Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 16 Oct 2007

Word of Encouragement for Every New Day ~ 16 Oct 2007

Exodus 15:22 Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. 23 When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah.) 24 So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, "What are we to drink?" Isn’t this a wonderful verse for us to remember? There are two parts to this word for us to imprint in our hearts. Firstly, are we grumbling and complaining all the time? And secondly, are we over focused on our needs right now, and neglecting the big picture of what God has before us? It is important that we pay attention to the words that come out of our mouth. Be aware, everyday have a self-check. At any point we realize that we often grumble, have negative thoughts, and everything is down, remember this verse. Having a grumbling and complaining spirit is acting like a child. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13:11, When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. God loves us all unconditionally, He tells us simply what He is going to do, and by grumbling, over focusing on the issues of life, it does not make us effective for fulfilling God’s work. Finally, we must take a good look inside us, are we over focusing on our needs and neglecting the big picture of what God has planned? Simply put, if God says to us that in five years we are going to have one million dollars, but right now we are bankrupt, we lost our job, and we don’t have any food to feed our family, are we going to trust the promises God has given us, or are we going to stop believing, lose faith and trust, and stop reading the Word of God? We cannot allow circumstances, emotions, feelings, situations, and our past to dictate our lives. Who is in control God or us, God or man, God or objects? Sometimes we need people to open our eyes to show us our blind spots. If today, we are going through life, down, depressed, lonely, moved by circumstances, and allowing situations to dictate our future, we must turn to God again for direction. Let us be open to someone who can bring clarity into our lives. A person who is wise, who can correct us, who can speak and pierce our hearts, a person that God uses. © Oct 2007 Shaun Lee