Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, "Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them."
--Numbers 20:12 (NKJV)
From the daily Bible reading on March 17, 2013 of Psalm 55:1-11; Acts 20:13-38; Numbers 18:8-20:13.
Once again the children of Israel were complaining to Moses about dying of thirst in the wilderness. God had a plan that would provide water for them and their herds and flocks and at the same time show His power so that He would be glorified and hallowed in their eyes. He told Moses to take his rod with him and Aaron to the rock before them and water would come forth. But Moses did a repeat performance of the first time this all happened (reference Exodus 17:1-7) and struck the rock with his staff instead of just speaking to it as God instructed, so that he would get some of the glory and vent some of his anger with the people. God was upset that He was not hallowed when He should have been, and punished Moses and Aaron for not listening to Him by not allowing them to enter the promised land.
God has a plan for each of us, a very specific set of instructions He wants us to follow. Everything God does is ultimately for our good, but some things He makes happen are for His glory, too. If we remember to give Him the credit for the great and wonderful things He does through us, then He can receive the glory He deserves and others can see God through us. If we fail to follow His instructions, we may be punished. If we are trying to do something counter to what He wishes, He may simply block our actions, unless we persist strongly enough. Then He may hamper our efforts in a more severe manner. His punishment may be light, or it may be harsh. Let's not take the chance. Let's be sure to do just what our Lord would have us do and be doubly sure to give all the glory and honor to him. To God be the glory! Amen.
Heavenly Father, You have great and wonderful things in store for those who love You. Your plans are for our good because You love us. But because You love us, You also punish us when we stray from Your plan, when we insist we know better than You and do things the way we want to do them rather than how You would have us do them. Forgive us, please Father, when our arrogance or anger become a stumbling block to the path Your Son laid for us to follow. In holy name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
God has a plan for each of us, a very specific set of instructions He wants us to follow. Everything God does is ultimately for our good, but some things He makes happen are for His glory, too. If we remember to give Him the credit for the great and wonderful things He does through us, then He can receive the glory He deserves and others can see God through us. If we fail to follow His instructions, we may be punished. If we are trying to do something counter to what He wishes, He may simply block our actions, unless we persist strongly enough. Then He may hamper our efforts in a more severe manner. His punishment may be light, or it may be harsh. Let's not take the chance. Let's be sure to do just what our Lord would have us do and be doubly sure to give all the glory and honor to him. To God be the glory! Amen.
Heavenly Father, You have great and wonderful things in store for those who love You. Your plans are for our good because You love us. But because You love us, You also punish us when we stray from Your plan, when we insist we know better than You and do things the way we want to do them rather than how You would have us do them. Forgive us, please Father, when our arrogance or anger become a stumbling block to the path Your Son laid for us to follow. In holy name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
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