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Exodus 8:11

But when Pharaoh saw there was relief, his heart was hardened; and he did not heed them, as the Lord said.

Personal Challenge…

I have often heard the story of Pharaoh and Moses interpreted to say that Pharaoh had no choice to not let God’s people go because God hardened his heart. That is not what the scriptures say. God gave Pharaoh his free will to make the determination to let the children of Israel leave, but he continually resisted and hardened his own heart. As this verse points out, how often do I pray for God’s help in a situation and promise to God that I will do something different with my life if He will answer my prayers, and then when He does answer my prayers, harden my own heart and immediately go back to doing what I want to do. I have the freedom to choose right versus wrong. All too often, I choose the wrong. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Exodus 3:5

So He said, “Do not come any closer. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.”

Personal Challenge

Has my worship of my God during the liturgy and throughout the week become commonplace? Do I approach my God with a spirit of awe and reverence or just as if I would anything else in my worldly life? Truly, when we come before our God, whether individually or collectively in our fellowship of believers, we are stepping on holy ground and should fall upon our faces before our Lord and creator because we are not worthy to be in His presence. I know that I must constantly mind my heart to remember that my God deserves my worship and respect and that I must set aside all of this world that comes between Him and me. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Romans 14:3-4

Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat, and let not him who does not eat judge him who eats; for God has received him. Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.

Personal Challenge

What a fitting reminder as our church has finished the lenten season and is now walking through Holy Week. It is not my responsibility to look at my brother’s plate and judge him/her for their walk with God. I should only focus on what God has called me to do and to do that with humility. God has each one of us on our own separate paths to theosis because He knows what we need to grow in His image. Besides, I have enough trouble living my life in a way that glorifies Him and there is no way that I can advise another on theirs. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Genesis 24:8

“And if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will be released from this oath; only do not take my son back there.”

Encouraging Words

When Abraham was getting close to his final days, he asked his faithful servant to go back to the home of his forefathers to find a wife for his son, Isaac. What is so powerful in this passage is that Abraham, as well as God, recognizes that the woman being sought after still would have her free will and would be able to reject the request to come back to this foreign land to marry Issac. God gave us, His beloved children, free will and He honors that. He allows us to choose Him or reject Him. He allows us to choose between right and wrong. That is the ultimate expression of love, especially when He also forgives us when we choose wrong and later return to Him with a repentant heart. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Genesis 22:10-12

Then Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham! Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.” He then replied, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him, for now I know you fear God, since for My sake you have not spared your beloved son.”

Personal Challenge

So often in my life, I have felt that I was not really serving my God unless I was in the midst of doing something, or going somewhere, that made it obvious to everyone what I was doing. My times on mission trips and serving in Haiti after the earthquake come to mind. The problem with this is that if I do not guard my heart and mind these acts of service can also become sources of pride. This event with Abraham and Isaac demonstrates a very important aspect of our relationship with God. He does not need me to drop everything and run off to the mission field to show Him my love for Him and my neighbor. What He wants from me is a love for Him that is so true and that permeates my being so thoroughly that I would do anything for Him if He should ask. He cares more about the intentions of my heart than He does my actions. He wanted to know how much faith Abraham had in his God. When Abraham demonstrated His love and faith, God no longer needed the actions requested. And through that demonstration of love and faith by Abraham, not only was his son spared, but Abraham was blessed with seeing the resurrected Christ standing in the place of his requested, sacrificial son. Glory be to God! The reminder for me is that God wants from me a heart and mind that would drop everything and go anywhere in His service more than He wants me to keep looking for a job “doing” His work. He wants me to be His missionary where He has placed me, in my home, in my church, at my work, and in my community. Serving Him is not about doing what I want to do. I can serve Him where He has me today as well as I can somewhere else around the world.

Genesis 3:11-13

Thus He said, “Who said you were naked? Have you eaten from the one tree from which I commanded you not to eat?” Then Adam said, “The woman You gave me, gave me of the tree, and I ate.” So the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

Personal Challenge

God loves us and cares for us. He still comes looking for us even though we continue to sin and separate ourselves from Him. His ultimate pursuit for us played out in the incarnation of His Son, Jesus. Through Adam, sin entered into the world and it became easy for us to blame everyone and everything else for our sin. Through Jesus, the new Adam, He has provided for us the means by which to own our sin and to give it over to Him for forgiveness and restoration. Through Him, we can develop the ability to say, “No!” to sin and the tempter. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

James 5:13-15

Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.

Encouraging Words

Our Lord demonstrated to us while He was living on this earth as a man that He cared for the entire person. His healing always included the body, the soul, and the spirit. We have been given, through the church, the sacrament of the anointing of oil for those who are sick. It is offered to all and still focuses on addressing the whole person. The process includes the priest, who has been given the gift of this ministry at his ordination, the prayer of the faith, the work of Christ, the Holy Spirit represented in the oil, and the confession of sins. Jesus still offers to heal to those who believe. Glory be to God!

Ezekiel 36:25-57

I shall sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be cleansed from all your uncleanness, and I will also cleanse you from all your idols. I shall give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you. I shall take the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I shall put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My requirements, and you will keep My judgments and do them.

Encouraging Words

One of the biggest struggles that I had with reformed theology was the teaching that our hearts are impure and that they will always lead us to sin. I could never embrace this because I was taught as a child that Jesus dwells in my heart. Couple this with the teaching that God cannot be in the presence of evil, then how can my heart be both evil and the home of Jesus. It cannot! Once Jesus takes over my life, He fulfills this promise by giving me a clean heart, a pure heart, a heart of flesh like Adam and Eve had before they sinned. So, why do I sin? Because I still have a mind and can choose to override my heart. What this means is that by the grace of God and the power of Jesus Christ, I can also choose to follow my new heart and say, “No!” to sin. I can choose to live a righteous and holy life. Galory be to God!

Isaiah 55:8-9

“For My counsels are not as your counsels, neither are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. “But as heaven is distant from earth, so is My way distant from your ways, and your thoughts from My mind.”

Personal Challenge

Why is it that I always try to force God into my way of thinking, my paradigm? God’s wisdom and counsel greatly surpass any that mankind can produce. It only makes sense that it is for me to change my way of thinking, my thoughts, and my desires to match His because He is the creator and sustainer of all. Glory be to God!