Monday, July 11, 2011
Read: Exodus 18
Have you ever used the excuse, “I would like to spend more time with God but I just don’t have the time?” God wants to reveal Himself to us in new and exciting ways but the only catch is that we have to give Him the time.
We don’t have much reverence for many things nowadays. Some of us may not even know what that means. Reverence is defined as having deep respect for someone or something. We have come to know God as our friend and brother but we must remember that is our Lord. We are to honor him. If your favorite person came to visit would you make time to spend with him/her or would you say ‘oh um, here I have 5 minutes to see you before I go to the bathroom.’ Spending time with God is vital and a privilege.
So sure, this might mean that you will have to wake up a few minutes earlier than usual or possibly skip one of your favorite TV shows but trust me; it will totally impact your life. We have to make God our number one priority. If we’re trying to build a strong relationship with God we have to give Him more than our Sunday mornings and our prayers at dinner.
Exodus 18 talks about Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, paying Moses a visit. Moses served as judge to the people and would sit all day and all night and help others seek God’s will. Jethro flat out told Moses that what he was doing wasn’t good. They were all wasting time and because they would be standing around for hours. Moses would have to sit and judge people ALL day.
Jethro suggested that Moses appoint some capable men who were trustworthy, to be officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. These men would learn the decrees and laws and then judge the people. Moses would only have to deal with the most difficult cases. Moses followed this advice and then realized he would have more time to Worship the Lord or simply marinate in His love. Moses appreciated Jethro’s wisdom. When Moses was judging all of the people by himself, he wasn’t making proper use of his time because he could have gotten others to help him out.
In many ways, we may not use our time efficiently. Many of us have busy schedules but if our schedules become so busy that we don’t have time for God, I think we need to re-evaluate our priorities. God loves us with an unconditional love and wants us to pursue Him.
Process:
Are you spending as much time with God daily as you would like to be?
What areas in your daily life can you change so that you will be able to spend more time with God? Take some time with your cell group to discuss some ways that you can spend time with God; options that are doable and consistent and that fit you.
Monday, July 11, 2011 continued…
Read: Exodus 19
This chapter is enough to put the fear of God into any careful reader. We’ve been celebrating that Yahweh is a covenant God, and here He offers a covenant to his people. This is important for us, as we in The Salvation Army are the most covenanted people in history. Covenant is the biggest distinctive in The Army. And yet, most of us don’t really understand it.
Rob Dolby is a Salvo Warrior. He says this: “You can’t make God love you more, but you can let Him trust you more.” How? Covenant. Those people who take seriously God’s rules and commands—even when they don’t fully understand the reasons behind them all—live lives that God can trust.
How does God show his trust? With His character, with responsibilities, and with power. He doesn’t drop His name and character on anyone who chooses to use it. He doesn’t deploy just anyone on difficult missions. And He doesn’t delegate His authority and power to every Christian, or else we’d be seeing lots of dead people coming back to life, lots of deaf people hearing, and lots of blind people seeing.
He can’t trust most Christians with his power. Got it? Good. Let’s move on.
What are the terms of the covenant? The people had to commit to obeying and God promised to make them His possession, a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation.
This is serious stuff. Even though they agreed to covenant, it didn’t mean that the people and God were buddy buddy. There were strict restrictions to handle with care. Otherwise, they’d break their covenant.
Process:
You might be a Salvation Army soldier. How can you take the terms of your covenant Articles of War and Orders and Regulations as seriously as these people? Read the Articles of War at the back of the booklet and ask the Holy Spirit to expose areas where you are breaking your covenant.
How do you think God might advance the Revolution if every Solider embraced the covenant they’ve signed?