God's Faithfulness to Lead (Blogging Through the Bible)

In this week's reading I'm reminded of three examples of faithfulness that challenge, as well as inspire me to live a life that is faithful to God, to my family, and to my friends.

3 Examples of Faithfulness in Exodus

We are reminded of Joseph in Exodus 13:19. Joseph was a man of faith who, as he laid on his deathbed, held on to the promise of God that He would surely bring the Israelites back to the Promised Land of Canaan. He made the children of Israel promise to carry his bones out of Egypt when they were finally able to leave. Joseph died still believing in the promise of God! That is a powerful faith!

Moses was a man of faith who was faithful to carry out the long ago dying request of Joseph. Moses carried out the bones of Joseph on their journey out of Egypt. Moses walked in faith through all the plagues that the power of God would perform through him and his brother, Aaron, in order to free the Israelites.

God is our faithful God who always keeps the promises He makes to us. It is so important to remember God's faithfulness to us and to pass on to our children our stories of faith and how God has moved on our behalf.

Remembering God's Faithfulness Through His Word

I love to memorize Scripture! While we are reading in the book of Exodus, I'm joining Courtney Joseph of Women Living Well, home of Good Morning Girls in memorizing Psalm 77:11-20. Here are verses 11-12 of Psalm 77 that speak of remembering God's faithfulness:

"I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember Your wonders of old. I will ponder all Your work and meditate on Your mighty deeds.

Your way, O God, is holy. What god is great like our God? You are the God Who works wonders; You have made known your might among the peoples."

We see over and over again in the Bible God's faithfulness to lead His children. In the Exodus, He would lead His children back home to the Promised Land with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. He was always present with them on their journey.

He is present with us today even though we can see Him. He still leads us today through His Word, the Bible - and through His Holy Spirit living inside of us.

God wants to speak to us on every page of the Bible - His Word to us - so that we can know how to live as His children here in this world while we wait for the promise of our true home with Him. It is written to connect our spirit with His.

We are getting ready to finish up Week 3 of Exodus. Don't grow weary, my friends, in doing good by being in God's Word every day. He promises us that we will reap in due time if we do not lose heart (Galatians 6:9). Stay the course with me and together we will discover more of God's faithfulness as we continue to read His Word daily. We will grow in our confidence and in our faith of Who God is as we spend time at His feet learning more about Him.

I'd like to close this part of my post with a song by Matt Redmon, "Never Alone". I absolutely LOVE his song that speaks of God's faithfulness.





Here are my SOAKs for Tuesday and Wednesday:

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Exodus 12

Scripture: Exodus 12:27-28

²⁷ that you shall say, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice of the Lord, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt when He struck the Egyptians and delivered our households.’” So the people bowed their heads and worshiped. ²⁸ Then the children of Israel went away and did so; just as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.

Observations: There was a two-fold purpose of the Passover. The first purpose was to strike the Egyptians because of Pharaoh’s refusal to let the Israelites go and for their worship of false gods. The second purpose of the Passover was to deliver the Israelite households who followed God’s instructions. The Israelites were told by God to tell their children these reasons behind the Passover.

The Israelites bowed their heads and worshiped upon hearing this. A heart of worship prepares us to walk in obedience to what God calls us to do. It’s an act of the surrendering of our will in order to line ourselves up with the will of God. 

The Israelites bowed their heads and worshiped in response to what God commanded them to do through Moses and Aaron. They did all that they were instructed to do for the Passover and because of their obedience they were delivered from the death of the firstborn plague. 

Application: Again, we see the importance of passing on our faith stories to our children. God instructs the Israelites to tell their children about the purposes of the Passover as they celebrate the Passover with future generations. Obedience is connected with worship. When we worship God with our lives, we are aligning our will to His as we surrender and bow to His authority in our lives. We will never be able to experience the deliverance of God in our lives if we fail to walk in obedience to what He calls us to do.  

Kneel: Heavenly Father, thank You for the deliverance You have provided to us through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I pray that we will walk in obedience to how You call us to live as Your children. I ask for the boldness to live as You are calling me to live. May the lives we live worship and glorify Your holy name so that others will be drawn into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. Help me to remember to share my faith stories with my children and grandchildren so that their faith in You will be built up as they hear of Your power and faithfulness in my life. In the life-changing name of Jesus I pray. Amen!

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Exodus 13

Scripture: Exodus 13:19

¹⁹ Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones with you from here.”

Observations: Joseph’s final act of faith with this request he made on his deathbed is finally being fulfilled! Even at death’s doorstep, Joseph trusted in God’s promise of leading the Israelites out of Egypt to return to the Promised Land of Canaan. Moses is faithful in fulfilling Joseph’s request to take his bones out of Egypt with them.

Application: Genesis 50:25-26 says that Joseph’s body was embalmed and placed in a coffin in Egypt. What a sight that must have been to the Israelites for the last 400+ years of living in Egypt. It served as a constant reminder to them of God’s promise that He would bring them back to the Promised Land of Canaan. How does my life serve as a reminder that this world is not our home? Even in death, Joseph was still making an impact on his people. Will the same be said of me when I’m gone?

Moses was faithful in fulfilling Joseph’s dying request. Am I faithful to my friends in their time of need?

Kneel: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your faithfulness to do all that You say will do. We have seen the fulfillment of so many of Your promises as we have journeyed through the Bible, Your holy Word. May I live my life in such a way to remind those You have placed in my life that this world is not our home. Help me to be a mighty witness for Your glory in all that I say and do so that when You call me home my legacy will continue to live on in the lives of those I love. Help me to live as a faithful friend and to be available during times of need in the lives of my friends. Thank You, Father, for the example of Joseph and Moses, whose lives have spoken to my heart this morning. May the truth I have found in Your Word this morning take deep root in my heart and produce fruit worthy of Your name. In the life-changing name of Jesus I pray. Amen!

Here is our reading plan for the rest of the week:

I'll see you here again on Friday for another Blogging Through the Bible post!

Walking in His Grace, 

Laurie