66 Love Letters - Chapter Six - Joshua

Learn To Hate Sin More Than Suffering

"Loving Me and being faithful to My plan requires hating everything in you that is opposed to Me, everything about you that wants someone or something besides Me to have first place in your life." Dr. Larry Crabb

After forty wilderness years, we finally witness God part the Jordan River and the Israelites step onto their Promised Land. Can you imagine the celebration on the river banks?

Reading the Book of Joshua this week, I was personally reminded of a couple things:

• Encouragement is key. In the Book of Deuteronomy we saw Moses encouraging Joshua before he died: Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the presence of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the Lord swore to their forefathers to give them, and you must divide it among them as their inheritance. The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” Deut. 31:7-8 After Moses' death, we see Joshua uses the same words of encouragement to inspire the Israelites: Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be   discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9         
• I have a personal Promised Land. It is not my Heavenly destination, but my spiritual purpose here on earth. My prayer is to take every inch God has for me.
• My Promised Land includes a battlefield. A diet of only milk and honey makes for a weak follower of Christ.
• God's promises never fail. Looking over the past few years, I see the faithfulness of His Word in my life over and over and over again!

What about you? Are you standing on your Promised Land? Remember, do not be discouraged or afraid. God commands us to trust Him. Seek God for encouragement to overcome whatever battle is keeping you from taking all your land this week.

* Reading for next week; The Book of Judges

66 Love Letters - Chapter Five - Deuteronomy

You Fail Me, But I Never Fail You

"Let me explain Deuteronomy to you, remember I unfold my plan slowly."

• First, I am the only true God, there is no other.
• Second, I brought you out to bring you in.  I brought you out of that prison to bring you into the freedom of love.
• Third, I ask nothing of you but that kind of love, which includes respecting Me for who I am, following Me wherever I lead, serving Me with your whole heart, and obeying every command I give. -Dr. Larry Crabb

The book of Deuteronomy ends the fifth book of the Bible and what the Jewish people refer to as the Torah - Hebrew for instruction; also known as the Pentateuch - Greek for vessel or book. It's here we are witness to lots of God's instruction, including Mose's last words - and warnings to the Israelite people.

He encourages them, almost pleading, over and over again to put the Lord their God first always, in everything, every day of their lives. He reminds the generation about to enter the Promised Land of the blessings and curses that come with an obedient or disobedient life - one that follows God or walks away from Him.

One of my favorite pieces of scripture is found in chapter six:

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” (Deuteronomy 6:4-7)

Fitting words from Moses to the millions of Israelites who were about to step into their Promised Land for the first time. I hope you're following along in your Bible, because you're about to witness a second parting of the waters in Joshua (chapters 1-4).

A Few Questions to Ponder

• Moses last words to the Israelites are in Deuteronomy, probably written by Joshua after his death. Have you ever wondered what your last words would be to those YOU loved?
• It's been forty years of wandering in the wilderness. Can you imagine the joy that Caleb and Joshua must be feeling right now? Are you experiencing your own "wilderness" right now? What do you think God is trying to teach you through it?
• Is there a Promised Land on your horizon? Has the Lord whispered something to your heart? What are you doing to prepare for it? What "giants" are keeping you in your wilderness place?

66 Love Letters - Chapter Four - Numbers

Making You Holy is Hard Work for Both of Us

You will experience terrible failure and crushing conflict on the road that leads to where I'm taking you, but it is the right road even when it feels like it's killing you. - Dr. Larry Crabb

Exodus covered a year; Leviticus only a month - but the Book of Numbers encompasses more than 38 years of the Israelites wilderness journey. The Hebrew title of this book gives us an idea of the theme of Numbers. In Hebrew this book is titled In the Wilderness instead of Numbers.

Christians flinch when they are reminded of the military census of the tribes, a tedious read, yet much needed part of preparing the Israelites for the promised land battles that lay ahead.

Our very own Katie Chaney took the time to put this census down on paper in an understandable way. You can thank her for the graphic above! (I'm just sorry I can't enlarge it for you.)

66 Love Letters - Chapter Three - Leviticus

Holiness Comes Before Happiness: Holiness Is Happiness

"You must not try to fit Me into your plans. Your plans are too small. You must fit yourself into Mine. Remember, I do have a plan. And it's a good one! I've written Leviticus to tell you one thing: The toughest part of My plan, the part that's costliest to Me, is to make you holy."

Leviticus means "concerning the Levites" and the title rightly fits this chunk of the Bible. With the tabernacle complete, next comes God's charge to keep for the priests. He tells them exactly what keeping the temple is all about. Reminding me that God is always in even the most minute details of my life as well.

66 Love Letters - Chapter Two - Exodus

You Must Know Me To Trust Me

"God, what do You want me to hear as I read Exodus?"


"Hear this above all: I will do whatever it takes to carry out My plan!"

The book of Exodus may possibly be one of my favorite books of the Bible. Starting where Genesis left off, so begins the nail-biting sequel to the story of the Israelites.

It's here we are introduced to Moses and watch him grow up under the adopted care of the Pharaoh, as a prince of Egypt. It's here we watch the Lord use him for His glory in his old age. Moses represents God before the Pharaoh, bringing plagues upon Egypt like lice, frogs, locusts, and eventually the death of every first born son, which makes way for their exodus.

A Few Questions to Ponder

Which part of the Exodus story is your favorite?

Have you seen God part the Red Sea in your life?

Did it surprise you when the Israelites grew impatient waiting for Moses on Mount Sinai and created a golden calf to worship?

Share something from the book 66 Love Letters that spoke to you this week.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On a side note. For those of you who visiting who would like to participate, look for the tool bar below this post. It looks like this:

Posted by Joanne@ Blessed... at 12:00 AM 0 comments

Then click on the "comments" and a box will appear so you can leave a comment inside and then follow the directions, hit send, and your comment will appear so others can see what you've said and will be encouraged to share too!