Life or Death Bless or Curse
Pastor Ken Trevithick
Deuteronomy 30:15-20

“See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil, 16in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, that you may live and multiply; and the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess. 17But if your heart turns away so that you do not hear, and are drawn away, and worship other gods and serve them, 18I announce to you today that you shall surely perish; you shall not prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to go in and possess. 19I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live; 20that you may love the Lord your God, that you may obey His voice, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days; and that you may dwell in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them.”

Observation

Moses notes there is a choice for Israel, and thus for mankind, “life and death, blessing and cursing.” Moses also declares his preference for Israel, “therefore choose life.” As Moses looks at the Promised Land, and he realizes the blessings which God wants to bestow on His people, the desire of his heart is for them to experience the fullness of life that God intends. The key to this blessing is “to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments.” Neither God, nor Moses wants to leave His people without direction or hope for the future. It should be noted that Israel is already in relationship with God; they are His chosen people. Obedience to His commands or loving Him were not requirements to belong to Him, but rather the pathway of blessing and life for those He had already chosen.

Application

I am so thankful to be in the family of God. I have come to understand that God’s moral law is to the soul of man as His natural law is to creation. It is God’s desire for me to choose life, but He leaves that choice up to me. I am learning that the blessings of God flow from an active relationship with Him where I participate by responding to the principles He established for life. I have come to understand that God’s moral code is not only written in His Book, but is also born witness to by His Spirit. My conscience, if I listen to it is able to keep me from the curses of life. Truth originates in God; the choice to live in truth and have relationship with Him must come from my heart.

Prayer

Father, I want to thank-you for the relationship I have with You through Your Son, Jesus Christ. I want to thank-you also for the truth of Your word. Help me to love You from my heart, and to walk in the principles of Your word. I so much appreciate the interactive relationship we share.

A Blessed Life

A Blessed Life

Tami Lambertson

Scripture: Deuteronomy 10:12-13
And now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord's commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good?

Observation:
Once again, Moses is laying it out plain and simple on how the Israelites can have a blessed life. This is what God wants from them.

Application:
This is what God wants from me! I try to make things so complicated. I over-think my life, mission, service, and ministry. I feel guilty for not doing more, I worry that I'm not hearing God's voice and obeying the Holy Spirit. I just have the urgency that I'm not DOING enough. All God has commanded me to do is:
1. Fear Him.
2. Walk in His ways - know the Word and keep it.
3. Love Him.
4. Serve Him from my heart.
5. Keep His commands.
If I am LIVING like this, my LIFE will be the testimony. He will do the work. That's the way it's meant to be. My relationship with Him will be obvious to others. That's what will draw people. I need to let go of the guilt, quit trying, and let God orchestrate. I realize I'm just along for the ride, but it's so hard to let God stay in control. I keep wanting to do things and force things in my own strength.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, I love you. I fear you. I try daily to keep your commands, walk in your Spirit, and obey. Forgive me for feeling guilty. Forgive me for worrying. Forgive me for trying to do things in my own strenth. Lord, I pray that you would guide my steps and direct my conversations today. As I live, according to Your plan and purpose, draw others to your grace and power. Surround me with Your presence today. In Jesus' Name.

Salt is Good

Salt is Good
Pastor Tyson Lambertson

Scripture: Mark 9:50 “You must have the qualities of salt among yourselves and live in peace with each other.”

Observation: If the qualities of salt are not among God’s people there will be no peace. If salt looses its flavor, there is no recovering it, it becomes good for nothing.

Application: As salt can loose its saltiness, so a Christian can loose its “flavor.” As salt is good for preserving meats, and making them tasty, so it is good that we be seasoned with grace, for the purifying your hearts and lives, and for spreading the taste of my knowledge, both in your own souls, and wherever ye go. But as salt if it loses its saltness is fit for nothing. If we lose your faith and love, we are fit for nothing.

Prayer: Father, I pray that I never loose flavor. Help me be a person who is seasoned with your word and the Holy Spirit. In Jesus Name…Amen