Centered...

 Centered.....

At The beginning of the book of Numbers, God calls for a census of the nation of Israel, males, 20 years and up...

Then the arrangement is given for the various clans on their placement around the tabernacle as well as their placement when they are moving...

The tabernacle is always the center...God is the center...

Then the various duties are given to the Levites...each has a duty to carry out...what they guard and what they carry...they are not counted as ones able to go to war as the other clans...their focus is on the tabernacle and its safety and care...

I couldn’t help but remember, that when Ezra went back to Jerusalem, they centered on rebuilding the temple, them Nehemiah came the rebuild the walls...

“Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and rebuild the house of the Lord, the God of Israel— he is the God who is in Jerusalem. And let each survivor, in whatever place he sojourns, be assisted by the men of his place with silver and gold, with goods and with beasts, besides freewill offerings for the house of God that is in Jerusalem.”

Ezra 1:2-4

It was the center, the place everyone looked to...

Our center is to be God as well...guarding that Life within us...

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 

You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 

You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 

You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. 

It is the Lord your God you shall fear. 

Him you shall serve and by his name you shall swear.

Deuteronomy 6:4-9,13

Warriors as well...guarding our lives, minds, hearts, souls, thoughts...centered on Him...

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,

Ephesians 6:10-18

Thank YOU...for being our center...

If I just touch his clothes...

 If I just touch his clothes.....

I am making my way through Leviticus right now...rules and regulations, clean and unclean....

As a woman, I was caught up again in the rules of uncleanness...but more, the woman who suffered 12 years who came to Jesus.

It is not fun being ill, going from doctor to doctor with no help...no hope...rejected, unclean, put aside ...walking alone...wondering, “will I even find a cure or is this my destiny?” Been  there, done that...but, her’s kept her not only unwell, but also apart...can you imagine, not mater what you touched, there was constant cleaning, constant care, constant doctoring, constant hope deferred, constant let downs...for 12 years...

I can almost hear her saying/thinking, “ I have heard of this man’s healing...would he be able to heal me, unclean that I am...maybe if I just touch his garment,  that might be enough...how can I get closer without too much attention from those constantly surrounding him......there, there is an opportunity...” and she silently moves in to touch,  just to  touch Jesus’ garment to immediately feel healed...what immense joy, what relief, what awe...

Then  to be called out....”who has touched my clothes?”

Did she cower, hiding her face, trying to look small amongst the crowd...fearing retribution...falling at his feet...telling him her story...

Instead, I can imagine He looked at her with his infinite compassion...

Saying, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”

Daughter...how personal

Peace and be freed...how caring ...no more seeking...She found her answer...

Thank YOU....

“‘When a woman has a discharge of blood for many days at a time other than her monthly period or has a discharge that continues beyond her period, she will be unclean as long as she has the discharge, just as in the days of her period. Any bed she lies on while her discharge continues will be unclean, as is her bed during her monthly period, and anything she sits on will be unclean, as during her period. Anyone who touches them will be unclean; they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening. “‘When she is cleansed from her discharge, she must count off seven days, and after that she will be ceremonially clean. On the eighth day she must take two doves or two young pigeons and bring them to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting. The priest is to sacrifice one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. In this way he will make atonement for her before the Lord for the uncleanness of her discharge.

Leviticus 15:25-30

And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering. 

At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?” 

“You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’ ” 

But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. 

Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. 

He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”

Mark 5:25-34 

Immersed...gifted...

 Immersed....gifted...

In Exodus God lays out the plans for the portable Tabernacle in minute details....the colors, the sizes, the designs, the materials....all part of a huge “tent” with layers and layers of meanings...down to the clothing the priests would wear... which the Israelites carried with them throughout their wanderings in the wilderness...

The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the people of Israel, that they take for me a contribution. From every man whose heart moves him you shall receive the contribution for me. And this is the contribution that you shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze, blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, goats' hair, tanned rams' skins, goatskins, acacia wood, oil for the lamps, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, onyx stones, and stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breastpiece. And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst. Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle, and of all its furniture, so you shall make it.

Exodus 25:1-9

They gave their offerings to the making of it...probably using the riches of their former slave owners...making something new ...replacing the old things with new ....looking to, honoring, worshiping their God who brought them out of slavery, redeemed...heading toward the promised land...

...using this abundance of resources....He even had the artisans named who would carry out this tremendous task of designing, implementing His details...

I was thinking about these artisans...the abundance of resources...

plans...

Sentence after sentence, paragraph after paragraph records what the workmen did, what they created, designed until it was finished... Exodus 35-40...

Those workers, called by name, each were gifted with a skill...

Then Moses said to the people of Israel, “See, the Lord has called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, with intelligence, with knowledge, and with all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold and silver and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, for work in every skilled craft. And he has inspired him to teach, both him and Oholiab the son of Ahisamach of the tribe of Dan. He has filled them with skill to do every sort of work done by an engraver or by a designer or by an embroiderer in blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, or by a weaver—by any sort of workman or skilled designer. “Bezalel and Oholiab and every craftsman in whom the Lord has put skill and intelligence to know how to do any work in the construction of the sanctuary shall work in accordance with all that the Lord has commanded.” And Moses called Bezalel and Oholiab and every craftsman in whose mind the Lord had put skill, everyone whose heart stirred him up to come to do the work. And they received from Moses all the contribution that the people of Israel had brought for doing the work on the sanctuary. They still kept bringing him freewill offerings every morning, so that all the craftsmen who were doing every sort of task on the sanctuary came, each from the task that he was doing,

Exodus 35:30-36:4 

The tabernacle is finished...putting all the pieces together...

“So Moses finished the work. Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out till the day that it was taken up. For the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys.”

Exodus 40:33b-38 

This just calls to mind the New Testament...we each are gifted as well...given spiritual gifts to use to build the kingdom...and we are each called temples...

Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.

1 Corinthians 3:16-17

It is beyond my comprehension that the God of the Universe would choose to indwell me with His Spirit...that He would give me gifts to build His kingdom...until such time that He deems it is finished...

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Philippians 1:6 

Thank YOU....

Out of bondage...Into the riches...

 Out of bondage...into the riches....

To me, there are so many pictures in the Bible...

The Israelites were held in bondage, enslaved to work for Egyptians for four hundred years plus...so poor at the end, they had to gather straw to make the bricks that were demanded...probably a few sheep and garden areas..for their own sustenance...after the favor granted earlier by Joseph’s pharaoh...shepherding flocks which the Egyptians despised...used, beaten, and feared because of their strength in numbers...

Then, through the very intervention of God who tore down all of their idols in the various plagues He sent upon the land, showing Himself mightier than any of their manmade gods, Pharaoh finally let the people go...begging them to leave...

The Egyptians were urgent with the people to send them out of the land in haste. For they said, “We shall all be dead.”

 So the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading bowls being bound up in their cloaks on their shoulders. 

The people of Israel had also done as Moses told them, for they had asked the Egyptians for silver and gold jewelry and for clothing. 

And the Lord had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. 

Thus they plundered the Egyptians. 

And the people of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children. 

A mixed multitude also went up with them, and very much livestock, both flocks and herds. 

And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had brought out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, because they were thrust out of Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves. 

The time that the people of Israel lived in Egypt was 430 years. At the end of 430 years, on that very day, all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. 

It was a night of watching by the Lord, to bring them out of the land of Egypt; so this same night is a night of watching kept to the Lord by all the people of Israel throughout their generations. 

All the people of Israel did just as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron. 

And on that very day the Lord brought the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their hosts.

Exodus 12:33-42,50-51

Fast forward a bit... to the preparation to the building of the Tabernacle...

The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the people of Israel, that they take for me a contribution. From every man whose heart moves him you shall receive the contribution for me. And this is the contribution that you shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze, blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, goats' hair, tanned rams' skins, goatskins, acacia wood, oil for the lamps, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, onyx stones, and stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breastpiece. And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst. Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle, and of all its furniture, so you shall make it.

Exodus 25:1-9 

God gives Moses plans for the tabernacle, each piece of furnishings, the tent itself...everything...made of various wood, pieces overlaid with pure gold, stones, fabrics, colors...and even craftsman to accomplish this feat...

The golden Lampstand potentially weighing over 55 pounds...

The plunders, spoils of the Egyptians...all prepared, given in advance for the use of the Israelites’ journey and building of the tabernacle in the wilderness...

When I think of these events...Enslavement, the bondage that we as people in this world endure..we run after manmade gods in our lives, all of which have no real power...we let them...but 

God reaches into our lives seeking to free us from slavery as well, giving us the riches unmeasurable through our Redeemer, Christ...building us into Temples housing the very Holy Spirit of the living God...preparing us for the promised land, in eternity with Him...

Out of bondage...Into the riches...with a learning journey along the way...thank YOU for Your Word  which richly teaches...redeems, frees ....

2 In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

John 14:2-3 

Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God's grace, which was given me by the working of his power. To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things, so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him. For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Ephesians 3:7-12,14-21

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:19 

Here I am...

 “Here I am...”

There are several times in the Scriptures that the phrase , “here I am” or “here am I “ is recorded...included in a command, recognition, a plea...

I wonder how many times over the years I have said that same thing...when my parents, husband , children were calling, or when God was calling...did I hear each call and immediately attend or ignore and go my way...it probably depended on the intonation, desperation of the call...and there many times I wish  I hadn’t heard the call...and wanted to ignore it, hiding my head in the  sand, so to speak....

Was Isaac a little desperate when he looked around wondered where the burnt offering was as he was being lain on the alter...or Moses a little shaken when he saw a  burning bush that wasn’t consumed...or Eli questioning why God was speaking to a mere boy instead of he, the adult....or Isaiah, in his plea to be sent...or Ananias...what were their thoughts...

I want to be sure I am listening or answering with the right heart attitude when I have to answer, “here I am”...to various calls of obedience, to people, to events ...with right motives....carrying through the tasks set before me, with diligence, with gratitude....in a variety of settings...

“Here I am”....thank YOU...

After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” 

And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” 

But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 

So Abraham called the name of that place, “The Lord will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”

Genesis 22:1-2,7,11,14

When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

Exodus 3:4,6

And the Lord called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down, and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

1 Samuel 3:8-9 

And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.”

Isaiah 6:8 

Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.”

Isaiah 52:6 

Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.”

Acts 9:10 

Gardens along the way...41...dreaming..hope

 Gardens along the way... 41...dreaming...hope...

I am getting daily advertisements for trees, shrubs, seeds, winterizing and prepping fruit trees, spring gardens....etc. ...etc...etc...I haven’t been

to Costco lately, but am sure their huge bulb selection isn’t too far away...

The snow is falling, especially in the mountains nearby, it is cold here, the ground is an hard as a rock, yet we are already preparing for the sunny spring and warm summer,  gardens and orchards unleashed from their frozen state after a winter’s nap....

Hope...that’s what those advertisements are selling... for a productive year...a better year....where we are free to roam, free to greet...free to live unbound...free to be “normal”...free to grow....

We do have a hope in Christ...He is the best hope we have...thank YOU.... 

“And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in you.

Psalm 39:7

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; 

his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; 

great is your faithfulness. 

“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” 

The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. 

It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.

Lamentations 3:22-26 

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

Romans 5:1-5

Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.

Romans 12:12 

For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness.

Galatians 5:5 

Years of famine...years of plenty...

Years of famine...years of plenty...

Joseph, of old, foretold years of plenty and years of famine to the Pharaoh in Old Testament...after experiencing some famine times in his own life...sold as a slave, he prospered as He followed for Lord in his servitude...then taken as prisoner, He still serves the Lord in his time of famine...his service in these times was a training ground for his eventual    leadership of all of Egypt in their years of plenty and years of need...saving his own family from their own famine...

I imagine we all have years of famine and years of plenty... in the physical, emotional and spiritual realms...times when all may seem against us...times of darkness with no light, times when the answers seem hidden, times when our bodies are just don’t work...followed by each days marked with praise for the good...when our energy is boundless...when the heavens opened with bounty...

No matter where we are, serving the Lord is the key...whether in the dungeon or on the throne...obedience to what He has shown us in the light follows what He continues to show us in the dark...

I liked the phrases in Genesis...

The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master. 

But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. 

The keeper of the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph's charge, because the Lord was with him. 

And whatever he did, the Lord made it succeed. 

The name of the second he called Ephraim, “For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”

Genesis 39:2,21,23,41:52

Joseph was acknowledged over and over as a man whom God was with...

Fast forward...how can I show that same attitude?  

Grow in grace...

Exhibit the Fruit of the Spirit...love, joy, peace, Long suffering, patience, goodness, kindness..

Love my neighbor...love ...praise...be a light...

And so much more...

Thank YOU...help me to be an Ambassador of Christ in the famine and in the plenty...walking with You...