Moses - What is that in your hand?

"Now go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh. You must lead My people Israel out of Egypt."  

                                                                              Exodus 3:10   NLT 

'You have got to be joking!' I can hear Moses saying to God. I mean, one minute he had been minding his own business tending to his sheep, the next, a burning bush that spoke and then, to finish it off, a commission to go to Pharaoh and ask him to release the Israelites. Can you imagine if that had happened to you? Absolutely bizarre! However, God was serious about it. Moses was His man for the job.

From thereon, Moses came out with all the excuses he could think of: 'Who am I, I'm just a murderer?' 'I'm inadequate, I can't speak properly because I get tongue-tied'. 'Lord, send someone else - PLEASE!' 'But God said, 'Nope, you're going.'  God then asked Him, 'What is that in your hand?' Moses replied that it was his staff, so God went on to to describe certain signs of power with the staff that Moses could perform to show Pharaoh that the God he served was, who He said He was - I Am.

Today, it would probably be equivalent to going to Kim Jong-Un, the leader in North Korea and asking that he release all of the prisoners there. What kind of reception do you think you would get? Now you know how Moses must have felt about this task. It was a natural thing for Moses to feel this way; let us not forget that he had murdered an Egyptian there around about 50 years earlier, now at the age of 80, it could be certain death if anyone recognised him.

Moses was pushing his luck here because God started to become angry V14, with his hesitations but to relieve Moses’ anxieties, God told him that he could take his brother Aaron with him to speak on his behalf.

Sometimes God uses ordinary things to perform extraordinary tasks. What could you place in God's hand so He could help you to perform great things? How about your voice, could you preach the Word in church, on street corners or in rallies? What about placing your pen in God's hand so that He could help you become an anointed writer or poet? You could give Him your guitar, violin, saxophone or any other instrument so that He could open the door for you to become a great musician or writer. You may be good with carpentry, bricklaying or any other thing. Placed in God''s hand, He could open wide the necessary doors for this to happen. Just think, He may be calling you to be a Pastor, Vicar or an Evangelist, you just need to place this in God's hand and let Him do the rest. 

Don't ever be scared of what God is leading you into - apprehensive yes, but not in fear. What God has for you is tremendously exciting, the sort of experience that will give you a great buzz. Don't miss out on it at all.

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

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Moses - You are standing on Holy Ground!

"Why isn't that bush burning up? I must go see it."  Exodus 3:3   NLT 

In very hot and dry climates such as deserts and heaths, it is not unusual for fires to break out. If not dealt with early, they can spread rapidly causing devastation. This has been seen in certain parts of the world these past few weeks. This is what Moses encountered when he was tending his flock in the wilderness, under Mount Sinai - the mountain of the Lord. Suddenly he noticed a bush on fire. He had seen many of these in his walks through the land, however, this one was different. It wasn't burning up, therefore, he decided that he must take a look. As he approached the bush, God's voice called to him from within the flames. 'Do not come any closer,' the LORD warned, 'Take of your sandals for you are standing on holy ground' v5.

In theological terms, this is called a Theophany, an appearance of God or a god - to a human being. A divine manifestation. Theo indicates God. 

Moses complied with God's command and took off his sandals and covered his face. God is our friend but He is also our Sovereign Lord. We need to show Him respect. Sometimes we can take our worship of God in a disrespectful way, approaching His throne casually, such as when we take communion or give our tithes and offerings. We would never dream of doing this if we were in front of the King at Buckingham Palace, we would show him our total respect, then why not when we approach the King of kings. As I have said, He calls us His friend but this does not mean we can take Him for granted. The place we visit is holy ground too. We need to remember this. In my opinion, I consider it a lack of respect to walk around drinking a mug of tea or coffee when the service is taking place as happens in a lot of modern churches these days. As I say, this is my opinion and I consider the whole of a Christian service to be on holy ground and respect is required.

I love what Dwight L Moody said about Moses, 'Moses spent 40 years in Egypt thinking he was a somebody; 40 years in in the wilderness learning he was a nobody and, another 40 years seeing what God can do with a nobody.' I like this, we can sometimes believe that we are a somebody but God can quickly humble us to realise that we are a nobody. But once we have accepted this, it is amazing what God can do with a nobody, and that can mean you and I. Once we totally surrender to God and realise that with Him, we are always standing on holy ground, He can perform miracles in our lives. I want Him to do that for you and I, because then we can begin to get on with the task He has in mind. For Moses, it was a return to Egypt.

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

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Mose - What is in your past?

"After looking in all directions to make sure no one was watching, Moses killed the Egyptian and hid the body in the sand."   Exodus 2:12   NLT 

As a baby, Moses had been brought up by Pharaoh's daughter. She had found him floating in a basket on the water. His mother had placed him there because, as a Hebrew baby, his life was at risk. As years went on, Moses became quite a prominent figure in Pharaoh's kingdom. That is until, he murdered someone. He had been walking along when he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew brother and he intervened and killed the Egyptian and buried him in the sand. Eventually, news of this came to Pharaoh and Moses had to run to save his own life.

Now there are two ways of looking at this (1) Was this murder? The Law hadn't been put into place yet, not until the the Commandments were made, so Moses was not under God's Law. However, he may well have been guilty under Egyptian law. Whatever, Moses considered it dangerous to remain there. (2) Even though the Law hadn't been put into place, God no doubt would have frowned on murder. But was this part of God's great plan to bring the Israelites out to Freedom? It's open to debate and, I favour this  because of the terrible abuse that the Israelites were suffering. Was this the beginning of God's judgement on Egypt?

Some years ago capitol punishment was the price for murder in the UK. This was usually hanging by the neck. Today, offenders are given life and if they are released after a certain time, they are on licence for the rest of their life, as are all Schedule One Offenders. Forty years ago, I watched a documentary about a British man who had committed murder, been released after 15 years or so and after a short time, became a vicar. I was amazed at first and being a younger Christian I found this hard to understand. He had taken someone's life but was now a man of the cloth. How could this be? As I watched the program, I saw that he had become a Christian in prison and studied theology and became ordained. I suddenly realised that, God is a forgiving God and this man had dedicated his life to working with ex-prisoners helping them rehabilitate - this was his church. I thought that if God could forgive and use Moses in His work, then He could use this guy, who had repented and asked the family of the deceased for forgiveness too. 

God works in ways that we can't understand at times. People must have felt this about Moses - a murderer and now a great leader in God's army as we will see. But, as I leave you today, whatever your past has been like, God has swept the sin away. There may be certain rules of law still to adhere to if you're on licence from prison, but in God's eyes, you are now forgiven, no matter what people may think. Yes, it sounds controversial to some people but, not to God.

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

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What are your coping skills like?

"But his brothers hated Joseph because their father loved him more than the rest of them. They couldn't say a kind word to him."   Genesis 37:4   NLT

Favouritism is one of the main  problems in many families today. When a parent has 'a favourite', it allows hatred and jealousy to begin. This is why God has no favourites, we are all equal to Him, 'For God does not show favouritism' Roman 2:11. This was the root of all of the issues between Joseph and his brothers, and it grew into considering murdering him.

As a youngster Joseph was overconfident and discussed how his dreams showed he would one day rule over them all. It may have been better for Joseph to be more tactful and keep this to himself, but he was young and went ahead. This only added to his problems. When we look at the bigger picture, it is easy to see why the brothers turned against Joseph. He would tell tales about them and brag about things to them, especially with his precious coat. But the main culprit of all of this was, Jacob. His parenting skills were practically zilch. But Joseph had been forced into this lifestyle and it must have been upsetting to have his brothers turn against him. However, Joseph had something within him - God Himself. He helped Joseph contend with all of the taunts from his brothers, and eventually being sold into slavery. All this this was a learning curve for this young man. He knew God loved Him and he decided that he would put Him first in his life. And because of this, he prospered and was shown favour in all he did.

Joseph suffered betrayal and was deserted by his family; he was exposed to sexual temptation and even though he declined this, he was accused of attempted rape and thrown into prison. He endured a long prison sentence and was forgotten by those he had helped. God was with him every inch of the way and, Joseph was faithful to Him and everyone he met knew he was a Godly man. He was able to cope with everything because, his hope was in God. With every negative thing that came his way, he matched it with a positive and eventually, God brought him to the attention of Pharaoh, where he was made the Prime Minister of the land. Joseph rose in power and was known for his personal integrity. Think about it for a moment, there was nothing Joseph could do to free himself, he was snookered, therefore he put all of this work into God hands. And he received blessing

You may have been going through some difficult times lately but, what matters is not so much the events or the circumstances but your response to them. With God on your side any situation can be fruitful and full of success. With God on your side any situation can be used for good even though it is intended for evil.

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

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Sleepless Nights

"So don't worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today's trouble is enough for today."     Matthew 6:34   NLT 

Did you get that last bit? 'Today's trouble is enough for today.' This is all that we can contend with. We can't change the past, it's already happened and can't be any different; and tomorrow, hasn't even happened yet. You don't know how it is going to pan out, what is the point of worrying about something that may or may not, happen? Anyway, the majority of the things that we worry about never come to anything.

Every time we worry, we forget who is in charge - Jesus and He, told us not to worry (Matt 6:31). It is fear and as Bob Gass used to say in his acronym, it's 'False Evidence Appearing Real' and this is the conclusion of believing the lies of the devil. If you have made Jesus Christ the Lord of your life, then He is in the driving seat and He is the best rally driver of all, negotiating around every obstacle in the way. So trust Him.

What are your worries? Can they be changed? Are they important enough to lie awake all night worrying about them? Someone said, 'Planning for tomorrow is time well spent; worrying about tomorrow is time wasted.' And it is true, we need to make plans for tomorrow otherwise nothing will get done, but, we don't have to worry about it. When we plan and prepare for tomorrow carefully, we alleviate all worry. But when we allow it, worrying interferes with our plans bringing doubts on what we are planning to do, and introducing fear to everything.

Worrying about whether you have enough money to live on, is not going to pay the bills. But, allowing God to take the lead, will. His Word says, 'Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need' (Matt 6:33). Now, watch this, worrying about this fact means you're calling God a liar. Why? Because you have listened to the lies of the devil. You may have read this verse, believed it, but at that moment, the devil stole the truth from you. How did He steal it? Because you let him.

The God who created the earth and gave you life can be trusted to keep you safe. He doesn't want you worrying all night. Admit it, sometimes you are so tired that you can't even think, so, this allows the devil to think for you and that is always a bad choice. Yes, we have to make plans about tomorrow but, do them carefully including God in the planning, and as you close your eyes to go to sleep, cast all your cares on Jesus because He is very interested. Read 1 Peter 5:7 and take it on board.

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

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Then, Now and the Future

"In that day, everyone in the land of Judah will sing this song: Our city is strong! We are surrounded by the walls of God's salvation. 2 Open the gates to all who are righteous; allow the faithful to enter. 3 You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on You."    Isaiah 26:1-3   NLT

THEN

Isaiah's prophecy was saying that when God moves, there will be a mighty praising for the deliverance He has given God's people. He has delivered them out of darkness and the hands of their enemy and given them freedom. He has pulled down strongholds and He is creating a strong city with Him in control, not some pagan king. Return to His everlasting arms and witness what He can do for you - how He will bless you.

NOW

Now this applies to us as well. The ambitions of selfish sinners will crumble but, the LORD Himself is an everlasting rock (Trust in the LORD always, for the LORD GOD is the eternal rock) v4. He has given us a song and something to sing about. His city is strong with His wall built completely around us guarded by His angels. It is impenetrable yet, all those who call on Him will be allowed to enter and be saved (Romans 10:13). Perfect peace will reign within our hearts instead of confusion and turmoil when, our thoughts are fixed on Him - permanently.

This is a perfect description of heaven and how God wants us to be. There were times in our life when we dwelt in the (THEN) category and be brutally honest, where did it get us - nowhere except of course, heartache and embarrassment. Some of us had strayed off the narrow road and, even more didn't know what the narrow road was and perhaps we were too proud to ask or accept the offer of help. But God has a way of changing lives and situations and this was you. You may not realise it but, you have never been as blessed as you are now. Why, because the Saviour of the world, Jesus Himself, has saved you. And (NOW) you have something to look forward to. You could have died all those years ago and missed all of this, but you are alive and well and have eternity to look forward to. The ROCK is going to make you roll when you get to heaven but until then it's still time to roll and have a ball with Jesus.

FUTURE

You are part of that perfect description of heaven. You have a future. You have been to the University of Jesus Christ and have passed with full honours and wow, does He have a wonderful surprise for you when you step into His arms. You are the blessed of the LORD.

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

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He's always there for me.

"In my distress, I called upon the LORD, and cried out to my God; He heard my voice from His temple and my cry came before Him, even to His ears."

                                                                                             Psalm 18:6.  NKJV

David sang this song - Psalm 18 - on the day the LORD delivered him from all of his enemies, especially King Saul, who had acted terribly towards him.
In the Psalm, David laments how good the LORD has been to him, even as the closeness of death was on him, God intervened and rescued him.
It was a testimony and years later, when David was in old age, he would sing the same song, as he reflected on His life and how God had been so good to him. (2 Samuel 22).
We often give a testimony too, of how God has rescued us. It is important to do this. Firstly, it shows other people the awesome love and power of God, and secondly, it makes us feel good to talk about God, especially if someone gets saved as they listen to our words.
Verse 6 - our text today - confirms that as we call on God, He hears us, our cry reaches His throne and He actions this request: 'He bowed the heavens also and came down.' (Psalm 18:9). 
When it is a distress call from us, an urgent need of help, He can be relied upon to help us immediately. Psalm 91:11-12, appears to inform us, that we have at least two angels assigned to us and as we call to God, we can ask Him to send these angels to protect and help us. They are our ministering angels, but note that it is God who gives them charge over our life and situation, not us. We cannot order them to do our bidding, God does that.
He may answer us and help us in other ways, but one thing is for sure, He will answer us and quickly if we're in danger. We probably all have those times that we remember when God divinely released us from certain death or sickness or injury. These are the times when we know for certain that He is there for us, watching our backs.
We all have a personal song of praise that we can sing to God, if we choose to. We don't have to be a brilliant musician or performer to get His attention this way. It's not The X factor, it is God and we all win on this show because He loves to hear the praise that we send His way.
Why not write and sing your own personal song to Him? It may not sound all that good to you, but to God, it will sound like a wonderful classic. Think back on those wonderful times that He rescued you and write Him a song or poem. You'll feel good about it and God will be overjoyed!

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

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Why not order my Daily Commentary from Amazon - Paperback or Kindle 

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