, you realize God has put on hold for someone else to accomplish. Perhaps you’ve had to endure some personal challenge in life; and you realize that only in heaven will you be free of some thorn or handicap. Perhaps God had said “No” to your dream of romance or marriage; and you will only find fulfillment in your eternal relationship with our Savior now or in Glory. And you must, as did David in today’s passage, move onward without realizing the fulfillment of your dream.
I’m there, my dear one. For years I’ve dreamed of seeing big numbers of Christians walk out of the self-induced prisons of habitual sexual sin and into the freedom they can find by surrendering to follow Christ. And in my later days, I’ve come to recognize that God has entrusted me with a much smaller effort in this regard than I would have liked to see for His glory so that someone else, one day, can be blessed to see great numbers walk free in Christ. Battle Plan Ministries [website link provided], the calling which God has ordained me to lead, has been blessed to lead many, mostly men of God, to become more Godly Christians and to find the freedom path which can only come by following Christ (see Luke 9: 23, which, by now, I hope you have memorized). And I have yet to identify, as David did, a successor who could lead big numbers of Christians to freedom and to move away from self imposed prisons of sin.
But I praise God that He has allowed me, as He did David, to acknowledge and confess my own sin; and to sing praise to my God in my lifetime for finding and taking the path of honesty and vulnerability so that I might show others that God way is the only way to follow in this life and on into the next. And I praise God that He has allowed me to build the plans for God’s dream, as did David, where others can see what lies ahead for God’s glory. And I praise God that, as David did, I’ve been given the charge to pass this dream on to someone else, one who can move God’s kingdom plan and will to another level.
And if such a place is where you are in life, I pray that you can praise God and revel in what you’ve been allowed to do and what lies ahead for the glory of God. … David did; and so can we.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, thank you for allowing me to see Your dream and to get it started. Amen
Monday, May 18, 2009
2009 – Day 132.May 18 – Hope with Broken Dreams
2009 – Day 132.May 18 – Hope with Broken Dreams
Passage of the Day: 2nd Samuel 7: 18 – 29 … Link to 2nd Sam. 6 for study ...
Passage #2 for the Day: 1st Chron. 22: 1 – 6 … Link to 1st Chron. 22 for study ...
My Journal for the Day: Many of us may have been there. We have a dream; and God seems to say “No” to us; and yet, someone, maybe someone younger, comes in and makes it happen. Oh, the potential to let pride build anger, covetousness, or envy into our lives, especially if or when we see someone else taking our dream and running with it.
As we read the passages for today, we see David having to step aside to allow Solomon, his son, build God’s Temple to honor God, a dream which had been birthed in David’s heart. And as David steps aside to let Solomon build the temple, here we begin to see why God thought of David as “a man after My own heart.” David’s response to God when he learned his son would be the one to build the Temple for God was exactly what God expects from any of His children; and that is humility and obedience. As Swindoll pointed out in his devotional for today, “When God says no, it means He has a better way, and He expects [us] to support it.”
He goes on to point out that not everyone is called to “build the temple;” but we’re all called to be faithful and obedient. But man, … that can be tough when we see others getting all the credit for something we knew we could have done or something which had our mark on it.
And yes, it is hard; but we’ve got to realize that the only really important thing is God’s plan and His purpose; and when He gets the glory, that’s really all that counts in the eternal scheme of things. So, if I start something and someone else finishes it; … even if they get all the earthly recognition, that is okay if that project was for God’s glory. And I hope all of us can realize this; and we can develop the kind of humility we see in David from today’s lesson for our lives.
My Prayer for Today: Oh, Lord, my God, teach me to find Your dream and do whatever it takes to make YOUR will my will. Amen
Passage of the Day: 2nd Samuel 7: 18 – 29 … Link to 2nd Sam. 6 for study ...
Passage #2 for the Day: 1st Chron. 22: 1 – 6 … Link to 1st Chron. 22 for study ...
My Journal for the Day: Many of us may have been there. We have a dream; and God seems to say “No” to us; and yet, someone, maybe someone younger, comes in and makes it happen. Oh, the potential to let pride build anger, covetousness, or envy into our lives, especially if or when we see someone else taking our dream and running with it.
As we read the passages for today, we see David having to step aside to allow Solomon, his son, build God’s Temple to honor God, a dream which had been birthed in David’s heart. And as David steps aside to let Solomon build the temple, here we begin to see why God thought of David as “a man after My own heart.” David’s response to God when he learned his son would be the one to build the Temple for God was exactly what God expects from any of His children; and that is humility and obedience. As Swindoll pointed out in his devotional for today, “When God says no, it means He has a better way, and He expects [us] to support it.”
He goes on to point out that not everyone is called to “build the temple;” but we’re all called to be faithful and obedient. But man, … that can be tough when we see others getting all the credit for something we knew we could have done or something which had our mark on it.
And yes, it is hard; but we’ve got to realize that the only really important thing is God’s plan and His purpose; and when He gets the glory, that’s really all that counts in the eternal scheme of things. So, if I start something and someone else finishes it; … even if they get all the earthly recognition, that is okay if that project was for God’s glory. And I hope all of us can realize this; and we can develop the kind of humility we see in David from today’s lesson for our lives.
My Prayer for Today: Oh, Lord, my God, teach me to find Your dream and do whatever it takes to make YOUR will my will. Amen
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