Scripture:
Deuteronomy 11:18-21
“Therefore you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall teach them to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land of which the LORD swore to your fathers to give them, like the days of the heavens above the earth.

"Mezuzah" a practice that Jews have passed down from generation to generation, to this day the Jewish people still put the Torah in a scroll on their doorposts. The piece they wear on their heads is called "Tefillah shel rosh," which usually contains the "Shema," which is the greatest commandment. As you can see, the people of God took this seriously.

We have this obligation to get the word of God into us, one that it may change, transform us, that would give the life it is intended to produce, then we are to pass it on, to our children, our families, the people of our city, of our influence.

Something you should catch is the closing of verse 21, that your obedience to get the word in you to share it, to allow it to produce fruit in your life, will literally add life to you, extend your life, that is the promise.

To have real life, we must get the word of God into us; in His word we find life, and that life is to be shared with all that we know. The promise, in turn, is that we would have life and it more abundantly

Lord, I thank you for your word that as it gets into us, it has the power to change us. Help us to get it into our hearts, that out of the overflow our mouths would speak, that we would be obedient to its leading, and that life would go well as a result, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Deuteronomy 8:2

2 Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.

"To Know What Was In Your Heart"

As parents, we observe a lot, we watch our children, we observe the things we like and the things we don't.  We allow our children to make mistakes, and we use some of these opportunities to redirect them, to test them.   You can see that God is a Good Father. In this portion today, He says that He led them through the wilderness to humble and test them and to know what was in their hearts.   See, He knows what is best for us, knows the way that is best for us. If they had stepped into the promised land too early, they would have abandoned Him; they would have strayed away. He was shaping them, molding them, showing them that they could rely on Him for everything. He was a covering by day, a light by night. He was their supply; their shoes/clothes lasted for forty years.  Nothing they needed did they lack.

He wants to know what is in our hearts, will we trust Him through the good, the bad, and the ugly, will He always be our supply, our Father, our trust, will we always rely on Him, can He take us in? Will we be loyal, will we seek Him?   The application here is to make Him Lord of your Life.

Lord, I thank you that you care not just about my wants but what I need, you direct my life, you lead us into paths of righteousness, into the good places, you do whatever it takes to get us there and sometimes that takes some directing, thank you for that, thank you that you love me enough to push me into places I would not have reached without you, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Numbers 36:8

8 And every daughter who possesses an inheritance in any tribe of the children of Israel shall be the wife of one of the family of her father’s tribe, so that the children of Israel each may possess the inheritance of his fathers.

Today in the scriptures, we find something so significant, so important. As we read about the distribution of inheritance, we might tend to read this chapter and think dear Lord, what should I get from this, but that is because we tend to overlook the little things, even the important ones.  In this portion, the tribe of Manasseh, Zelophehad had only daughters, and they were to inherit this tribes inheritance, so they came to Moses to seek the Lord's direction, as they didn't want to lose their inheritance when the woman married, so the Lord agreed and instructed them to only marry within the tribe. 

Why does this matter?  Because it tells us that there is no matter too small to bring to the Lord, nor is there anything that the Lord can not solve or accomplish.

You can talk to the Lord, you can bring your big, your small, your impossible, your good news, your bad news, your struggles, your victories.   He can speak into any situation you face. There is nothing too big or too small that He cannot handle, just bring it to Him...  

This is who He is! 

Lord, thank you that our lives matter to you, that you want to be part of every detail, every high, every low, every victory, every struggle, everything, that there is nothing you cannot solve, nothing you cannot speak wisdom into, nothing you cannot handle.   Thank you, Lord, that you are a good, good Father, we praise you in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Numbers 33:3-4

3 They departed from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the day after the Passover the children of Israel went out with boldness in the sight of all the Egyptians. 4 For the Egyptians were burying all their firstborn, whom the Lord had killed among them. Also on their gods the Lord had executed judgments.

"Walking in Victory"

Today, in our portion, we see the people of God leaving 400 years of slavery in Egypt.   These verses are the beginning of a recap of their journey to the promised land.   When God has a plan and a purpose for your life, He will bring you into where you belong in victory.   This scripture reminds us that if the Lord purposed it, He will bring us out in Boldness, and in Victory over our enemies.

The application here is to remember that the promises and purpose that the Lord has for your life, He will accomplish it, the things that have been hindering or stalling your life He will humble, you will walk out in boldness, and walk in victory, keep pressing into Him, keep seeking Him, keep trusting Him.

Lord, we thank you for your mighty hand that is not too short to save us, to lead us to bring us into victory, that the promises that you have for our lives, the purpose you have they will come to pass, we will see the victory, we will step into your promises, because your word is good and right, thank you Lord, we pray in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Numbers 32:11-12

11 ‘Surely none of the men who came up from Egypt, from twenty years old and above, shall see the land of which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, because they have not wholly followed Me, 12 except Caleb the son of Jephunneh, the Kenizzite, and Joshua the son of Nun, for they have wholly followed the Lord.’

"Keeping My Blessing"

Joshua and Caleb, men who wholly followed the Lord, in fact, in Joshua 24:15, he makes this statement: "Choose this day whom you will serve."  See, the people of God had a choice, when the Lord sent them into the land to spy it out and see that what He said is true, that it is a land of promise, flowing with milk and honey.   "Free Will," you and I have the choice to choose Him, to choose to follow the Lord with our whole hearts, that is what Joshua 24:15 says, "But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”   Joshua said, "I choose the LORD."  I know that life starts with Him, in Him, that all the good in my life has been because of Him.  

"Follow the LORD"

Life and death lie in our choices. We can choose to live without Him, but that is not life; we can choose to live with Him, and the Bible says that is life and life more abundant.  Decide if you are going to be "ALL IN."  That is today's God Shot!

Father, I pray we always choose you, that our lives reflect your presence, your covering, that we would take you into every decision, every victory, every struggle, that you would have an "All Access" pass to our lives, and as a result, we would experience the blessed life you intended for us.  Let our ears and our hearts be attentive to your leading in Jesus' name, Amen!