1-5-11

I'm not behind on my reading but a little behind on my blog. However, I will catch up by the end of the week.

For right now I will share on Genesis 12

God calls Abram

This chapter is about God's call on our life and how we choose to respond to it. First we must know if it's God calling or not. Well, if we follow this chapter we know that when God calls its;

1 - Person to person.
2 - Clear direction
3 - A Powerful Command
4 - There is an awesome promise
5 - There is instant change

If you receive a call and there is no promise with it it most likely isn't God. There will always be a promise. God doesn't say there won't be hardship or difficulty but He will give us a promise.
When God told Abram to pack up and leave his country and go to one he didn't know he was 75 years old. As any of you know who have moved it's not any easy process. It's always hard to go forward with out looking back. And especially hard when we are going somewhere you have never been or that is strange to you. Abram was not only leaving his family but his comfort zone. He has lived there 75 years. That is almost a lifetime to most of us. Most people I know that are 60 or over are very set in their ways. He had to move to a strange country, different culture, different languages. But Abram obeyed! But God gave him a promise. He told him he would bless him, give him a son, and that he would be the father of many nations.

When God calls us to do something it may be strange, difficult, or hard but we must focus on the promise that He gives us. It may not be instantaneous, after all Abram waited some 20 years for the promise to take place, but we can rest assure that God WILL come through.

The Stones

Joshua 4

The Stones

This is the chapter that talks about the stones. After God dried up the Jordan and Israel crossed Joshua was instructed by the Lord to pick up 12 stones. One stone for the 12 tribes of Israel. They picked them up and set up a monument.
So...why?
Well, the stones were to remind them of what God had done. So, generations after Joshua was gone the Israelites could remember that the mighty hand of God was with them. So, during the difficult times, the hard times when it would seem God was not doing anything they could look back and remember that God was in there midst.
It's so important that we reflect on what God has done in our lives. The enemy certainly loves to remind us of what he has done in our lives. The enemy works hard to make us live in regret and shame. But when we focus on what God has done it overpowers that! The big miracles are not everyday but those mountain top experiences are to help us when we are in the valleys. We can look back and remind ourselves that God is for us, with us, and most importantly that He is HERE!

Let us reflect on what God has done, what He is doing, and what He will do! That is how we keep our thoughts heavenward ☺