EXPAND TO READ: DEUTERONOMY 18 (HCSB)
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verses 1-2): These verses about the Levite’s inheritance and promise are speaking to me as well this morning. I do not know if I have an inheritance in this life as many of Your people here were promised. Could I be like the Levites in the sense that You are my inheritance and the only promise to me? I’m really not sure to be honest. I say all this to confess to You, Father, that I do sometimes feel like I’m “owed” something in this life, I guess similar to an inheritance. I know that Jesus died for all of my sins to offer me an eternal salvation which I could not have earned on my own. That alone is an inheritance which I cannot even fathom why You would give that to me. At the same time, however, I do sometimes feel that the more faithful I am to You, the more I am “owed” in a sense and that is not how You’ve asked me to live out my faith, Father. Please forgive me for my selfishness. Forgive me for thinking that the “things” in this life are even worth anything compared to what You have already given to me through my eternal salvation in Jesus Christ. Help me to be better at walking in and living a humble and obedient life through my faith knowing that IF I do receive ANY type of inheritance in this life that it is by Your grace that I have received that.
PROMISE (verse 15): This promise is one that I would say I struggle to accept at times. I say I struggle to accept it at times not because of You, but because of man’s nature. Mankind often seeks to take advantage of others for profit, so there are so many people out there who claim to be speaking Your truth solely to deceive those who will listen into giving them some type of financial reimbursement in a sense. This is my struggle with this promise because I have difficult with spiritual discernment. I am grateful for Your promise that we will have brothers in this life who will speak words of truth directly from You and in Your name. I ask that You help me to mature my spiritual discernment in this life, Father, so that I may never fall trap to the false prophets who walk this life. Help me to be better at reading between the lines of their words, so that as I listen to what is spoken if I do not hear YOU speaking then I may be safe from their traps.
ATTITUDE (verse 22b): Concerning the real Prophets and false prophets of this world, help me to have an attitude of acceptance towards those which are truly speaking Your words and in Your name, Father. At the same time, help me to also no longer live in an attitude of fear towards speaking up against the false prophets in this life as You have told me at the end of this verse to not be afraid of them. I do not want to struggle or just walk away in silence when someone is taking advantage of Your people for their own profit. I do not want to struggle or just walk away in silence if someone is claiming to be a prophet from You, yet the words they speak say otherwise. Help me to be Your voice of protection of the victims of the false prophets, Father, so that as I continue to gain confidence in the speaking of Your truth, I can begin to better and easily identify the false spiritual narratives being spoken about in this world.
COMMAND (verses 9-10): These verses hold a very strong command, especially in a world which contains so many variations in Christianity, but also so many variations in religions altogether. If I enter into an area which practices things which are detestable to You and goes against Your truths, then I am to stand firm in my faith by not practicing those. Although some religious people will “give in” to some of these practices out of respect for the hosting party, which I’m sure I have done at times, showing them more respect then You is not the way You want me to live. No matter what is going on around me or what is a custom of where I’m at, I am to remain strong and firm in my faith. It doesn’t mean I need to be rude towards them about their customs and such, but it does mean that I need to be better at prioritizing my respect towards You over them by ensuring I do not partake in any of their customs which may upset You. Once again, Father, I ask You to continue to work in me to help me with my spiritual discernment as well as my confidence in Your truth because I know I am weak in both of these, especially in the heat of the moment situations.
EXAMPLE (verses 15-22): This is a lot of verses for this example, but altogether they paint a perfect picture of prophets which You have assigned to this world versus false prophets who are using Your name in vein. You give us many examples of their need in this life as well as how to discern amongst the true prophets versus the false prophets. You end all of this by telling us to ensure we discern between the two and only follow the true prophets by not being afraid to speak up with Your truth and Your wisdom against the words they are speaking. If they are truly a prophet from You, then the words they speak back to us will always be aligned with Your will, Your truth, Your words, and Your way of living this life. Help me to remember this example, Father, throughout my life so that as people do approach me or enter my life claiming to be a prophet from God, that I am initially cautious and work through You to discern what the truth is in the matter. If they are from You, then help me to quickly recognize that so that I may reap the rewards of hearing You speaking to me directly. If they are not from You, then also help me to quickly recognize that so that I am not deceived and do not fall into their traps.
*DAILY NOTE: I still have much to learn, Father. I still have a LOT of maturity to gain in my spiritual journey in this life. The more conversations I have with You through my quiet times, speaking with my spiritual brothers, and leaning into my faith, the more I realize how immature I really am in my faith. The more I realize how many fleshly weaknesses I’m still clinging onto. The more I realize how much more growth I have in front of me in order to truly be aligned in and abiding in Your will for my life. The very last words You say in today’s conversation is to not be afraid. I know You are speaking to me with this, because I do allow fear to drive many of my decisions, actions, and reactions. Help me to put aside my fleshly fears, Father, so that I can truly and fully give all that I am to You and no longer dig back into my weak, fleshly defaults in this life. Help me to remember Your Truths in my mind and heart, so that I will always have confidence in my ability to speak to them in the heat of the moment instead of after the fact. Help me, Father, to KNOW that I am speaking from You what You want me to speak instead of what my flesh desires to speak or not speak (silence) in the moment.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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