David and Robin Watters Visit our full site at www.wattersedge.org Passing on a Godly Heritage
Passing on a Godly Heritage
Our Situation What kind of heritage are we passing on to our children? As you look back at how your parents raised you, how did they do at passing on the teaching of God’s Word and modeling a Christ-like life? For those of us with children, how well are we doing at that? I have been really challenged with this in my own life lately. The Scripture: 1 Sam 3:11-14; 8:1-5
1. What was it that caused Samuel to become God’s “judge” and not one of Eli’s sons? (1 Sam 3:11-14)
2. When Samuel had children, how does 1 Sam 8:1-5 describe his sons?
3. What was the reason the people gave for wanting a king?
4. God encouraged Samuel and took credit for the rejection (8:7-8) but, from these 2 stories, what application can we draw regarding the destruction caused by not passing on a Godly Heritage to our children?
Our Professor In an article about helping leaders to lead, the author made a statement that has really stuck with me. “The one thing we learn from history is that we don’t really learn from history.” Samuel, of all people, should have learned the importance of passing on Godly values to his children. He had witnessed the destruction of Eli and his family and had seen the effects of Eli’s son’s rebellion on their family and the nation of Israel. Yet, what do we see when Samuel becomes an adult and has sons of his own? “They were not like their father, for they were greedy for money. They accepted bribes and perverted justice.” (1 Sam 8:3) It appears that Samuel did not learn from history. I am not sure why God “bailed him out” by accepting Israel’s rejection and not letting Samuel feel the weight of his failure. Maybe Samuel’s sons chose to disobey in spite Godly instruction, as opposed to Eli who didn’t provide that child training… the Scriptures don’t really tell us. None the less, the reason the elders gave for wanting a king was, “your sons are not like you.” God’s Purpose What a challenge! As I think about these stories and look at my own life, I am challenged to not allow history to repeat itself. In God’s shepherding of our lives, He will at times use difficulty. At times He will use a faithful brother, sister, or my blonde Holy Spirit (My wife! J). But His purpose is always training! He is always teaching me to depend and rely more on Him and less on self. In this area of child training the Lord has been doing a double portion of shepherding in my life in recent days. I can see so many areas in my heart where I will repeat history, if I don’t change. I want to raise my children to be Godly men and women who stand for the Lord and whose lives bring glory to him. But I know there are 2 primary factors that will enable that to happen.
1. I need to be pro-active in child training today! Robin and I have been meeting with another couple going through a parenting Bible study. It has been so practical and shown us so many areas where we need to improve… consistency, not disciplining in anger, giving the moral reason why we say no, training the heart and not just disciplining actions, etc.
2. I need to live consistently. If my life does not measure up to my talk, I am wasting my breath. Even if I manage to achieve conformity, when my children leave home, they will live by what I have modeled, not by what I have spoken. I trust that my journey and the testimony of God’s shepherding in my life can be an encouragement and a challenge to you. As I finish this study, this is my prayer for all who read this.
Outreach Update
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Hello all, Thank you so much to all of you who wrote and said that you are praying. It is so encouraging to know that you all are going to continue to pray for what God is doing here. The picture above represents what I believe God wants to continue to do with this outreach. A month or so ago, a number of us from NTM, along with the sending church of the missionary and another local pastor worked together to put up a house for the missionary family. They officially moved in on Monday. But, in the same way that we all worked together to put that house up, God wants to continue to make it so we all have to work together to build His house in this community.
Well, Sunday night we were supposed to have the opening “awareness” meeting. The men came down and we met in the afternoon to go over some things. But, when it came time to go down to the meeting “tent” it started raining. It rained pretty steddy for the next 2-3 hours. As a result of the rain, the men felt there would not be much of a turn out, so they decided to cancel the meeting. Monday rolled around and it was a beautiful day until around 4 PM. The clouds starting building up again and it was threatening to rain again. So, again, the men felt it would be better not to meet.
Since Monday, the missionary has been meeting with a couple of the local pastors to try and decide what to do. It has been so encouraging to see how God has used even the weather to bring about His will. The pastors told the missionary, “It shouldn’t be your responsibility to promote this teaching anyway. This should be our job!” So, here is what the 3 pastors and the missionary have decided. Over the next week or so, they are going to individually go to each little “house line” (family hamlet / village) and personally find out who is interested in hearing this “talk.” They will come up with a list of names. Then, once they have gotten to each of the “house lines” they will set a time for a “planning” meeting, at which time everyone who has expressed interest will be invited to come so they can discuss together what days / times would be best to meet. Once they have worked out the schedule, they will start the teaching.
God is so good. Inspite of all the road blocks, delays, and now the weather, God is at work. This outreach will be so much better with the community pastors taking more ownership of it. Keep praying for these men this next week as they go around to the different house lines. Pray there will be interest and that people will be receptive to what they have to say. Then as we make plans to get started, pray the Lord will continue to open the doors in this community, and that we as NTM will know best how we can help and support them!
Thanks again for your prayers. David Watters
PLEASE PRAY! Outreach to begin this week
The day has finally arrived. Sunday the 13th and Monday the 14th Iteve (far left) will be coming down to our local community to do a two day kick off for the phase 1 (Creation to Christ evangelism) outreach. The purpose of these 2 days is to tell the community what is coming, but also to “salt the oats,” and Lord willing stir up some interest for the phase 1 teaching.
Following this community meeting, we plan to have a meeting with anyone who is interested on the 18th to decide on times and days for the teaching. Hei (2nd from the left) and his family will be moving here in the next few days to be permanent missionaries in the community around the center. He will be doing the bulk of the teaching.
In the past week, I have been out visiting with a number of the local pastors, and they are quite interested in being a part of the teaching. Pray they will indeed attend, and that they will remain for the duration of phase 1. Pray also for the community as there has been 3 deaths in the past 2 weeks, and people are quite suspicious and are leaning toward witchcraft as the cause. Pray that this does not disrupt the teaching, and instead that it will give people a reason to learn the truth.
Pray also for Jeremiah (the man next to me, 2nd from the right). He is the pastor that is hosting the teaching. He is a fairly new believer and could really benefit from the teaching himself. But has been talking about wanting to go away to Bible School. Not that Bible School is bad, but if he leaves, it will significantly affect the teaching.
Thank you for continuing to hold this up before the throne. It has taken a long time, but we are thrilled to see what God is doing and the opportunity to have a small part in seeing the truth go forth in the community around the center here.
Some Lessons from Moses Life
Our Situation
Jeremiah 29:11 tells us, “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” This gives us tremendous hope that God is going to do something great with our lives. But, does it mean that things will always be rosy and easy?
When I was training for sports in High School, as my team mates and I were ready to drop from exhaustion from a hard workout, the coach would often say, “No pain, no gain.” I wanted to just slap him upside the head. But, it really is true isn’t it. Is that true in our spiritual development too? What does God use to teach us the most valuable lessons? When do we grow the most? What is our attitude in those times of “spiritual training?”
The Scripture: Exodus 14:10-14
- When God first called Moses, how would you describe his life? (Ex 3-4:14) After being raised as a son of Pharaoh, what happened? Why do we find Moses like this?
- What things does God do / allow to help build Moses’ confidence?
- Did everything go as Moses expected? How do you think that affected Moses? (Ex 5:6-9, 22-23)
- Each time, as Pharaoh refused to listen and Moses witnessed God doing His wonders through him, what impact do you think that had on him? (Ex 8:8-13)
- What do you think about God’s method of helping the children of Israel and Egypt to know Him? Take a few minutes to meditate on what Exodus 10:1-2 meant for the people of Israel?
- Compare Exodus 3 and 4 with Exodus 14:13-14. What made the difference? What can we learn from this?
Our Professor
When we pick up our story today, Moses has done away with a man in Egypt and run for his life. He has spent 40 years wandering the desert with his in-laws. God has just recently renewed dialogue with Moses through a bush that was on fire, but not burning up, asking Moses to lead his people out of Egypt. Moses wants nothing to do with it. God tries to convince him in numerous ways to trust Him, but in the end Moses finally just tells God, “Hey, I think you have the wrong man. You really need to just find someone else.” Not to mention, Moses saw right away that the people weren’t too thrilled to let Moses be their leader either.
But, God as the great Professor, doesn’t listen to Moses, instead God decides to make Moses, if not the greatest leader, one of the greatest leader in all of the Bible. Does God sometimes not listen to you when you try to tell him what the “right” thing is to do? I am certainly glad God chooses NOT to listen to us sometimes, aren’t you?
Anyway, how did God do it? How did God take this scared, timid, insecure man and make him the leader of hundreds and thousands of people? The answer, …through trials and hardship.
Moses didn’t approve of his appointment, and I doubt he approved of God’s method of shepherding him into that appointment… rejection from Pharoah, rejection from his fellow countrymen… insults and criticism from his fellow countrymen etc etc. God forced Moses to stand before Pharoah time and time again, rejected, criticized, abused, etc, etc, but in the midst, Moses got to be eye witness to God’s wonders. Can you imagine the impact that must have had on Moses life? Each time he was criticized and rejected, Moses got to see that God do wonders, and each time Moses learned a little more about how great God was.
God’s Purpose
That is exactly what God wants to do in our lives. Romans 5:3-5 talks about that. “We can rejoice when we run into problems and trials, for we know they help us to develop endurance. Endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope. This hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us.” (NLV) God wants to build endurance and character. As character grows, our confidence in God will grow and we will come to know God’s love in deeper more intimate ways. I am sure that’s exactly what happened with Moses. As he went to Pharoah time and time again, was rejected, criticized and laughed at each time, but then performed God’s wonders, what tremendous hope it must have given Moses, and what deep love it must have produced.
Once they had “escaped,” and traveled to the Red Sea, Moses and all the people found themselves with their “back against the wall” (or the sea, in this case). The Egyptians bearing down on them with horses and chariots, and a vast sea of water on the other side, with no way to escape. The people panicked. Listen to the words of the people:
14:10As Pharaoh approached, the people of Israel looked up and panicked when they saw the Egyptians overtaking them. They cried out to the LORD, 11and they said to Moses, “Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Weren’t there enough graves for us in Egypt? What have you done to us? Why did you make us leave Egypt? 12Didn’t we tell you this would happen while we were still in Egypt? We said, ‘Leave us alone! Let us be slaves to the Egyptians. It’s better to be a slave in Egypt than a corpse in the wilderness!’”
What a contrast between the people’s response and how Moses responded. 13But Moses told the people “Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the LORD rescue you today. The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. 14The LORD himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” What made the difference? The people had seen the same things that Moses had. But somehow, the trials and difficulties produced “hope” and “love” in Moses, but only discouragement and hatred in the hearts of the people.
What about you? What kind of response do you have when life doesn’t go the way you think? What is your attitude in times of “spiritual training?” Do you look at those times and say with Moses, “Let’s stand back and see what God does?” Or do you respond like the people of Israel? Do you trust God’s shepherding in your life?
The Life of Joseph
The life of Joseph Our Situation They say hindsight is 20/20. But, if we knew what God was going to do often I think we would want to try another way. But, do we believe God knows the best way for us to learn and grow to become the men and women God desires for us to be? The Scripture: Gen 35:22, Gen 37-39, Gen 45:5-7, Gen 50:20, Ps 105:17-19
1. Why did God feel the need to mention Reuben’s mistake in Gen 35?
2. How does Joseph respond to the situations of his life?
3. How would you compare Joseph’s character to that of Reuben and Judah?
4. Why do you think God chose Joseph (Ps 105:17) over Judah or Reuben?
5. What can we learn about God’s shepherding from the life of Joseph?
Our Professor
Joseph was the first born son of Jacob’s favorite wife Rachel. Rachel prayed for a son, and while her sister, her sister’s maid, and her maid were all able to give Jacob sons, Rachel could not. When God finally opened up her womb, it was an occasion to celebrate. Joseph was that son.
As Joseph grew, his father favored him over all the others. When he was a little older, Jacob made him a special coat. This made the jealousy his brothers felt even stronger. When the opportunity came, they planned to do away with him. The original plan… throw him in a pit and let him die. But then some merchants came along… plan 2, sell him as a slave.
Off to Egypt he went as a slave. Once in Egypt, the merchants sold him as a slave to Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh’s army. God was with Joseph in Potiphar’s house. God made Potiphar prosper because of Joseph. Potiphar put Joseph in charge of his entire house. But, Potiphar’s wife decided she wanted him for more than just keeping the house clean. When Joseph refused, she falsely accused him and he was thrown in prison.
God’s Purpose Psalm 105:17-19“God had sent a man ahead of them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave. 18His feet were hurt with fetters; his neck was put in a collar of iron; 19until what he had said came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him. I have been meditating and thinking about these passages for a few weeks now. The more I study the life of Joseph, the more I appreciate him and his example. He is an amazing testimony of faith. Why did God choose Joseph and not one of his brothers, Judah for instance? Judah was the oldest. Why was he not the one that God chose to send ahead? Then there’s Reuben. He’s the one that planned to rescue Joseph rather than leave him to die. He’s a nice guy, why didn’t God choose him? Take a look at Gen 35:22 and chapter 38. I have wondered why those verses are recorded. But when you look at it in light of what Joseph experienced with Potiphars wife, they take on more significance. God’s choice to send Joseph ahead meant slavery, Potiphar’s wife and prison for Joseph. But, in God’s foreknowledge, He knew Joseph would have the faith to endure. What would have happened had Reuben or Judah been in that situation? What does this say about God’s shepherding of our faith? God knew that Joseph would endure. God trusted Joseph with the challenge, because He knew Joseph would respond in faith. God also knew this would build Joseph’s faith even more. (Gen 45:5-7, Gen 50:20) How do you view trials in your life? God is the shepherd of our faith! Just as in Joseph’s life, he desires to grow our faith. He wants to trust us with challenges so that we can respond to in faith, like Joseph did. But, not everyone is up to the task. What about you? Are you up to the task? Can God trust you with challenges and know that you will respond in faith? How are you going to respond? How deep is your faith?
The Life of Jacob Part 2
Our Situation How well do you know God’s character? When bad things happen to good people, is God still God? When believers suffer and life doesn’t make sense, is God still God? When your worst fears become reality, is YOUR God still the sovereign God of the universe? The words of the song, “I am still yours” say, ”When my life is not what I expected. The plans I made have failed. When there’s nothing left to steal me away, will you be enough for me? Will my broken heart still sing? How well do you know Him? Can you still trust Him, will you still trust Him if / when He does something that makes no sense to you? The Scripture: Gen 33-42
1. How did Jacob handle his encounter with Esau in Genesis 33?
2. How did Jacob handle Simeon and Levi’s reaction to Dinah’s rape? How well did he trust God to keep His promise? (Gen 34:30)
3. Why do you think God reminded Jacob of His promise after the situation with Dinah? (Gen 35:9-13)
4. What else happened in chapter 35 that may have affected Jacob’s faith? (Gen 35:16-20)
5. How did Jacob handle the news of Joseph’s fate at the end of Chapter 37? (Gen 37:31-35)
6. When we see Jacob again, how would you characterize his faith? (Gen 42:35-38, 44:30, )
7. What was God’s purpose in all of this? Was it just to make life miserable for Jacob?
Our Professor In Chapter 31 Jacob learned a valuable lesson. It took him 20 years to learn it, but he finally came to the end of himself and was able to recognize God’s sovereignty. All those years with Laban I believe God was trying to weed out self so Jacob would depend on Him. We see a small glimpse of it in Chapter 31, but that’s it. We see very little evidence of Jacob depending on God after that time. God didn’t give up on Jacob though. He continued to work with him, continued to give him opportunities to trust and depend on Him. He even took time to remind Jacob of His promise and what He had said. All of this, I believe was for the purpose of bringing Jacob to the place where he would not rely on Himself but would rely on God. But, unfortunately, Joseph being sold into slavery seems to be the last straw for Jacob’s trust in God. The next time we see Jacob, about 20 years later, Jacob is so taken up with self and bitterness, that he would rather let his family starve than risk letting Benjamin out of his sight. God’s Purpose
Chapter 19 from Gene Edwards book “Prisoner in the Third Cell.” A story about the life of John the Baptist A day like John’s beheading awaits us all. It is unavoidable because every believer imagines his God to be a certain way, and is quite sure his Lord will do certain things under certain conditions. But your Lord is never quite what you imagined Him to be. You have now come face to face with a God whom you do not fully understand. You have met a God who has not lived up to your expectations. Every believer must come to grips with a God who did not do things quite the way it was expected. You are going to get to know your Lord by faith or you will not know Him at all. Faith in Him, trust that is in Him . . . not in His ways. Today you are resentful of those who so callously hurt you. But no, not really. The truth is you are angry with God because, ultimately, you are not dealing with men, you are dealing with the sovereign hand of your Lord. Behind all events, behind all things, there is always His sovereign hand. The question is not, “Why is God doing this? Why is He like this?” The question is not, “Why does He not answer me?” The question is not, “I need Him desperately; why does He not come rescue me?” The question is not, “Why did God allow this tragedy to happen to me, to my children, to my wife, to my husband, to my family?” Nor is it, “Why does God allow injustices?” The question before the house is this: “Will you follow a God you do not understand? Will you follow a God who does not live up to your expectations?” Your Lord has put something in your life which you cannot bear. The burden is simply too great. He was never supposed to do this! But the question remains, “Will you continue to follow this God who did not live up to your expectations?” “And blessed are you if you are not offended with me.” (Mt 11:1-6) Just like John the Baptist, God wanted Jacob to learn simply to trust Him and to live for Him no matter what. Unfortunately, what we see in Jacob’s life seems to indicate He never came to that place of rest. How about you? How well do you know Him? Can you still trust Him, will you still trust Him if / when He does something that makes no sense to you?
The Life of Jacob – Part 1
Our Situation Does God allow us to make stupid choices and mistakes earlier in our lives so he can use them to teach us a larger lesson later? I don’t know what your experience is, but I know I certainly have made some stupid choices in my life, and not all of them when I was younger. But, as I read this passage today, the thought I was challenged with was, does God allow us to make those mistakes so that we will be open to his shepherding in that area later? As you look back at lessons that you have learned, was your openness to God’s shepherding influenced by poor choices you made in the past? Rom 8:28 is true once again. God will use ALL things for OUR good and HIS glory. The Scripture: Gen 31
1. What events do we remember from Jacob’s early life? Where was his focus? (self / God)
2. Even though his actions were self-focused, how did God respond? (28:14-15)
3. During his years with Laban, how does Laban’s actions compare to Jacob’s actions in his earlier years? What do you think God was teaching him?
4. What expressions of faith do we see from Jacob in this passage?
5. What evidences of growth do we see from these statements?
6. What can we conclude about God’s shepherding of Jacob at this stage of his life?
Our Professor
From the earliest mention of Jacob in scripture he was deceiving and manipulating things for his own benefit. Even coming out of the womb he was holding on to his brother’s heel. God had even said of him that “the older would serve the younger.” (25:23)
In their early years, Jacob tricked Esau into trading his birthright for a bowl of stew. (25:29-33) Later, when their father was blind and close to death, Jacob and his mother tricked their father into blessing Jacob with the blessing of the first born. (27:1-30) As a result, Jacob had to flea home for fear of Esau. This is where Jacob’s journey of faith really began
As Jacob settled down under the care of his father’s brother Laban, God began the process of showing him just how selfish he had been living. Scripture doesn’t correlate Jacob’s actions with that of Laban, but you have to wonder if God allowed it to show Jacob his own heart. He worked 7 years, only to be swindled out of the love of his life and got her sister instead. He then worked another 7 years for Rachel.
As Jacob’s family grew, he desired to make a home for himself, so he went to Laban and made a deal. But, once that deal was made, Laban did his best to manipulate things for his own benefit. During the next 6 years, Laban changed Jacob’s wages 10 times, trying to manipulate things in order for Jacob to have the weaker flock and himself the stronger. But, God was using the whole situation to teach Jacob a lesson in dependence.
God’s Purpose
I asked at the beginning, does God allow us to make stupid choices and mistakes early in our lives so he can use them to teach us a larger lesson later? I have to wonder if that’s what God had done with Jacob. He was pretty selfish in his early years. He certainly didn’t consult the Lord about the things he did. But later, God put him into situations where he was not able to manipulate things himself. It seems that maybe Jacob even recognized even his little hokas pokas with the sticks and the water troughs wasn’t what had made the flocks stronger, it was God.
(31:4-9) Jacob recognized that it was God who was looking after him. It was God that made the flocks produce as they did. It was God who had taken the flocks from Laban and gave them to Jacob. Jacob had learned a lesson. He had learned it so well that when Laban challenges him, he says, (31:42) “If the God of my father had not been on my side, the God of Abraham and the fearsome God of Isaac, you would have sent me away empty-handed. But God has seen your abuse and my hard work. That is why he appeared to you last night and rebuked you!”
Is this not God’s purpose in our lives as well? God wants for us to know His character and to see Him for who He is. He wants us to recognize, as Jacob, that if God wasn’t on our side, we would be nothing. Then, he wants to bring us to the place where we worship Him in our hearts and unswervingly trust Him.
In a book Robin and I are reading together, we read these words today: “Whatever we do, even if we are reading the Word or praying, we should stop for a few minutes – as often as possible – to praise God from the depths of our hearts, to enjoy Him there in secret. What could please God more than for us to leave the cares of the world temporarily in order to worship Him in our spirits? These momentary retreats serve to free us from our selfishness, which can only exist in the world. Since we believe that God is always with us, no matter what we may be doing, why shouldn’t we stop for a while to adore Him, to praise Him, to petition Him, to offer Him our hearts, and to thank Him?
The End of the Journey
Our Situation
They say hindsight is 20/20. When is the last time you took a few minutes to look back and see where God has taken you? It should be an encouragement to look back and compare where you are in your journey of faith today compared to times past. Although we still often make the same mistakes and when difficulty faces us, we often doubt. But maybe today would be a good time to look back and take an inventory of the growth in your journey. May your heart be encouraged with what you see.
The Scripture: Gen 24
1. What differences do you see regarding Abraham’s faith in this chapter compared to other times in Abraham’s life?
2. How did Abraham’s faith affect this servant?
3. What expressions of faith do we see in the servant’s life?
4. What conclusion can be made regarding the events in Abraham’s life that led up to this point?
5. How does this apply to our lives?
Our Professor
Can you picture the scene? Abraham and his servant are sitting under a shade tree talking. His servant has been with him for many years and has witnessed much of Abraham’s journey. They begin to reminisce about the things they experienced together and what God has taught them.
Abraham: “You have been with me through the thick and thin. I hope that you have learned a few things about the greatness of God through my mistakes. I am getting old, and I’m not going to be around much longer. You know, I wonder if there is something you could do for me. I would really like to find a wife for young Isaac. He has grown up so fast. I never thought I would see this day. God promised that I would become a great nation. Remember how I doubted him. I was such a fool. I can’t believe that I actually thought that Sarai and I could help God out by providing a son our own way. Oh how much we had to learn about trusting God!
Abraham continues: “I don’t want Isaac to hook up with any of these local women. I would really like for you to find a wife for him from my father’s family.”
The Servant: “What if I find such a girl, who is to say that she is going to want to come live so far away from home? Why don’t we just find a wife for him here?”
Abraham: I know that God would have me to get a wife from my father’s family. He can provide. I wasn’t always confident that God would provide you know. I was so fickle in my faith. Remember the famine? I was so scared that there wouldn’t be enough food for my family and all you servants. So we went down to Egypt. Remember what I did down there? I pretended Sarai was my sister because I was afraid the king would do away with me and take her as his wife. God was so gracious to me. Although I didn’t trust Him, He still took care of me.
You think I would have learned. But, remember Gerer and king Abimelech. I can’t believe I used the same lie twice, and all along I am sure God was saying, “Just trust me. I can take care of you. I can provide.” I am so dense sometimes and I have so much to learn.
I am sure that time on the mountain when God told me to sacrifice little Isaac was a test to prove my faith. I wonder how many of these other events were placed in my path for the same purpose. God is so gracious with me, and he has been so faithful to teach me how trustworthy He is.
So my friend, this God, the one who took me from my father’s house and my native land, the one who has promised to give all of this land to my descendants, he will provide a wife for my son! You can trust Him!
God’s Purpose
Abraham is such a beautiful picture of you and I? There were times when he unswervingly trusted God. But there are also times of terrible failure. It’s interesting to look back at the events that God recorded in Scripture for us. Were there more? God included the ones He needed to in order to show us the lesson. The great shepherd brought Abraham on a journey of faith. In the end, we see a man who has unswerving confidence in God’s promise, in God’s care, and in God’s ability to do what He says! Wow, that’s where He wants to bring all of us isn’t it!
I wonder how often God allows / orchestrates events in our lives to hone our faith, to stretch us, to train us, to help us to trust Him?
The best part of this story is that the servant of Abraham gets it too. He witnessed Abraham’s life, his journey, now his confidence in God… and so he then is also able to exercise the same kind of faith. (Ps 69:32) “The humble will see their God at work and be glad. Let all who seek God’s help be encouraged.” May that be true in our lives too.
God Cares
Introduction This year I have challenged my family to read through the Bible with me together. I always seem to start well, but never seem to finish very well. So, if all of us are doing it together, hopefully we will all be able to finish well. As we read, and when we meet to discuss what we have read, we are going to be looking for how God shows us that He is the Good Shepherd, caring for and always doing what’s best for us, as His sheep. So, as I am able, I will share some of the things we are discussing and learning together as a family. Our Situation How much does God care for us? Do we see his hand and feel his care in every aspect of our lives? How well do we REALLY know Him? Too often our understanding and knowledge of God is more a text book knowledge than it is an experiential knowledge. My prayer is that this year as we read and discuss God’s shepherding, we will see Him, and therefore come to know Him more from experience than just from what we read about Him. May the same be for you. The Scripture: Gen 1-2
1. As you read through the first 2 chapters of Genesis, how many times is God mentioned? (Don’t forget the pronouns too)
2. What does this say about where the focus is in these two chapters?
3. What is Adam and Eve’s relationship with God at this point in time? What is their opinion of Him?
4. What observations do you have regarding the order in which God created the world?
5. If God didn’t need any of these things, then why did he make them all? What does that tell us about God?
6. Why did God make the rule about the Tree of Knowledge and Evil?
7. How does this factor into God’s shepherd care for Adam and Eve?
Our Professor In these first two chapters we see the picture of God’s perfect relationship with man. Adam and Eve only had eyes for God. The focus of their thoughts and hearts were ONLY to please God. God also had a desire to commune with them. He came down in the cool of the day and walked and talked with them. What an incredible time it must have been. Adam and Eve were the capstone of God’s creation. From Day 1 of creation He was thinking of them and displaying His love for them in every creative act. Why else would God create such a wide range of color when he created light? When he created the plants, why did God create such diversity in the flowers and foliage? It certainly wasn’t because He needed it. These were all expressions of God’s love for Adam and Eve, and for all of us as humans. He thought of every little detail that would make this earth the PERFECT place for us to live. Then He went one step further, He created a particularly special place, the Garden of Eden. In His deep love for man, He took man and placed Him in that absolutely perfect environment. And then, to top it off, every chance He could, He came down to enjoy and cultivate the relationship for which He created them for. God’s Purpose Remember the beautiful words of Ps 23? “He makes me to lie down in GREEEN pastures. He leads me beside STILL waters. He restores my soul…” This is the picture I get of the Garden of Eden. But, it was NOT God’s desire for this to only be enjoyed in the Garden of Eden. No, this love that He displayed in creation and in the Garden of Eden is the same love that He has towards us TODAY! He still desires to make us to lie down in green pastures for our souls! He still desires to, and DOES lead us beside still waters for our soul! Our problem is we no longer “only have eyes for God” as Adam and Eve did in the Garden. We fill our lives with so many other things. God no longer has our undivided attention. The focus of our thoughts and hearts are no longer ONLY to please God. Therefore we can’t recognize God’s green pastures and still waters for our souls. We only see the storms and thistles of this physical life and we can’t see past them to see the beauty of what God wants to do on the inside. God’s green pastures are not physical, God’s still waters don’t flow on this natural ground, they are on the inside and they come from the peace that passes understanding which will keep your heart secure in Christ (Phil 4:7). As you meditate on the incredible love relationship God displayed to man in creation, may it bring God’s peace, the peace that passes understanding, to your soul. May you find it to be green pastures and still waters as you learn to rest in Him.
Communion with God
I recently listened to an old audio message given by AW Tozer quite a few years ago. His message was about the Omnipresence of God. He said that we often pray for God’s presence in a particular place, or ask for God to be near us, etc. The fact is God is always near. Then why do we so often FEEL he is distant. Tozer said it is because God can only commune with that which is of His nature. God created us in His image. In 2 Peter 1:4 it says, we are partakers of His divine nature. It is that image and that nature with which God can have fellowship and communion with. When we act independent of His nature and image, that is when we FEEL distant from Him. He has not left, He is still with us, but because we are not acting in accordance to the image of which we were created, God’s nature cannot have fellowship with flesh! Robin and I just started reading the book “Practicing the Presence of God” together this morning. It’s interesting how Tozer’s comments here agree with what Brother Lawrence was living out so many years ago. Here are a few thoughts from the first “conversation.” Brother Lawrence insisted that, to be constantly aware of God’s presence, it is necessary to form the habit of continually talking with Him throughout each day. The dear brother remarked that we must give ourselves totally to God in both temporal and spiritual affairs. Our only happiness should come from doing God’s will, whether it brings us some pain or great pleasure. To succeed in giving ourselves to God as much as He desires, we must constantly guard our souls. In addition to being involved in spiritual matters, the soul is involved in the things of this world. However, when we turn our backs on Him, exposing our souls to the world, He will not so easily answer our call. When we are willing to accept God’s help and guard our souls according to His desires, we may commune with Him whenever we like. Isn’t that interesting. “When we turn our backs on him and expose ourselves to the world…” communion is difficult. That’s exactly what Tozer was saying. Because it is only His nature and image within us that can commune with God, when we are living in the flesh and following after the things of the world, commune with Him is going to be stunted. On the other hand, when we seek after godliness as defined by JF Strombeck a number of emails ago (Only that which takes God into account vs. ungodliness being; Anything that God cannot bless… anything not according to God’s nature and image), we may commune with Him whenever we want.” So, all that to say that even the very basic exercise of fellowship and communion with God requires an attitude of Not I But Christ. It’s His life within us, and the nature and image of God within us that allows us to fellowship and commune with God. Let’s continue to foster and cultivate the attitude and perspective of “Not I that lives, but Christ who lives in me.!” Let’s pray for each other as we continue to walk along in this journey. David Watters