EXPAND TO READ: DEUTERONOMY 10 (HCSB)
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verses 1-3): I find the obedience of Moses amazing. Was he perfect like Your Son, Jesus? No, he was not. Did he try his best to live in obedience to You even with his flaws and weaknesses? Yes, he did. This is a struggle of mine for sure. In these verses, after Moses broke the original tablets out of anger towards the people You placed under him, You commanded him to setup two more tablets, but also an ark for the tablets this time. You commanded him to go up the mountain again, so that You could rewrite the Ten Commandments on the tablets. Did he argue with You at all on this? Did he say something to fight against Your will for him in this moment? He did not. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for me personally. There have been many times in my life, since coming to faith, which I have felt driven to do something for Your kingdom, yet I have been disobedient. Please forgive me for my disobedience, Father. Help me to be better at following You and being obedient to Your will for my life as Moses did. I recognize I’m not perfect and will continue to make some mistakes, but I ask You to help me in making those mistakes less often and less severe in the future, Father.
PROMISE (verse 14): Your promise in this verse is about Your domain. You assure us that the heavens and the earth, as well as everything in both, belong to You. All are Your possessions and I must be better at respecting Your possessions in my life. Have I been the best caretaker of Your possessions, Father? I have not. I can and will be better at taking pride in Your kingdom, both in Heaven and on earth. I will be better at recognizing that nothing I have, see, or use in this life is my own and I must treat it with the respect it deserves. Help me to embrace this promise, Father, so that as I walk this journey of life, I am always glorifying You by recognizing that everything is Yours and not my own.
ATTITUDE (verse 9): I find this verse interesting because of the clarity You bring to the topic of inheritance. Moses says that Levi does not have an inheritance of his own in the same way of his brothers. Instead, his inheritance is the Lord Himself. I ask You to help me embrace this in my heart, Father. I am not promised anything of substance in this life, but I am promised eternal salvation through Your perfect Son, Jesus Christ. THAT is my inheritance. Anything in addition to that which I receive is just an additional blessing and has nothing to do with my actual inheritance from You. Help me to live in a way that glorifies You as my inheritance in this life, Father. Help me to live in a way that does not portray a person that is “owed” something from You, because I am not owed anything from You. Help me to live my life in a way which always points to the glory to You and not myself for anything I may or may not receive in this life, Father. Help me to be truly grateful for the inheritance I do have, so that I do not worry or covet the things which other people have in this life, Father.
COMMAND (verse 16): Wow! This command is very direct and rather tough to fully grasp, to be honest. You tell us to circumcise our hearts and to no longer be stiff-necked. Unfortunately, this has been me for a LONG time. I have failed to circumcise my heart many times on many topics. I have remained stiff-necked on a lot of things, Father. I have kept You from truly healing my heart and I have prevented Your will to be done in my life so many times due to my stubbornness and rebellion. Although I know I will continue to struggle in some way in the future, I ask that You help me to be better at following this command, Father. Help me to be better at removing all of this fleshly weight off my heart. Help me to no longer be stubborn and stiff-necked in my spiritual journey nor with life in general. Help me to be better at abiding in this command, so that as I continue to grow in my spiritual walk, it is the new, born-again identity in Christ that takes over in my heart, soul, and mind as I walk in this life.
EXAMPLE (verses 12, 20-21): You emphasize so much in these verses, yet so little at the same time. The emphasis You put on the content of these verses is also the basis for what Jesus gives us as the most important commands to follow. You tell us that we are to fear You, but walking in all of Your ways. You tell us that we are to love You and to worship You with all of our heart and soul. You tell us that we are to remain faithful to You and to take oaths in Your name. You tell us that You are to be our praise and our one true God, who has done great and awesome things for us. Help me with this, Father. I know that I am to love You with all that I am, but I do not truly know how to do that. I know that I am to fear You, but I do not truly know how to do that. Help me to lean on my spiritual mentors more, Father, so that as I continue this spiritual growth and relationship with You, I can gain true understanding of what it means to love You with all that I am, yet maintain a fear of You in my spiritual journey.
*DAILY NOTE: There’s so much to learn from today’s scripture, but I feel the core of it is that I must make sure my priorities, heart, and sights are always on You. I have struggled with giving into my flesh, giving into the world, and even delving back into bad habits. I know that I am a better man overall when I abide in You fully, but I am weak, Father. I am weak without You and oftentimes I allow my fleshly fear to stand in the way of abiding in Your will for my life. Walking this journey with You is not an easy one to fully accomplish and I recognize that, now. I am trying my best, but I know that I do still struggle with consistency and obedience at times. Help me to be better, Father, so that as I do begin to falter in the future, I quickly am reminded to get back on Your path for my life. Help me to never turn away from You again. Help me to never put my blinders on again, so that I am always able and willing to hear You speak to me, Father, even if it’s through other Godly men in my life.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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