Friday, April 20, 2012

...as numerous as the stars...

I love being outside- hearing the sounds of nature, water flowing, animals, all that fun stuff- but I especially love looking at the stars.  If I could sleep under the starts every night, I totally would. I am trying to figure out if I can rig up a hammock for the summer somewhere and potentially sleep there some nights.  Anyway...


As I was laying under the stars tonight in my backyard I was reminded of God's promise to Abraham in Genesis 26:4:


I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these  lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed.


Around my house there is a lot of light pollution and you really cannot see all that many stars.  You can see some- but I remember how amazed I was the first time I went out into the middle of nowhere and looked up.  All I could say was "Have those always been there?!  There are SO many!".  Imagine how many stars Abraham looked up and saw in the sky at a time where the most light pollution was a torch of candle... billions!  


The stars were uncountable and symbolized the blessing that Abraham received for his faith.  In the same sense as I looked up- I realized how God calls me to the same faith as Abraham- faith in Him.  He promises equally as numerous blessings, however with the other things that get in the way (i.e. light pollution literally) I am sometimes unable to see the fullness of his promises.  I let the busyness of life- whether work, study, trying to meet up with way more people/organizations/meetings than I have time for, appointments, etc- block out some of the blessings God wants me to see.  It is not that He doesn't want to bless me with them because the stars are still there-  I am just unaware because other things get in the way.


My prayer is to get rid of some of the light pollution in my life!

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Daily Menu

John 4:32-36
" But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
  Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”
  “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.  Do you not say, ‘Four months more and then the harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.  Even now the reaper draws his wages, even now he harvests the crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. "


This has been standing out to me as I have been thinking on fasting and living in the spirit versus the flesh...


The only food I need is
1.  doing the will of God
2.  finishing his work


Thats it... it is that simple... It is not about the fancy spices and all that jazz... its about embracing the manna and not desiring the food of the Egyptians who we have been freed from (Exodus/Numbers) - the clutches of sin that we have already been freed from... moving from earthly to heavenly.