Blog Archives - ADVENTURES THAT INSPIRE ACTION

ADVENTURES THAT INSPIRE ACTION

Numbers 22

4/20/2020

This is one of my favorite Old Testament accounts. After all, if God can use a donkey to speak truth to Balaam, He can certainly use me.

It has often made me wonder, though, why was God angry that Balaam went with the men, when Balaam sought God's guidance and was told to go with them. Didn't he first say no? Then God told him to go and he went? Then God was mad that he went?

Here's what I take away from that encounter - once God has said, "No" in a way that is unequivocal, do not keep asking or He may say, "Yes," and you may be sorry that He did. It reminds me of a child badgering their parent for something the parent knows is not going to turn out well. They may eventually give in and allow the child to experience the consequences. Some of us have to feel the sting to learn the lesson.

There are plenty of things that God has said "no" to in the Bible that we do not need to pray and ask His direction on. We know the answer. We may not like it, but we do know.

Numbers 21

4/19/2020

The story of the bronze serpent is not one easily explained. It's a miracle without any other explanation than God's decision to heal the Israelites who'd been bitten by venomous snakes if they would look to a bronze image of a snake set on top of a pole.

It flies in the face of His commands not to make graven images. At first glance, it might seem as if they were worshipping the image, although that isn't the case.

Perhaps the image of the snake was intended to remind them of the Garden of Eden and Adam and Eve's first sin. Perhaps it was to look forward to Christ on the cross, where all who look to Him would be saved.

Perhaps it was like many of the instructions they received in the desert, without any obvious logical or scientific explanation, simply because God said so; although I believe all the "why" questions we have will one day be perfectly clear.

I often wonder why God allows bad things to happen. Or why He chooses to intervene miraculously in one situation, but not in another. I live by faith trusting the goodness of God that I see throughout scripture is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

John 3: 13-15 "No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”

Numbers 20

4/18/2020

There is such a valuable lesson to learn from Moses and Aaron's mistake. When God calls us to a leadership role, it is absolutely critical for us to lead by following Him closely. One misstep can have serious consequences for us and for the ministry.

In Moses' and Aaron's case, the failure to follow God's instructions precisely, and the choice to elevate their own importance in the eyes of the Israelites cost them their place in the Promised Land.

We've all heard of heartbreaking stories of ministries that have been devastated because the spiritual leader allowed sin to gain a stronghold. In some cases, it is immorality that topples their life's work, but pride can be just as destructive today as it was for Moses.

If you serve in leadership, if God has gifted you with a ministry, spend time daily reminding yourself that it all belongs to God. The success and fruit of that ministry isn't yours, God has just chosen to use you to harvest His field in this season. Matthew 3:9 humbles us by saying, "And do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham."

Whether you serve in leadership in your church, your business, your school, or your home, remember that it is GOD who brings water from the rock. It is God who brings unbelievers to salvation. It is God who grants understanding in those you teach. It is God who speaks to the heart through the words He gives you to write.

For all of us, whether in leadership or not, this passage is a call for us to pray for those in leadership.

Numbers 19

4/17/2020

One of the stranger rituals described in the Old Testament is this burning of a red heifer, along with cedar, hyssop, and scarlet wool, mixing the ashes with water, and sprinkling it on tents, objects, and people to make them "clean." It definitely required a little research to better understand the practical and spiritual applications for this.

First, this was specifically for cleansing after coming into contact with a dead body. With the entire generation age twenty and up dropping in the desert over the next forty years, contact with a dead body was going to become a serious problem in the camp of more than a million people.
If they followed the normal sacrifices associated with becoming unclean, they'd be sacrificing day and night until no animals remained. So in a practical sense, this was a means to provide that cleansing for each instance without requiring individual sacrifices.

So why these particular elements? First, this sacrifice is different in that the blood is burned up with the heifer. The heifer was a direct condemnation of the Egyptian worship of Isis, in the form of a heifer. It was to have never been under the yoke because no sacrifice was acceptable if it had been used for common purposes. Sacrifices were to have been set apart. The cedar signifies the fragrance of an offering as well as looking toward the cross as the ultimate covering for sin. The hyssop was used elsewhere in rituals for cleansing and purification and the scarlet wool may represent both the stain of sin and the blood that purifies us from sin.

"For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean, how much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!" Hebrews 9:13-14

Numbers 18

4/16/2020

God set apart the Levites as a gift to the Israelites, to minister to them and to bring their offerings before God. He commanded that they would receive no inheritance in the land they would enter. Instead of having a region devoted to them as the other tribes of Israel had, they were to have cities scattered throughout Israel so that they could minister among the people. Instead of earning their living by farming or keeping flocks, they were to receive their living from the people of Israel, from the tithes and offerings they brought.

This concept has come up in our reading before, but it bears repeating. Those who serve God, who are called to teach and lead His people, are to receive their daily bread from those they serve. There are some really practical reasons for this. It meant they would not get embroiled in squabbles over land or herds or wells. It allowed their attention to be undivided. Serving bi-vocationally often results in being torn between the role that is putting food on the table, and the one to which God has called you.

But it also helps the people being served better understand their role in giving. God does not need our money. The purpose for our giving is not because God has needs that our money can meet. God owns it all and gives it to whom He chooses. It's not even for the purpose of taking care of those who serve. God is more than able to provide for those who devote themselves to His service with or without your money.

The purpose of tithes and offerings is to remind us that it is all His. We give back a portion in thanksgiving for all that He has given. We are to give generously because God has been generous with us. We are to support financially those who support us spiritually, so that they can do so without being distracted by their physical needs, and joyfully as a testimony of how God has been faithful to us.

Numbers 17

4/15/2020

Wouldn't it be nice if God showed us who our leaders should be today with a miraculous sign like a staff that budded, blossomed, and produced fruit? Whether they are political leaders, leaders in our office, or those in church leadership, I'd love to see some unmistakable confirmation that God has chosen the person to lead.

Instead, we have competition, campaigning, colluding, and conniving (I'll let you ponder how that plays out in government, the office, and the church!)

God hasn't changed. If He chose to provide a miraculous sign of his choice, He could. But He tells us in Romans that there is no authority except which He ordained. That requires us to adjust our thinking a bit. There are some authorities that we have a hard time believing are God-ordained. But God's ultimate purpose for the leaders He establishes is not our comfort or our freedom. It isn't for our prosperity or our physical health. The leaders in our church aren't established to be sure we are comfortable with the music chosen or unoffended by preaching. Our business leaders aren't established to ensure our personal financial or career goals.

Instead, God establishes leaders who He uses to grow our relationship with Him. Sometimes that is through good times and praise, but often it is through hardship and suffering that we grow the most in our faith. It's when our relationship with God is the only thing we have, that we learn it is the only thing we need.

Numbers 16

4/14/2020

Why is it such a big deal for Korah, Dothan, and Abiram to want to do the job of the priests? Why should they have to be limited in what they could do to serve simply because of the family they were born into?

It is easy to get caught up in thinking in terms of our perception of fairness, entitlement, and equality. But their mindset revealed their beliefs about who God is.

Korah, as a descendent of Kohath, had been assigned the role of caring for the Most Holy Things. His responsibility was limited in that he was not to look on the holy items or to touch them. They would be covered up when he received them and he would be responsible for transporting the pieces assigned to him, but he would never get to actually see the magnificent beauty of the solid gold pieces - the ark of the covenant, the golden altar of incense, the table with the bread of the presence, and the golden lampstand. It must have been a remarkable honor, and yet very humbling to know that you could not even peek at them.

By grumbling about not being a priest, Korah was dismissing and disdaining the place of honor that God had given him in his desire for the place given to the sons of Aaron.

That's a temptation that is common to us all! It is so easy to look at what God has given someone else and wonder why He hasn't blessed us in that exact same way (money, talent, skill, education, creativity, success, home, car, job, travel, metabolism, shoe size....and that's just my confession). We often disregard what God HAS given us and focus on what He has not.

The root of that desire is as old as the Garden of Eden. At its heart is the question of God's character and His love. Does He really have my best interests in mind? Does He really love me?

God settled the question of His love for us at the cross. No further proof needed. The fact that we exist and that He has caused us to wonder about Him, to seek Him, and to find Him are all further evidence of His love for us. His provision for our basic needs, His answers to our prayers, the peace that He gives as we fellowship with Him in prayer - these are all the overflow of His infinite grace.

As hard as it is for me to remember sometimes, everything that God has given, even my lack of vocal talent, is perfectly the way He planned it to be. I didn't miss the roll call when He was handing out musical ability. God chose, out of His love for me and knowing what would be in my very best interest for eternity, to gift me with a tin ear.

What gifts are you overlooking because you're distracted by the gift someone else received?

Numbers 15

4/13/2020

Obviously, the US is not Israel, but there is a concept in this chapter that applies to every nation in every time period: God does not favor one nationality over another.

The people of Israel were God's chosen people because of God's faithfulness to His covenant with Abraham, not because they were special in some way. We see time and again in the wilderness how they rebelled and failed to follow God as He directed. They became special because God chose them, rather than God choosing them because they were special. Any foreigners who sojourned among them were welcomed to join them and God required for those who joined them to enjoy the same rights, responsibilities, and privileges as those who were native-born.

In a similar way, the things that are special or "great" about America are the things that God has done for this nation, rather than anything unique or intrinsic to us. God has blessed America. God expects those of us who call Him Lord to follow His statutes and that includes treating those who dwell with us, whether native-born, immigrant, or visitor, with dignity and respect.

Moreover, for those in Christ, even those we would judge to be an enemy, we are commanded to win over through our love and generosity. Thinking of that as foolish, naive, or stupid is to describe God as those things and to place the ultimate value on this temporal life on earth, rather than the eternal values of our Creator.

Numbers 14

4/12/2020

One of the enemies most effective weapons against the people of God is our own doubt. God calls us to do the impossible, and the enemy points out that it's impossible. So we begin to question whether God called us to it, believe that it will be the end of us, and doubt our chances for success.

God calls us to do the impossible on purpose! The whole point of what God is calling us to do is that we cannot do it ourselves. If there was any way we could do it ourselves, it would not be from God. He isn't interested in us living mediocre lives, completing mundane tasks in our own strength, wisdom, and ability. Because when we do that, all people see is us. They look at what we've done and say, "Good job! You did great! I'm so proud of you."

What God wants to hear people say is, "There is no way on earth that YOU could have done THAT. God had to have done something miraculous for that to have happened."

With apologies to the Army slogan, God does NOT want us to "be all we can be." He wants us to be all that He can be through us.

Let that sink in for a moment. Through the Holy Spirit, the same power that uttered the Word which created the universe dwells in us. The power that brought forth life in all its glorious diversity energizes our creativity. The power that set mountains in place fills our limbs with strength. The love great enough to go to the cross on our behalf fills us with love and forgiveness for those who have wronged us.

The Israelites didn't have the Holy Spirit dwelling in them, but they had God with them. Visibly with them in the form of the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night that led them in the wilderness. Yet they missed the fact that entering the Promised Land was not dependent on their military strength, but on God's power.

What are you absolutely dependent on God to do in your life today?

Numbers 13

4/11/2020

Do you have any friends that remind you of ten of these twelve spies? Whatever God calls you to, they have about ten reasons why it isn't going to work.

But when God calls us to do something, whether it is march to the promised land, write a book, go on a mission trip, or start a business, God provides.

I've heard it put like this, "If it's God's will, it's God's bill."

I've seen it in my life and the lives of others. When I started writing and needed to go to a writer's conference to learn the craft, make connections, and eventually meet my agent and publisher, God provided a scholarship when I didn't have the funds. And because I'm organizationally challenged and never check my spam folder, He even provided for a friend to SEE that I had won the scholarship and let me know, because I missed the email notification and they were about to give it to someone else because I hadn't responded!

It is so easy for us to fall into this trap: We see what God is calling us to do. It looks so wonderful. The grapes are the size of volleyballs and sweet as honey.

But there are giants lurking. It's going to cost us something. It may involve some really difficult battles. Blood may be shed. We must never lose sight of the fact that the battle belongs to the Lord. He has given us this land, whatever that may represent for you, and He is the one who will secure it. We don't get to sit in the balcony, eating popcorn, and watching Him slay the giants, but make no mistake, when we hurl the stones, it is God who plants them to bring the giant down.