•2:21 PM
Last night at Bible study we were going over a lesson in Deuteronomy 8:1-20.
Do Not Forget the LORD
1 Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase and may enter and possess the land the LORD promised on oath to your ancestors.
2 Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.
3 He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.
4 Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years.
5 Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God disciplines you.
6 Observe the commands of the LORD your God, walking in obedience to him and revering him.
7 For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills;
8 a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey;
9 a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills.
10 When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the LORD your God for the good land he has given you.
11 Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.
12 Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down,
13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied,
14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
15 He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock.
16 He gave you manna to eat in the wilderness, something your ancestors had never known, to humble and test you so that in the end it might go well with you.
17 You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.”
18 But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.
19 If you ever forget the LORD your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed.
20 Like the nations the LORD destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the LORD your God.
To sum it up, the lesson was about the Israelites and how what was supposed to be an eleven day journey for them took forty years because God wanted to show them something, humble them, etc.
The teacher pointed out just how God took them through something for forty years just so they could see, He does the same thing for us in present day.
It made me think about a certain situation in my life.
When my mom and I got to Houston after Hurricane Katrina we moved to a certain area of town, we didn’t know anything about it but we needed a place to live at the time. Over the course of four years the place we lived began to be more and more undesirable - gangs began to run rampant, we’d hear gunshots, the outside environment was horrible and filthy. It just wasn’t a pleasant place to be.
We wanted to move elsewhere but because of our situation, we couldn’t do it at the time.
And my human side began to take over.
I started grumbling and complaining about the conditions. Started saying things like “We don’t do anything to hurt anybody, folks out in the world do what they wanna do and things go well for them, why is this happening to us?”
But my mom would always bring me back to reality and just say, “Wait on God. He’s working this whole thing out. And when He’s ready, He’ll move us to where he wants us to be.”
True, I believed what she said and understood every word because I have no doubt of what God can do; but that darn human side would get to me when I was alone and I would still be upset.
Finally when I came to grips with myself and realized I couldn’t do anything about the situation I gave it all over to God and left it alone.
Not long after that things just started clicking for us.
God opened a door and got us from the environment we were in and now we’re in a beautiful, gated community.
Being where I was the past four years taught me that God doesn’t make any mistakes.
He kept me where I was to teach me first patience - wait on Him; then faith to know He’ll do what He said He’ll do - if He can take care of the birds who don’t do a thing, then surely He’ll take care of me.
I had to go through that situation for that long period of time to help humble me as well. I was never an arrogant individual, but it still helped to humble me because I know where I came from, and I know what I had to deal with. I know what it’s like to have and not have; so i’m more appreciative of everything He’s blessing me with.
Finally I understand the big picture.
When I was going through my storm I didn’t see it because I just wanted a way out. I felt God was sending me through because I had done something wrong, but He was only doing what any loving parent would do with their child.
When you love them, you discipline them and that’s just what He did with me. I’ve learned so much and I have grown as a Christian as a result of my storms.
Humbleness is now a permanent part of me and if everything hadn’t happened the way they did, i’d hate to think the type of person I would be.
Now when obstacles come my way, I don’t question them. I just smile and thank God while i’m going through; He knows the end result and makes no mistakes.
- Bee
Do Not Forget the LORD
1 Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase and may enter and possess the land the LORD promised on oath to your ancestors.
2 Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.
3 He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.
4 Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years.
5 Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God disciplines you.
6 Observe the commands of the LORD your God, walking in obedience to him and revering him.
7 For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills;
8 a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey;
9 a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills.
10 When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the LORD your God for the good land he has given you.
11 Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.
12 Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down,
13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied,
14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
15 He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock.
16 He gave you manna to eat in the wilderness, something your ancestors had never known, to humble and test you so that in the end it might go well with you.
17 You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.”
18 But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.
19 If you ever forget the LORD your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed.
20 Like the nations the LORD destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the LORD your God.
To sum it up, the lesson was about the Israelites and how what was supposed to be an eleven day journey for them took forty years because God wanted to show them something, humble them, etc.
The teacher pointed out just how God took them through something for forty years just so they could see, He does the same thing for us in present day.
It made me think about a certain situation in my life.
When my mom and I got to Houston after Hurricane Katrina we moved to a certain area of town, we didn’t know anything about it but we needed a place to live at the time. Over the course of four years the place we lived began to be more and more undesirable - gangs began to run rampant, we’d hear gunshots, the outside environment was horrible and filthy. It just wasn’t a pleasant place to be.
We wanted to move elsewhere but because of our situation, we couldn’t do it at the time.
And my human side began to take over.
I started grumbling and complaining about the conditions. Started saying things like “We don’t do anything to hurt anybody, folks out in the world do what they wanna do and things go well for them, why is this happening to us?”
But my mom would always bring me back to reality and just say, “Wait on God. He’s working this whole thing out. And when He’s ready, He’ll move us to where he wants us to be.”
True, I believed what she said and understood every word because I have no doubt of what God can do; but that darn human side would get to me when I was alone and I would still be upset.
Finally when I came to grips with myself and realized I couldn’t do anything about the situation I gave it all over to God and left it alone.
Not long after that things just started clicking for us.
God opened a door and got us from the environment we were in and now we’re in a beautiful, gated community.
Being where I was the past four years taught me that God doesn’t make any mistakes.
He kept me where I was to teach me first patience - wait on Him; then faith to know He’ll do what He said He’ll do - if He can take care of the birds who don’t do a thing, then surely He’ll take care of me.
I had to go through that situation for that long period of time to help humble me as well. I was never an arrogant individual, but it still helped to humble me because I know where I came from, and I know what I had to deal with. I know what it’s like to have and not have; so i’m more appreciative of everything He’s blessing me with.
Finally I understand the big picture.
When I was going through my storm I didn’t see it because I just wanted a way out. I felt God was sending me through because I had done something wrong, but He was only doing what any loving parent would do with their child.
When you love them, you discipline them and that’s just what He did with me. I’ve learned so much and I have grown as a Christian as a result of my storms.
Humbleness is now a permanent part of me and if everything hadn’t happened the way they did, i’d hate to think the type of person I would be.
Now when obstacles come my way, I don’t question them. I just smile and thank God while i’m going through; He knows the end result and makes no mistakes.
- Bee
