“I have planned this in order to display my glory through Pharaoh and his whole army. After this the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord!” (Exodus 14:4)

February 1, 2012

God led the Israelites into an apparent trap against the Red Sea to lure Pharaoh out. The Israelites were terrified. Would God allow us to experience difficulty in order to display His glory, so that others would know Him?

“You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it” (Matthew 21:22)

January 31, 2012

The currency of the Kingdom is asking. A child holds out her hand for food asking and a mother gives willingly. Children are experts at asking. Adults forget how to ask. And they forget how to pray. What are you asking God for today?

“Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant” (Matthew 20:26)

January 30, 2012

Jesus taught the disciples the principle of servant-leadership. This kind of leader leads from the front, not the rear. This father does what he says. This mother models what she teaches. This manager helps others get promoted. This pastor isn’t working a job, but lives out a life-calling.

“I have spared you for a purpose—to show you my power and to spread my fame throughout the earth” (Exodus 9:16)

January 29, 2012

Don’t harden your heart like Pharaoh. Yield your life to God and join Him in His purpose. Be a witness to His glory. Join the movement to make His Name famous throughout the earth. What movement? The Church of course.

“Jesus replied, ‘Moses permitted divorce only as a concession to your hard hearts, but it was not what God had originally intended'” (Matthew 19:8)

January 28, 2012

National statistics show that Christians are now just as likely to be divorced as non-believers. This shows the disconnect between our faith and our faithfulness. Should Christians suffer from “hardened hearts?” (As it turns out, this statistic was reported in error. Recent book by Shaunti Feldhahn, “Good News About Marriage”)

“Who makes a person’s mouth? Who decides whether people speak or do not speak, hear or do not hear, see or do not see? Is it not I, the Lord?” (Exodus 4:11)

January 27, 2012

Don’t worry about what you will say when witnessing. When we are obedient to go, He is faithful to speak through us. You are called to bear witness to what God has done for you. Open your mouth and let God speak.

“My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? Why are you so far away when I groan for help?” (Psalm 22:1)

January 26, 2012

A Davidic psalm that described the torturous death of crucifixion centuries before it was used. These are the very words that Jesus spoke from the cross. He took our death, so we might receive life. He was forsaken, that we might be brought near and cry out “Abba!”

“His mother brought him back to Pharaoh’s daughter, who adopted him as her own son. The princess named him Moses” (Exodus 2:10)

January 25, 2012

Rather than abort him, Moses’ mother gave her son up to adoption. Both Moses and Jesus were supposed to be killed as infants by the king’s command. Thankfully their parents feared God more than man.

“The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from his descendants, until the coming of the one to whom it belongs, the one whom all nations will honor” (Genesis 49:10)

January 24, 2012

Jacob’s prophecy over Judah is Messianic, pointing to the Lion of Judah, the Son of David, the Christ. Jesus fulfilled this prophecy and over 300 others in the OT.

“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer” (Psalm 19:14)

January 23, 2012

A great prayer to begin every day and every conversation. Lord, guard my words and my thoughts. A prayer especially needed on a tired, dreary Monday morning.