Search and Rescue (2 Sam 14-18)

This passed Sunday Pastor Chris delivered a message that was title (I think) "Search and Rescue". This message was based on the parables in Luke 15. We are all familiar with these parables. I wonder though, how familiar are we with the notion of Search and Rescue? What about the times when God may send us out to search for those who wronged us, or even less drastic, being OK with God sending out the search party to look for those who have wronged us?


"Like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be recovered, so we must die. But that is not what God desires; rather, he devises ways so that a banished person does not remain banished from him."

 In today's reading King David finds out that one of his sons has murdered his brother and is hiding in a foreign land. Joab set David up by sending a wise woman to him to tell him that his actions in his personal life were not in line with the ruling he made on behalf of her son in a separate situation. This story was fabricated by Joab to help King David see his error. Absalom returns home and is a bigger headache then it was worth, but that is not the point of the story.  The point is Search and Rescue: But God does not take away life; instead,, he devises ways so that a banished person may not remain estranged from him.

Sometimes it may be difficult to see that God loves those who have wronged you and I. Not only does He love them, but He has a desire to bring them into the "family". I understand that there are times when this may be harder then anyone could imagine but it must happen. King David allowed for the Search and Rescue team to find a son that not only killed a member of the family but who will eventually wage an all out attack on his father. God doesn't need our permission to send out a search party but He does want us to have a heart that is in line with His. This heart needs to guide us to forgiveness as well as a desire to see the lost found and rescued by our Father in heaven.

How many times do I have to tell you? (1 Sam 24-26)

Have you ever felt like God is telling you the same thing over and over again? Without fail we realize the error in our ways, turn from our sin and inevitably we return to it. God rebukes us again and we are almost surprised that we were caught sinning in the same way again.

In today’s reading David spares 2 men’s lives. The first is King Saul. Not only does he spare his life once but also actually he lets him live twice. David also forgives the harsh words of a man named Nabal. David first spares Saul’s life in a cave while “Saul reliefs himself”. (Pause for laughter) After he lets Saul know that he did not kill him, Saul repents and leaves David be. David then sends word to a man named Nabal and asks for food rations. Not only does Nabal refuse to help, he insults David and his men. On the way to kill Nabal, David meets Nabal’s wife Abigail who pleads for her husband’s life. David turns Nabal over to God and returns back to his camp. Right about this time Saul forgets that David spared his life and pursued him again. Once again David prevails as the righteous man and Saul leaves him be.

What does all of this have to do with us? The first thing that we need to see is that we are in a relationship with a forgiving God. We are regularly given second, third, fourth and even hundredth chances to repent and turn from our sin. This may be the case but lets not take advantage of God’s grace and mercy. Secondly we need to see that even if someone is trying to chase us down and kill us, it is not our place to seek revenge. “Vengeance is mine says the Lord.” As easy as it is for us to identify the wrong doings of others, it is not our place to bring them to justice. This may be difficult in some cases but as we see in today’s reading, God will handle the situation and do so fairly.

Act Right (Lev. 24-27)

 ¹ “‘Do not make idols or set up an image or a sacred stone for yourselves, and do not place a carved stone in your land to bow down before it. I am the LORD your God.
 ² “‘Observe my Sabbaths and have reverence for my sanctuary. I am the LORD. 

Back in the day there were many issues with idol worship and the worship of other Gods. God makes it very clear that this is not acceptable in His sight and He is a very jealous God. Later on in this section we see what happens when one is disobedient to God. Although the idols and ornate stones are not as common today, we have created our own idols. Nothing has changed in the human race and the view God has on how He feels about us worshiping things other then Him. What are these things you ask?

Have you ever thought that maybe your Job is your idol or the relationships you have with the opposite sex or even best friends. What about the addictions you may have in your life? Some very prevalent addictions come to mind like drugs, alcohol or perverse behavior. This does exclude things like cell phones, facebook and even food. Some of these things that are mentioned are not inherently bad. They become bad when they take the place of God in your life. They begin to move in and take the rightful throne of God in your life. We must realize that regardless of the "magnitude" of the idol in our life, God views them all the same.

What are some of the idols in your life that should not be taking the place of God?
How can you change your behaviors to put the Lord first in your life?

Slavery Over Freedom (Ex. 13-15)

I regularly find myself scared of the unknown. Human nature is to stick with what we know rather then head of into the unknown. We would rather continue a life of misery then try something new. We regularly retreat to the slavery of sin rather then the freedom of the unknown life without it and with God.


 ¹⁰ As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the LORD. ¹¹ They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? ¹² Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” 

How could it be that human nature leads us to want to live as a slave with no future or freedom? As believers we have had the opportunity to cast of the chains of our slavery (sin) and travel off into the unknown land of seeking God. The problem for most though, is that God is unknown. They can wrap their minds around the known, no matter how rough it is. They can't seem to understand Christ and salvation. Our jobs as a Christian is to take the place of Moses in our friends lives, helping them navigate out of slavery into the freedom that can be found in a relationship with Christ. The question is, will you work to the front and lead in a new direction or fall to back and complain about not being comfortable?

No Compromise (Ex. 7-10)

Today's scripture is extremely convicting for me. Today we see Moses and Aaron stand strong against Pharaoh. Moses makes it very clear what the Lord is asking of Pharaoh.


 ²⁵ Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God here in the land.”
 ²⁶ But Moses said, “That would not be right. The sacrifices we offer the LORD our God would be detestable to the Egyptians. And if we offer sacrifices that are detestable in their eyes, will they not stone us? ²⁷ We must take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the LORD our God, as he commands us.” 

What I have found to be convicting in today's scripture is the fact that we are all quick to compromise the will of God. Moses made it very clear to Pharaoh what God had asked of him and would except nothing less. We regularly sell the Lord short with little or no expectancy of what great things He wants to do and can do. I urge you to consider what it is in your life you are compromising on. Do you expect the best from the Lord or are you compromising? Better yet, are you compromising in your walk with God? Meaning, are you giving God your best or are you sitting on the side lines not fully devoted?

I Told You So (Gen. 40-50)

Last post we talked about Joseph and his brothers selling him into slavery. Today we are gonna finish the story. Joseph went from living in a Captain of the Guards home, to jail, to be in charge of all of the land of Egypt.



 ³⁹ Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. ⁴⁰ You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.”

Joseph in Charge of Egypt

 ⁴¹ So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.” ⁴² Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on Joseph’s finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. ⁴³ He had him ride in a chariot as his second-in-command,^[b] and people shouted before him, “Make way^[c]!” Thus he put him in charge of the whole land of Egypt. 

Once upon a time God gave Joseph a dream that he would do something great. It took a long time and some sick twists but got accomplished what He wanted to through Joseph. If Joseph had given up or gotten distracted he would not have reached his full potential.

One of my biggest problems is that I am not a very patient person. I want it done yesterday and this obviously does not work out well for me being that I am on God's timing. I regularly get distracted and start doing something else if it doesn't happen in my time frame. The question is though, what if I waited? What if I trusted God to do what He said He would? I may have had the opportunity to see some amazing things happen. We must realize that God wants to do something in our lives that is great, but it is not going to be our way or our timing.

Family Drama (Genesis 36-40)

Have you ever had an experience in your life with a sibling where you were just sick of them being the favorite or the center of attention? My sister and I would trade of being this sibling. During her volleyball  season, which was all the time, she was the focus. Mom and Dad were always at her games and I was sick of her being the center of attention. During football season we would switch roles and she would feel this harsh feelings about me. We see that this has been happening for a while now between siblings.

Joseph has a dream that he interprets to mean that  will rule over and lead his brothers.

5 Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. 6 He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: 7 We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it.”

8 His brothers said to him, “Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?” And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said.

His brothers have had enough of the favorite mentality. They lure him out to the woods and push him into a cistern. After some conversation they decide to sell him into slavery. From there the story continues to take some crazy twists. I am not going to ruin it for you but I want you to think about what crazy twist are occurring in your life? are you cursing God or are you coming to grips with the fact that this maybe the only way He can get you where He wants you.

MMA Smack Down (Gen. 30-36)

We are playing catchup here because I didn't have a chance to write the last couple of days. We will get you back on track in a couple of days. The truth of the matter is, you should still be reading regardless of this blog or not.

When I was a kid I was regularly apart of these royal rumbles with my cousins. We would fight for hours over the silliest things like Lego's and Tonka trucks. We would fight and fight and fight. We really should have been brothers. The new craze these days is the Ultimate Fighting Challenge. Men and woman train to stand toe to toe in an octagon surrounded by an 8 foot chain link fence. They get locked in and fight until one gives up or is knocked out. Anything goes in these matches. The idea for the MMA, I believe, came from today's reading. There is a Holy smack down between Jacob and a supernatural being.

²² That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two female servants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. ²³ After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. ²⁴ So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. ²⁵ When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. ²⁶ Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”
   But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
 ²⁷ The man asked him, “What is your name?”
   “Jacob,” he answered.
 ²⁸ Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel,^[f] because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”
 ²⁹ Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.”
   But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there.
 ³⁰ So Jacob called the place Peniel,^[g] saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” 

As we enter into the season of our Daniel fast I encourage you to find out what it is you need to wrestle with the Lord about. It may be that you need to stop wrestling and submit to the plan God has given you for your life. There may be some decisions that need to be made and your not sure were to go or what to do. Intentionally seek the Lord and look for His will.

Blessings, Lies and Decite (Gen. 27-29)

In an era of "everybody gets a trophy" and "your all winners" we will find it difficult to understand the favoritism that occurs in today's reading. As a society we try to do all that we can to treat everyone equally. Everyone gets a trophy on sports teams to celebrate their participation. It doesn't matter if that player scored the game winning goal or sat on the bench for the season. Parents do not choose favorites amongst their kids and treat them all equally, in most cases. This was not the case for Esau and Jacob.

Isaac, their father had fully intended to bless his son Esau. Jacob tricked his father and received the blessing that was intended for his brother. Jacob not only successfully received his brother inheritance but also the blessing of prosperity given by their father.


 ²⁵ Then he said, “My son, bring me some of your game to eat, so that I may give you my blessing.”
   Jacob brought it to him and he ate; and he brought some wine and he drank. ²⁶ Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come here, my son, and kiss me.”
 ²⁷ So he went to him and kissed him. When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes, he blessed him and said,
   “Ah, the smell of my son
   is like the smell of a field
   that the LORD has blessed.
²⁸ May God give you heaven’s dew
   and earth’s richness—
   an abundance of grain and new wine.
²⁹ May nations serve you
   and peoples bow down to you.
Be lord over your brothers,
   and may the sons of your mother bow down to you.
May those who curse you be cursed
   and those who bless you be blessed.” 

At the end of this passage we see an interaction between God and Jacob. After God makes a promise to Jacob, Jacob wakes and says something that cuaght my eye.

²⁰ Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear ²¹ so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the LORD^[f] will be my God ²² and^[g] this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.” 

What journey are you afraid to take? God has set up a journey for all of us but we regularly forget that the God of the Heavens will help us along the way. When we step into the will of God and walk faithfully we receive His guidance and blessings. I'm not saying that you will be rich or famous because you are following God. What I am saying is that God has your back and it is time to follow Him where He has lead you.

Beef Stew for Your Inheritance (Gen. 25-26)

 ²⁹ Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. ³⁰ He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.^[f])
 ³¹ Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.”
 ³² “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?”
 ³³ But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob.
 ³⁴ Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left.

 Instant gratification is something our culture struggles with. We are always looking for what we want now and not a minute later. This causes us to make stupid decision that we end up paying for down the road. Esau made a big mistake and traded his birthright or inheritance for a some stew.

The longer I spend time with the Lord, the more I realize that good things take time. We regularly do not allow for things to mature, becoming the best that they can be. We also may get bored and give up or get distracted. A perfect example of this is not waiting to have sex until you are married. We don't realize how great it can be to wait and give into instant gratification. The ramifications of this action are huge yet we do not take that into consideration because we are  distracted by the here and now. What is the Lord doing in your life that you need to wait for? It may take longer then you expect but don't make a foolish mistake like Esau and give up because you haven't thought it through.

Testing Faith (Gen. 22-25)

Have you ever been in a situation where your faith has been tested? God regularly provides us with opportunities that require us to step out of the boat and do something scary. I remember when I got into youth ministry. I had a great job making tons of money when I came to a cross roads in my life. Do I continue on the path of comfort or do I quit my job and serve the Lord and His youth? Obviously you know what my decision was but it was the scariest time of my life. I know in the midst of this God was asking me " Are you really in and how faithful are you?"

Abraham had just had his faith tested with his son being born. He was an old guy and his was was just as old. God told them He would give them a son. Abraham had doubts but sure enough, God gave him a son at the ripe old age of 100. Today we see Abraham's faith tested again as God asks him to sacrifice his son. Are you kidding me? Abraham is asked to not only give up but to kill the one thing he had longed for for 100 years.

 ² Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.”
 ³ Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. ⁴ On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. ⁵ He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”
 ⁶ Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, ⁷ Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”
   “Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.
   “The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”
 ⁸ Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together. 

Right before Abraham is getting ready to kill his son an angel of the Lord comes to him and says "Whoa you crazy fool, we were just testing you. Don't kill your son. By the way you passed the test." These are the words from the JESMV (Jarrod's English Standard Message Version).

God is going to test your faith at some point. What will you do? Will you do as Abraham did and complete a task for God no matter how crazy? Or will you sit on the sidelines like so many others regularly do wondering, what if?

Justice and Wrath?!!?

As New Testament Christian's we regularly refer to God's grace and mercy. Often we miss, or have no desire to talk about God's wrath or justice. Old Testament believers had a healthy fear of God but did not receive the atonement for their sins through Jesus.

When reading today's reading I have been reminded of the just God who can and will, when need be, pour out His wrath.

Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed

 ¹ The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. ² “My lords,” he said, “please turn aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feet and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.”    “No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”
 ³ But he insisted so strongly that they did go with him and entered his house. He prepared a meal for them, baking bread without yeast, and they ate. ⁴ Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. ⁵ They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”
 ⁶ Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him ⁷ and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. ⁸ Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”
 ⁹ “Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner, and now he wants to play the judge! We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.
 ¹⁰ But the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. ¹¹ Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door.
 ¹² The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, ¹³ because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the LORD against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it.”
 ¹⁴ So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry^[a] his daughters. He said, “Hurry and get out of this place, because the LORD is about to destroy the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.
 ¹⁵ With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.”
 ¹⁶ When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the LORD was merciful to them. ¹⁷ As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives! Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!”
 ¹⁸ But Lot said to them, “No, my lords,^[b] please! ¹⁹ Your^[c] servant has found favor in your^[d] eyes, and you^[e] have shown great kindness to me in sparing my life. But I can’t flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I’ll die. ²⁰ Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it—it is very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.”
 ²¹ He said to him, “Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. ²² But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it.” (That is why the town was called Zoar.^[f])
 ²³ By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. ²⁴ Then the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens. ²⁵ Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, destroying all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. ²⁶ But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
 ²⁷ Early the next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the LORD. ²⁸ He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace.
 ²⁹ So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.

Let us not become Christians that hide behind Grace and mercy and remember our God is just as well. We need to remember that Christ died on the cross for our sins. We all need to remember that we are serving the God of the universe who should be feared in a healthy fashion and respected.

Grandma's Have babies too... (Gen. 16-18)

How often, as believers, do we find ourselves doubting God because of what we "know". As I continue in my walk with the Lord I realize more and more that there isn't anything that He can't make happen. Even knowing this I often times find myself in a place where I question what He can do because I know the facts. What God wants to do just isn't possible in this situation. We are reminded once again today that God is up for the challenge and He will do what He says He will do, even if it isn't on our time frame.

Abram and Sarai get their names changed as God reminds them of the promise He made to them. In previous chapters we see God Promise Abram that He will give him a son. Some time had passed and Sarai, wanting to be a mom, gave up and took matters into her own hands.

¹ Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian slave named Hagar; ² so she said to Abram, “The LORD has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.”
   Abram agreed to what Sarai said. ³ So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. ⁴ He slept with Hagar, and she conceived.

After this God came back, changed their names to Abraham and Sarah, and reminded them of the promise He made to them. Sarah is caught laughing to herself when the topic comes about and God is less then impressed but still keeps His promise. I understand where Sarah is coming from though. The deck is stacked against her. She is 90 years old and well passed child rearing years. The facts say it's not possible. God says other wise though.

We regularly face situations where we discount and don't believe what the Lord is capable of doing. What if we changed our thought process? What if we stopped sizing up all of things that we think aren't possible and started putting our faith in the one true God?Today I challenge you to seek the Lord and find out what He wants to do in your life that may not make sense. Look for the thing that, by humanly standards, just doesn't seem possible.

Covenants, High Priests and People Getting Jacked (Gen. 12-15)

I am a huge believer in legacy. My grandfather did all that he could to instill beliefs and values into his children that eventually got passed along to my cousins and I. We have many things that as a family we hold onto as values. Work ethic and the fair treatment of people are foundations to who we are as a family, which were instilled in us by my grandfather. My grandfather has impacted three generations so far but I would like to see the impact he has in a thousand years on the generations that follow.

As we look at today's scripture we have an opportunity to see this very affect at the beginning stages. After a fight and an encounter with a High Priest we see an interaction with God and a man named Abram. Abram was a godly man with a pure heart and a desire to serve. God comes to Abram and develops a covenant with him or a contract of promises. The covenant God makes with Abram is so big it will make your head spin and it is all about legacy.

 ⁴ Then the word of the LORD came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” ⁵ He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring^[d] be.” 

Abram was worried about who he would pass his legacy onto because he had no children. Not only did God promise a child but that Abram would be the father of the chosen people, the Israelite nation. Can you imagine God coming to you and telling you how great your impact will be on a whole society? I regularly forget that, Lord willing I will have an impact on generations to follow. We are not capable of thinking that far ahead though.

Today think about the impact your having on, not just the people of today, tomorrow or next year but hundreds of years from just as Abram did.

The Real Evan Almighty... (Gen. 8-11)

As many of you know, I am a huge fan of movies. I have this sick ability to remember lines and scenes from movies vividly. I can relive and re-quote almost any movie after only seeing it once. As I read today's scripture I can only think about and see the interaction between Evan Baxter (Steve Carell) and God (Morgan Freeman) in the movie Evan Almighty. In this scene God meets Evan at the pile of wood that was just delivered and tells him that He wants Evan to build an ark. Evan puts up a witty defense and makes some excuses about why he cant make the ark and leaves. I wonder if this may have been how Noah felt when the real God came to him and told him to build the real ark.

In this particular section of Genesis we see a God who is just and loving, showing a desire to start over with a faithful man. God is not very happy with the current state of His creation. There was one man though, that God found favor. Noah builds the ark, loads it up with animals and his family. The Earth flooded for 150 days, killing everything that wasn't in the boat. At the end of the flood, the water resided and Noah, his family and all of there new pets left the boat to start a new life. Upon touching foot on dry ground, Noah offers up a sacrifice to God that was pleasing in His sight. God smelled the pleasing aroma and said:

^"21 The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the ground because of humans, even though^[a] every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done."

What in the world does all of this mean...

As I pondered this section I'll I could see was a process. Step one: God chooses one of His followers to do something great for His Kingdom in a place where it needs it the most, Earth. Step two: The faithful man, or person, in this case Noah, after some thought excepts the task at hand and completes it faithfully without to many questions. Step three: God blesses the work of the faithful and the generations that will follow he or she because of there faithfulness. This seems pretty simple but is it really?

We have all been in situations where God has asked us to do something big and scary. Many of us fall into one of two categories. We are to numb to see that God is asking something of us or we are to scared to follow through because we are paralyzed by the unknown. Today and this year, let me challenge you to not be like Evan and more like Noah, faithfully listening to the Lord following through with what He has asked of us. Because God promised us he would never flood the Earth again, I doubt He will ask you to build an ark, but it could happen. I do know there is one thing that He has asked of all of us  and that is to share the Gospel with the World. This can be a scary thing at times but the question is are you in or are you out?

It is time for us to realize that our God in Heaven is waiting for a few faithful men and women to boldly stand up and say "Lord here we are, send us." We all have the ability to flip this world upside down for the Kingdom by putting aside our fear as we accept the call God has given us to "Go and make disciples of all nations."

Sibling Rivalries and a Whole lot of Water (Gen. 4-7)

Doug and his brother fighting...

My sister and I never got along when we were younger and to this day there still is a little rivalry left in us to become our parents favorite. We use to fight over everything in hopes that one of us could be better then the other. When we would lose a particular battle for greatness in our parents eyes we would throw a ridiculous tantrum. Our parents would then help teach were we went wrong and remind us that there would never be one favorite child and they were proud of both of us. Through reading today I was comforted to realize that this childish behavior has happened since the begging of time and I wasn't the only one guilty of this childish behavior.

In chapter four we see a sibling battle between Cain and Abel as they try to find favor with the Lord. God has always asked that we give to Him 10% of our first fruits. Not the left overs or a little bit. Abel understood this and did just that bringing the best of his flocks to the Lord. Cain on the other hand brought the Lord mediocre portions of his flock at best. Because Abel did what God asked, the Lord found favor upon him. He was disappointed with Cain and  and began to use this moment to teach him an important lesson about tithing.


^"6 Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? ⁷ If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” 

As any good father would do, God made it very clear to Cain where he went wrong and corrected his actions to make him a better follower and son. This wasn't what Cain wanted to here and he wanted to get rid of the competition. He lured Abel out to the field and in his reckless childish tantrum he attacked and killed his brother.

How often do we over react to correction in our lives as Cain did? Often times our feelings get hurt when we do something wrong, clouding our thinking, causing us to miss the point of the correction. I encourage you to do all that you can to remove the emotion of anger and sadness when being corrected by parents, authority figures and most importantly God. We must realize that all of these people are not trying to hurt us but help us become a better person and follower of Christ. This is a difficult thing to deal with and it may be hard but to get better we must continue to take correction humbly and be grateful that we have people in our lives willing to help us get become better people and Christ followers. Don't pull a Cain!


As Genesis goes on we see the beginnings of the story of Noah, his ark and the flood. At this point God has looked down on to the earth and is not happy with what he sees. In the midst of all of the chaos God did find a faithful son, Noah. God commanded Noah to make an ark and fill it it with pairs of every animal, his family and every type of food that was available for them to eat. God then told Noah,


^"11 Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. ¹² God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. ¹³ So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth. ¹⁴ So make yourself an ark of cypress^[c] wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. <sup>15"

This is where we will pick up tomorrow...</sup> 

In the Beggining (Gen. 1-3)

Little bit of God's creation

 Have you ever had the chance to create something from scratch?
 Have you ever created something from a love filled passionate dream or desire?

I have spent a lot of my life in the construction world. I went from building large highways to building intricate pieces of furniture with much detail. None of these things though were ever created out of a great desire to be in relationship. None of these things were ever motivated by a deep love for someone.

The begging of the Bible gives us great insight into the Master Carpenter and Creator of the universe. We see three main things that happen here. We can liken this to the development of a movie. God first sets the stage (set) or the environment the characters will interact. In the second chapter He develops the characters; Adam and Eve. The third chapter unveils the sick twist the plot takes, some what like the Sixth sense. This is called the fall.

In these three chapters we see Gods desire to be in relationship with His children. Not only does He take the time to craft them in His image, but He creates a universe of majesty for them to dwell in.  There is an unexpected twist that occurs with free will in chapter three that the Lord has to clean up.

Adam and Eve eat of the forbidden fruit against God's request and are banished from the Garden of Eden. From then on God spends the rest of the Old Testament devising a plan to redeem His beloved Creation.

This event is regularly referred to as we discuss Jesus and Christianity. Jesus was brought to the earth to redeem the sins of the fallen and their offspring. In layman's terms, that means Adam and Eve and everyone to follow. That includes us.

As you ponder this scripture I encourage you to think about a couple of things:

Can you imagine what it would be like to create something that always chooses it's wicked, sinful desires over your unconditional love? (The answer is no but I still want you to think about it)

How do you regularly chose something other then the Lord and why?

Are you ready to lay down your selfish, sinful desires to follow the One who created you and dearly loves you and I?