Though I did get to stay in my pajamas today thankfully it has been a productive day and now my day is ending with a date night with the Lord. Last semester I was challenged with an assignment to pick out one day that week and spend at least 2 hours with the Lord. I thought oh yes, this will be great! The day came around and I spent the morning just doing things I enjoy-sewing, watching a movie, staying in my pajamas and eating cereal. Then about three hours before I was going to meet with the Lord I thought, I want to really treat this like my date is coming over for dinner. No way would I have laundry everywhere, dirty dishes in the sink, papers lying on the floor and be looking like a slob. So I went all out, I treated this night as if I was getting ready to make dinner for the man of my dreams. I cleaned my apartment, did my hair and make up, put on a cute outfit, lit candles and had dinner with the Lord. As I was getting things ready I began to think, WOW 2 hrs. "Lord, what are we going to talk about for two hours". Then I thought well what do most couples do on a date night.... they get to know each other! This is a time I get to know God for who He says He is, not what my friends say, not what teachers have said nor what the world says. By the time two hours had rolled around and sadly I had to be some where after, I was telling the Lord " no no don't let this be over yet, I want more time with you"
Girls (and guys) I challenge you if you haven't done this before to try it. You don't have to do it the way I did, be creative!! What would you want to do on a date? How do you get to know people? I also really love the devotional by Kay Arthur "Lord I want to know you". Its a great way to get to know God by His character and what He says about Himself.
Well tonight was an amazing night with the Lord. As I have been trying to stay on track with reading through the Bible in a year, I have been asking the Lord to help me see what these stories mean. I don't want to just read Gods Word it to read it but I want to read it to be changed by it. Tonight He was faithful to meet me on my bed and have a heart to heart.
Tonight I read through Exodus 13-17 (leading Israel out of Egypt) . These are a few chapters that I feel like most people know about and it is easy to just skim through because you know the bases of the story. Well tonight the Lord had me digging through these scriptures to learn more about Him. In chapter 13 the Israelites are freed from slavery under Pharaoh and now being lead by God through Moses to the promise land. The first time I read these chapters I began to tell the Lord once again, gosh I am so like the Israelites. I grumble and complain when I know that you are leading me but how I so easily forget...I'm so annoyed!
Then the second time I read through the chapters the Lord told me stop focusing on the Israelites, learn from Moses.... YES! Learn from Moses, I don't want to be like the Israelites I want to be like Moses- obedient, faithful, patient, loving, trusting servant. So then I began to highlight everything Moses was doing and saying. Moses in these 5 chapters is not the same Moses I read of in the early chapters. In the beginning he didn't fully trust God and the Lord had to show him signs to build up his faith (ch.3), then he had to deal with Pharaoh and the plagues, and now he is leading a nation, crossing the Read Sea, trusting the Lord for substance and water in the dessert then defeating the Amalekites. AHHH how awesome is that! Moses had to learn but Moses clung to the Lord, he dwelled in the Lord and no matter how crazy the Lords commands sounded he obeyed.
Then the third time around I get deeper! Through these five chapters God is showing the Israelites who He is!! This is exciting!! God isn't just telling them of His character traits but He is saying let me show you how I am a God who is a
Protector- Exodus 13:17-18 " When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, "If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt." So God led the people around by the dessert road toward the Read Sea." Though going through the dessert was a longer route God did this because he was protecting them from harm and He knew them to know they would have turned back around!! Though the season of singleness may feel like we are wandering in the dessert with no man to be found, God is protecting us by taking us on a longer route!!
Shepherd- 13:21-22 "By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left it's place in front of the people." Never will He leave us, Never will He forsake us! The Lord protects and He leads us we just have to be obedient to follow!
Deliverer- 14:13-14" Moses answered the people, " Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still." God is fighting for them, for you and me! We have to not be afraid of our circumstances but fear the Lord. When we stand firm in Him that is when we will see deliverance today!! They Egyptians aka. our enemy- sin. The Lord delivers us from sin!! He is says He will fight for us, he will go against our enemy but we must be still in Him!
Savior- 14:30-31 " That day the Lord saved Israel from the hands of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. And when the Israelites saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in Him and in Moses his servant." The Lord saves! These people watched as the Lord destroyed their enemies....We get to watch the Lord destroy the sin that so easily in tangles us but again we have to put our trust in Him.
Redeemer- 15:13- "In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to our holy dwelling." Verses 1-18 in chapter 15 is a praise song they are singing to the Lord and I LOVE IT! The Lord not only saves us from our sin but He redeems us from our sin! He is guiding us to His dwelling place! Psalm 84- "Even the sparrow has found a home and the swallow a nest for herself where she may have her young, a place near your alter oh Lord Almighty my King and my God." May we dwell (build our home) near His alter and remind ourselves daily that God has redeemed us for His glory!!
Healer- 15:26 " He said,"If you listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees," I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you." Praise the Lord that He is a God that heals our wounds- physical, spiritual, mental or emotional.
Provider- 16:4-5 "Then the Lord said to Moses, "I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days. " We serve a God that provides for our needs and does it in ways that we have to say "It was only by God". I like this picture too because every day the Israelites had to get enough food for just that one day except for the sixth day they got two days worth. But this is how we should be treating our spiritual food from the Lord. If I'm not getting in Gods word daily, how could I possibly think that I'm not going to starve by the end of the day or the next....Matthew 4 "man does not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God"
Ahh this is what I needed to be reminded of and experience tonight! May I gather enough bread for my daily need and be still and know He is God.
Go have a date night!
love this mega! What a great reminder!...and I wanna go on a date with you. :)
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