Just one will have future effect

Judges 1:6

"Adoni-bezek fled, but they pursued him and caught him and cut off his thumbs and his big toes."

Just one will have future effect

"If you sit in the Splash  Zone, you Will Get Wet!"  We made our choice to not sit in the Splash  Zone.  We had planned a long day at the park and did not want to spend the entire day wet.  In our younger days, we arrived at these shows early enough to get prime seats in the wet zone.  Some people buy and wear protective gear to lessen the effect of all that splash.

The Israelites were beginning their conquest of the Promised Land. Part of the plan was to eliminate the current inhabitants.  King Adon-bezek thought he could outrun the plan of the Lord.  When he was captured and punishment administered, he reflected on his life.  He'd done the same to 70 other kings.

This episode reminds me of the law of cause and effect.  There will be consequences to my actions.  I chose how I act.  The Splash Zone reminds that too often  I try to see how close I can get to the danger with minimal effect.  In today's world we are tempted to come a little closer... just have one donut today, just skip one day of exercise, just skip one day of devotional reading. 

It may seem like "just one" doesn't matter in the long run, but toes and thumbs are really important to a normal life.  I may not like the look of my big toes but when one toe is in pain, walking is extremely difficult. Amazing how such a small, insufficient digit can affect my navigation through life. 

I thought about skipping this verse.  It would just be one  day.  I made up this challenge.  But thumbs and toes remind me:

Just one will have future effect.

Now I have to decide if I'm eating that donut that came out of my freezer.

Be A Wonderful Leader For Others

Joshua 1:6

"Be strong and brave for you will be a wonderful leader of My people and they shall conquer all the land I promised to their ancestors." New Living Bible 

Be  a wonderful leader for others.

"She's surveying her domain."  This little dog thinks she's the pack leader.  She tells us (me and the other two dogs) when to get up and when to eat.   She defends her yard, behind the safety of the fence, from other dogs, humans and squirrels.  We call her the "feisty badger" because she fights back when the other two dogs pick on her. 

Why does this pint size dog believe she is the leader? 

§  She is persistent ( I actually call her annoying.  She will not give up.) 

§  She is confident. (Why else would she bark at the dog who outweighs her by ten times?)

§  She trusts in the authority of her human, Dick.  (When she feels unsafe, she wedges herself between him and the arm of the chair.  Only in that position will she allow him to be her protector.)

§  She believes her leadership will benefit her family.

Moses had died.  Joshua was the appointed leader.  He was to lead the conquest of the Promised Land.  This was it, the ultimate mission.  I imagine Joshua looking toward the long awaited home of  his people.  It had been a journey of many generations.  Perhaps he was overwhelmed or too excited to think.  There were still unknowns, still people to drive away, battles to win, giants to defeat.

God tells him to be strong and brave.  Logical words.  The surprise words in this verse were "you will be a wonderful leader."  Joshua may have had some human doubts but God tells him he will be a wonderful leader.  Those words would motivate me! 

God has given each of us our own little "pack" of people to influence.  We are left here with a mission to be a wonderful leader.  Where are we leading these people?  To God and His saving grace.  Aren't we glad God delivered and delivers us?  We tell others so they can join us.

To be that "wonderful leader"  I will

§  be persistent, in a non-annoying way

§  be confident, because God believes in me

§  trust the Creator of the Universe and My Deliverer (Why would I come up with a better  plan than God?)

§  benefit others, not just myself.(That's what will separate me from the world. Others will benefit, not just me.)

When,Where, Who, What,Why,Trust

Deuteronomy 1:6

"It was 40 years ago, at Mount Horeb, that Jehovah our God told us "You have stayed long enough."

"That's me."  The older man positioned me in front of the old photograph.  It was an evening in October of 1974.  It was "meet the family night."  I was newly engaged. My future mother-in-law planned a family dinner to get acquainted.  The most vivid memory of the evening was my husband's paternal grandfather.  I'd heard the stories of his youthful athletics, his job as a candy maker, his love for large dogs and how he led the men of the family into spirited, loud discussions on trivial subjects (that evening the discussion centered on the best clam chowder).

This night I learned about the character of Sipe men.  Grandma and Grandpa had recently changed their living arrangements.  They'd been living apart and hadn't seen each other for a few weeks.  Both were polite and interested in meeting me but they had "eyes for each other." They spent most of the evening on the couch holding hands and talking.

The character of a Sipe man, which I learned that night and saw demonstrated through the men who followed Fred Sipe, is that he thinks his wife is the  most important woman to walk the face of the earth.  Throughout my forty plus years with a Sipe man, I have never doubted that I am loved.  My husband learned it from his father who learned it from his father.

The sixth verse of Deuteronomy should please English teachers. It has the classic format of "When, Where, Who, What, Why."  It's the opening of Moses' speech to the Israelites.  Reflecting on the past is helpful before a time of change or beginning of a journey.  Moses prepares the people for the next season of their journey with a history lesson.  The purpose of the recounting of historical facts was to assure the people of God's deliverance, leading and love.  God was faithful in the past, He would be with them in their next season.

Deuteronomy is one of my favorite books.  It reminds me of the foundation of my relationship with God.  God loves me.  It's amazing to me that God puts up with the Israelites whining, complaining, doubting and disobeying (characteristics I too often display).  For reasons only God knows, He chose the Israelites and "only has eyes for them". 

What response should come from the Israelites?  And from me?  Trust.  God has been with me in my past journey( history and His character have shown me) and He will be with me, and you, in the future. 

As the challenges of my life come, my assurance rests in

When

Where

Who

What

Why

Trust

Counting Builds My Faith in God

Numbers 1:6

"from the tribe of Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai;"

"Gather around behind us and look like a large group."  We were in an overseas country dealing with an airline.  Apparently the airline was not going to honor the tickets I held in my hand.  The other co-leader and I hadn't been able to secure our passage so we decided to  show our numbers.  We thought 16 women would be intimidating, a force to be reckoned, or at least convincing.

It didn't work.  After presenting our case to yet another supervisor, I turned to leave the counter and looked at our "force".  I saw 14 women who'd been traveling for 10 days, up since before dawn and one-third of the "force" spending most of their time ill in the facilities.

God did not leave us alone in that faraway land.  Our ragged group  needed two days of relaxation at our travel agent's expense!.  We enjoyed the hospitality of the locale.

When I made up my challenge of "The Sixes"  Numbers 1:6 was my concern.  After all Numbers is notorious for boring reading.  Most Bible readers skip or at least skim through the first half off the book.  It's name says it all.  It's about numbers!

I read the context of the verse.  The Lord had  instructed Moses to take a census of the available men to fight a war and He named the men who were to assist with the counting.  Shelumiel would represent the tribe of Simeon.

God didn't need the count.  He knew exactly how many fighting men were available and the number of the hairs on each of their heads.  The people needed to know God had a plan.  God knows sometimes numbers will help us trust Him more.  Too often we trust in the numbers when we need to remember that it's God in whom we trust.  He will use the numbers to accomplish His plan.

Rather than put my trust in the number of ideas, options, people or dollars I possess, I should trust in the number of times God has delivered in the past, the countless blessings present each day and the eternal promises God will fulfill in the future.

Counting

Builds

My

Faith

in

God

Sacrifice Pride for a Fuller Ministry

Leviticus 1:6

"Then the priests will skin the animal and quarter it."  The New Living Bible

Our friend, the professional painter, was very gracious after he prepped the bathroom wall.  He didn't judge my work.  He did what is his expertise.

I was creating my she-sanctuary bathroom.  I wanted it to be all mine.  After weeks of sanding wallpaper glue, my husband reached out to our friend.  My husband knew I needed help in the form of a professional.  He knew my pride would drastically slow the completion of the makeover.

(In addition, I'm a terrible painter.  My friends put me in charge of procurement on our makeover projects.   I get sent out for food and supplies when I get near a paintbrush! What made  me think I could do this on my own?  The Lord provided a friend, who loves to  paint, the week I scheduled to paint my she-sanctuary bathroom.  Thanks Dawn.)

I thought of my pride in my project when I read the sixth verse of Leviticus.  This verse is part of the  instructions for sacrifice, something our modern brains really can't comprehend.  Today I relate the sacrificial instruction to my ministry. 

The instructions include criteria for choosing the animal, the purpose of the sacrifice, the completion of the sacrifice and distribution of the sacrifice.

Those priests worked with the  animal sacrifices on a daily basis.  They knew what to do.  Why would the individual on an annual visit to the temple try to handle it?

In spiritual matters, there are  plenty of people with more experience and expertise than me.  Do I go to them for advise and/or assistance? 

Some of my ministry is an offering of thanks to God.  Some of what I do is offering to do for God, to be a witness or servant to others.  This verse reminds me my ministry can't be about pride.  I don't own my ministry.  It's an opportunity from God to experience a fuller life.  It's my opportunity to know and depend on  God. My pride will diminish the benefit.

Sacrifice

Pride

For

A

Fuller

Ministry

God's Plan is Greater Than Generations

Exodus 1:6 "In due season Joseph and each of his brothers died, ending that generation."  The New Living Bible.

God's

Plan

Is

Greater

Than

Generations

"Ah, Pink?"  My wrist snapped and the thimble of water emptied on my friend's face.  I was teaching new friends a family game of "Colors."  My great aunts (the Loves) taught me the game as a small child. 

Exodus 1:6 may seem like an ending but it has promise.  The next verse in many translations starts with a "but" or "meanwhile".  God has lots more to teach the Israelites, after all Exodus is at the beginning of the Bible.

Too often we judge His work and plan through the restriction of our understanding of time. We become discouraged when we think God doesn't deliver when we think it's time.  But God is greater than time.  He invented time.  My favorite word in this verse and in this translation is due.  "Due" tells me to relax.  God has a Plan.  There is a timeline in His Hands.  God is in Control, despite the way it looks to me.

I'm sure of one aspect of God's Plan.  It's Love,  showing His Love to me, and you, and teaching me to love.  (My branch of the Love Family has ended on earth but God's Love will continue through and past all generations.)

The Sixes - Genesis

Genesis 1:6

I'm celebrating today!  Yesterday I accomplished a goal.  I fulfilled a challenge of posting a Lenten thought for 40 days.  I'm not sure I've ever fulfilled a goal for Lent.

I enjoyed it.  Each night I looked up the next word and "slept" on it.  I was eager to arise in the morning and post my little "aha" thought.  So I've been searching for another similar challenge.

A writer website issued a 6 word memoir challenge to become a precise writer.   I believe the Bible to have daily wisdom for me, and you, in each and every verse.  So I've designed a new quest... a 6 word learning from the 6th verse of each of the 66 books of the Bible.  It will be "Sixes gone wild!" or "Sixes go wise!"

Feel free to join me on my quest!  Leave a comment or post your 6 word thought for the day.

Day 1 - Genesis 1:6

"And God said, " Let the vapors separate to form the sky above and the ocean below." The Living Bible

God's 

Creation 

is 

Deep 

and 

Wide.

In a sense on the second day of creation, God created Up and Down, Sky and Ocean.  In my world of Ups and Downs, I need a God whose love for me, and you,  is Deep and Wide.