TLT- Day 2

Desires of the heart: Soul Satisfaction.

Do you have it or not? Where are you turning to find it?

Are we turning to Christ? Or, somewhere else?

Do we have a void only He can fill?

What do we need to confess and ask for His forgiveness?
Only He can cleanse us with the blood of Jesus. There is great power in the resurrection and blood of Jesus Christ!

"There are, of course, many reasons why we overeat (or other sinful practice)—we might desire to find comfort, "medicate" pain, alleviate loneliness and boredom... or we might just be feeling lazy. But this lesson focuses on a more pressing and spiritual reason:

One of the reasons we want to overeat is because the human heart craves fullness and satisfaction." We can use certain things (food, tv, relationships) to fill that need, but only Christ can fill us up. Everything else will leave us empty. We may go searching for more, but we will never be truly satisfied until we come to seek our satisfaction through HIM!

When I am not seeking Him, I seek to fill that need with something else. I am still left unsatisfied… with this longing in my heart. If I am not seeking to allow Him to fill it, it will be left unfilled. Only Christ can give me the satisfaction and contentedness that I need! I need to be seeking Him first and not somewhere in the middle. He needs to be first in my day. My routine does NOT have to remain the same day after day, but I need to be seeking Him first thing each morning. Show me how to seek You first, Lord. Please show me. Help me not to go looking for a routine, but a special relationship with You! In Jesus' name, I ask this~ Amen!

Micah 6:14 uses the words "in the midst of them". NOTHING would be able to satisfy the hearts of the Israelites. Just as it is today, NOTHING but a relationship with Jesus Christ can ever satisfy our hearts!! Our fulfillment can only be found in Christ. Things cannot satisfy my heart: only HE can!! When will I ever "get" it? It is a spiritual problem!

There are 2 types of hunger: physical and spiritual. How do I distinguish eating due to hunger or soul? Please show me, Lord! Physical hunger: stomach rumblings. Heart hunger: feeling empty-lacking heart satisfaction. Needing my Jesus time!!

"Where do we find internal fullness, satisfaction for the heart, and nourishment for our souls? We need more than "chicken soup for the soul." We need real, lasting satisfaction and fullness."

Feeding on Jesus brings life and fullness to our spirit and heart! It is what we have been longing for! We need to be feeding on Him, not seeking other things. Only He can FILL the spiritual void we have in our lives! We need to learn to seek Him first!

Isa 55:2-3 says:

2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,

    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?

Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,

    and delight yourselves in rich food.

3 Incline your ear, and come to me;

    hear, that your soul may live;

and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
my steadfast, sure love for David.

   

TLT- Day 1

The Lord's Table by Setting the Captives Free (Day 1)
Setting Captives Free website

1 Cor. 10:31       Isaiah 48:11         Judges 7:2       Psalm 115:1      
2 Cor. 3:16-18     Hebrews 1:1-4       Psalm 138:5-8

The study focuses on weight loss, but the lessons can be applied to anything. To fixate and seek to control the weight myself is selfishness. To try to control things overselves is foolishness.. We cannot control things. We have no power to control things. Only the Lord can. We need to rely on His power. (See 2 Cor 3:16-18)

It is only in humility and seeking Him that we will receive God's assistance. Why should God help us when we are seeking to do things in our own strength, and not relying on Him? When we seek to do things ourselves, we are cross purposes with God. Matthew 6:33 says: "Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.." Then, God provides. First, we must seek first God and His Kingdom. How can we do that if we are pursuing our own wants? It is about seeking God's glory above all else… Seeking Him, not our wants. Seeking Him! He must be our motivation in everything. Let it all be for HIS glory!!

Today's study quotes:

"The emphasis is not on losing weight or on body image, but rather on consuming Christ and developing biblical discipline in the area of eating."

"It’s important to understand a foundational truth: if we want to change any sinful eating habit, our motives must be right. What is the right motive? The proper biblical motive for losing weight must be the glory of God."

"There is great hope in having the glory of God as our motivation! If we have a purpose in our hearts to glorify God, we are working in concert with God and He will enable us to do what we seek to do. Please don't miss this.."

"If we focus on the glory of God, we will inevitably change from the inside out."

"The glory of God is multi-faceted and difficult to reduce to words, but God has not left us in the dark. (Heb. 1:1-4)" God's glory is wrapped in His son Jesus. To fix my eyes on His glory is to fix my eyes on Christ. To live in such a way that I pursue honoring Him in everything that I say and do. Even seeking to glorify Him by not doing things and not saying things. Choosing carefully, because I seek to glorify Him!

"Every aspect of our lives, including our eating habits, must be based on the proper motives. As we’re confronted with biblical truth in the course of this study, we’ll be encouraged to focus our attention on Jesus Christ for, in doing so, we will inevitably become transformed. And this is our ultimate goal, isn't it?"

Exodus 5:1-9 (Moments of Moses)

I found this line in my Bible study: "Our Lord knows our hearts and remembers our faith, not our failures." Through the blood of Christ, our sins and failures have been forgiven. We could never be "good enough", but thankfully we do not have to… We need to trust in Jesus!

Read Exodus 5:1-9
See Exodus 4: God would use Moses and Aaron to speak to pharaoh. They spoke; Pharaoh's heart was hardened. Pharaoh even created a heavier work burden for the Israelites as a result to keep them from listening to the truth.

"Let My people go that they may worship Me"
God would free His people, so that they were free to worship Him. He would deliver them! Also, He came to set us free--to deliver us~ so we could experience His freedom, and worship and know Him more! We can experience God and enjoy an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ!!

Galatians 5:1 says: "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery."

What are we enslaving ourselves to? Are we denying our flesh? Drawing ourselves toward Christ? Is something in our lives drawing us away from Him? Pharaoh wanted nothing to do with God, and he continued to heavily enslave the Israelites so that they could not hear God's truth. The pharaoh wanted them to "ignore the lies". Slavery will try to detour us from God and His truth.

Moses and Aaron stayed centered on God! They wanted what God wanted. They wanted to honor God. Moses responded to pharaoh by quoting God's words! Who else chose to respond with God's Word? Joshua in Joshua 24:2-3. Nathan in 2 Samuel 12:7-8. Isaiah in 2 Kings 20:1. Let us not forget: Jesus, our Lord, our Savior in Matthew 4 as He gained victory over Satan's tactics. He stood on God's promises, and did not give into the temptations of the devil... Others may think God's words are idle and empty, but they are not. Many in the world refuse to trust God. They refuse to fear God. We need to humble ourselves--coming to Him! Choosing to speak His truth and know Him more even when tactics of the devil and our flesh want to rise against us!

Hebrews 4:12-13 states: 12 "For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable."

Be in His Word!

Know His Word.
Memorize His Word.

Speak His Word.

Be Faithful to HIM!! (Remembering we serve the CHRIST! The Messiah! The Creator!!)

Spending time with Him!

Bringing our burdens to Him!

The big thing is coming to worship Him. We have been given freedom. How are we using our freedom that Christ has given us? Are we using our freedom to serve Him? Worship Him? How are we spending time with Him daily? How are we giving all of ourselves?

Exodus 2:23-25 (Moments of Moses)

As Christians, we need to have contented hearts… there needs to be that balance between contentedness among the restlessness according to the writer Heitzig. We are in this world, but not of it. I like the way she helped me to understand what that meant by this statement: "Longing for eternal treasures , while accepting earthly trials is healthy." Abraham dwelt in a land, but waited for the promise. (Hebrews 11:9-10)

Read Exodus 2:23-25

When the king of Egypt died, it had probably been about 40 years since Moses fled from Egypt. Moses had wandered to foreign land, settling there, welcomed into the land of Midian, but still something was missing. He knew it was not his land, but God would work greatly in his life during this time of relying on God even when his surroundings was not what he envisioned for his life. The Hebrews still faced great bondage. It continued after the pharaoh's death. The Hebrews cried and groaned.

God took action…
God heard their groans.

God remembered his covenant that He begun with Abraham.

God looked on the Israelites.

God had concern for them!

Their cry out to God is what led to His action. God wants us to seek Him. He does not want to just "fix" us. He is all powerful, but He restrains from the yearning to "fix" us, waiting instead for us to come to Him for help. Imagine the divine restraint this requires for He has all power in Heaven  and on Earth... (June 8 of Jesus Calling)

We should be seeking Him, not waiting to see if by chance He chooses to act without us expressing our need. "We have not, because we ask not!" We need to be praying to God, crying out to God, and talking with Him about the burdens we face!! There should be a daily fellowship with our Lord! We need to share with Him what we feel we are in need of. This encourages me to be more in prayer. I need to deepen my relationship with my Father, by talking with Him more and being more in His Word. Talking with Him about the trials, but also the daily things~ enjoying a sweeter fellowship with Him. God CARES! He wants us to come before Him, and talk with Him about the things we face! Of course God knows what we face, but the thing is: God wants us to come to Him! Seeking His counsel and deliverance!

Israel would of known what God was promising to Abraham. They knew God had a plan of deliverance. It is like our struggles though. It is easy to come into a pit when we are heavily burdened. They knew of His promises. God has promises for our own lives too. They are all found in His Word: the Holy, precious Bible. How can we wait patiently for Him to fulfill His promises?

T: Talk with Him
I: Ignite our passion for Him and His promises, by surrounding ourselves with other Christians.
M: Meditate on His Word
E: Entering a closer fellowship with Him daily!

Look at Psalm 61:1-4! ( A Psalm on deliverance)

Main thing is: What is stopping us from having a closer fellowship with the Creator of the Universe and our Savior?!?

When we seem most neglected and forlorn, God is most present with us. -Matthew Henry

Exodus 2:20-22 (Moments of Moses)

Moses went to Midian as a prince. He would return to Egypt as a humble herdsman. The place in Midian would be the place of transformation. He would receive his spiritual calling and gain a humble character…trading Egypt's riches for the richness of God! Learning to depend on the Lord and seeking to be obedient~ choosing God over everything else!

Read Exodus 2:20-22; 4:21-26

Hospitality

Reuel seems like a man of compassion for his daughters. Reuel sought to have his daughters show hospitality to Moses. Moses was given a place to stay and welcomed. He had found his new family and his wife.

Hospitality was essential during OT, and still is. It was a traveler's only hope for survival. They depended on the locals to provide for them… In 2 Kings 4:8-10, Elisha received great hospitality by a Shunammite woman and her husband. They went as far as making a small room on the roof and furnishing it, so that Elisha always had a place to stay when he came into town.

How could we act hospitable to someone this week? It may not be having someone stay or inviting them over for dinner, but there are ways we can show others the love of Christ by our actions toward another. Hebrews 13:2 says: "Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it."

Discipline

 Along the way to Egypt, God dealt with Moses as he does for all his children. "Blessed are those who receive discipline." When we make a wrong turn, He shows us the truth and helps us get back on the right track. Moses had failed to circumcise his son, Gershom. Zipporah was the one who ended up circumcising their son, but she did it in a way to show Moses that he was costing her dearly. She called him a "bridegroom of blood". She blamed Moses for needing to circumcise their son. She may have had something against him not doing it. She may have been mad about leaving, or much more... Instead he did not act, she acted when God spoke loudly about their disobedience..

Whatever Zipporah's issue....
Circumcision was a big deal for Moses! God said "you and your descendants must keep my covenant" to Abraham! Moses was in the family line of Abraham. Why did not Moses seek to keep the covenant. Keeping the covenant by circumcising is essential for the Israelites. It was a sign of following Him. When someone was not circumcised, they would be cut off. Better question: Zipporah was a descendant of Abraham, why was she against the practice? Her reaction as she circumcised her son says alot about her thoughts..

Who He is!
The thing for us to remember is: we should be seeking to following Him and obey Him out of love! We should be recognizing what a holy God He is! He cannot look upon sin... It is because of Jesus' sacrifice and resurrection~ taking on my sins that I am able to have a relationship with the Lord. Sin seperates us from Him. Sin is serious and rarely taken as serious as it should. For Moses, he did not "think" or just did not circumcise his son. It nearly cost him his lives. For us, each day we choose to follow our own desires and pleasures instead of following Him, we face a great cost! God is a loving God. He is also a God of justice! Sin brings death! God sent His only son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins, so that we could have eternal life!! He deserves our ALL, and this is what He desires! We need to be spiritual circumcised--seeking to choose Him, not pursuing our sinful desires.

Exodus 2:16-19 (Moments of Moses)

Moses faced different kinds of experiences. Pink wrote:

"He was the child of a slave, and the son of a queen. He was born in a hut, and lived in a palace. He inherited poverty, and enjoyed unlimited wealth. He was the leader of armies, and the keeper of flocks. He was the mightiest of warriors, and the meekest of men. He was educated in the court, and dwelt in the desert. He had the wisdom of Egypt, and the faith of a child. He was fitted for the city, and wandered in the wilderness. He was tempted with the pleasures of sin, and endured the hardships of virtue. He was backward in speech, and talked with God. He had the rod of a shepherd, and the power of the Infinite. He was a fugitive from Pharaoh, and an ambassador from heaven. He was the giver of the Law, and the forerunner of grace."

Moses was flexible to what GOD wanted to do in his life. It was not easy, but He trusted God. Are we allowing God to work in our lives? Are we trusting Him and being obedient even when faced with life's uncertainties?

Read: Exodus 2:16-19

The people Moses encountered when he arrived in Midian were the daughters of Ruel. Ruel's daughters were shepherdess, who went to the well to water the flock. Opposing shepherds came, seeking to drive away these women.. Moses shows again how he loves justice. Even if he is a learned man and experienced the best of everything, he chose to live a different way: he sought to help the girls to escape the shepherds and not be harmed. Moses even got their water, and watered their flock. The daughters must of enjoyed the protection, knowing that someone had their backs. It must have been hard to be shepherdess and have shepherds trying to chase you away. It may have been a regular occurrence for them, or at least experiencing difficulties with shepherds in general. The daughters of Ruel had a job that they must of done. Even as they went back home after watering the flock with Moses, their father began asking questions. The work must be done…Because of Moses' help, the work was able to be done and the flock was tenderly taken care of, not harmed or stolen.

Read John 4:5-27

Moses and Jesus both met a woman at the well. Both sat by the well, because they were tired from their journey. Moses was traveling alone, while Jesus was with the disciples. The Samaritan gets into a conversation with Jesus, while Moses did not. While Moses was able to temporarily give help to the Midian daughters, Jesus gave the Samaritan living water that would well up to eternal life.

Jesus IS the good shepherd. Moses was God's shepherd for the people of Israel. There is similar to Jesus in some ways, but there is much differences between them. Jesus is fully God, and our Good Shepherd. There is no one like Him! I am called His child, because of Christ my Savior! Many blessings in Psalm 23 about Jesus as my shepherd!

One thing is noted in my study today: "Reuel paid attention to his daughters' routine. God also notices the details of your day. Write a prayer of commitment to meet the Lord each day. Choose a specific time and place. He will notice when you're early or late." My time with Him is so important! But to know He notices when I am late, that is deep. I know I need to keep on digging into His Word and continue meeting daily with Him!

Exodus 2:13-15 (Moments of Moses)

Heb. 11:25-26

In Hebrew 11, it says Moses preferred the hardship for the sake of Christ rather than the pleasures of Egypt and sin. God revealed knowledge to Moses about the Messiah. Moses cut himself off from pharaoh's daughter and all things in Egypt. He chose to identify with the Hebrews, knowing it would mean mistreatment and pain…. All for the sake of Christ. God would bless him and carry him all the way~ never leaving him!

Read: Exodus 2:13-15

The day after Moses killed the Egyptian, he faces an encounter: two Hebrew men fighting, because one man wronged the other. Moses sought to encourage them to stop and do right, but his sin kept him from being able to help another. Moses' sin kept him from being a good witness in this situation, because Moses did the same thing yesterday. He was not much different than the man who is striking the other. Moses sought to help, asking why these companions (brothers of the Hebrew clan) were fighting--why was this one hurting another? News had already spread about what Moses did one day later. The wrongdoer knew what Moses did, and refused to listen to his rebuke. At this point, Moses felt deep fear. I wonder if there was a high amount of guilt felt at this point too, for what Moses had done to the Egyptian. Moses knew that pharaoh would be after him. He knew his life would be on the line, as a result of his actions. Moses ran as far as he could: from Egypt to Midian, where he sat down by the well. I wonder though: how far would it have been from Egypt to Midian?

Recap: Moses did wrong. He got caught. He ran for his life.

We try to escape our wrongs ourselves. Our lives are in danger. The sad part is we do not see it. We still run and try to pretend everything is fine. We run as far as we can… We run instead of confessing what we have done! Scripture teaches us that if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9) We need to come to Him, seeking His forgiveness. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life!

About Moses' act of courage… Moses was right to try to break up the fight, but he had a greater sin..He was not righteous. (See how to not judge: Great article on rebuking and judgment)

Rebuking is of great value. We need to use it diligently, following this passage in Matt 7:1-6. Examining ourselves first! Taking out the plank in our own eye, so we can see clearly (spiritually) to know how to help our brethren. With Moses, he still had the heavy sentencing awaiting him: the wrath of pharaoh. We ourselves need to come to Him (All have sinned and the wage of sin is death), seeking His forgiveness, and praising Him for the work He desires to do in our lives! A serious heart-to-heart time with Jesus! ... Rebuking should be a very important aspect of the Christian life. So many ignore it, when we should help each other grow in our walk with Christ!! We ignore it when people show us a sinful area. Why? The sin of pride. We want to run away... This should NOT be so, folks!!! Rebuking is a gift! It is a gift when others show us sin we may have in our lives to help us see what we are doing that is seriously hindering our walk with God!

Moses ran from his sin…where do we run to escape our sin? Run from friends who tell us the truth? Run to movies? Shopping? Alcohol? Exercise? Eating? The result of sin is eternal death; separation from God and much more. How are we choosing to SEEK HIM today?!? Are we confessing our sins? Willing to have another to show us an area we are sinning against Him? God will use those around us to help us see things we are not seeing with our spiritual eyes!

Exodus 2:11-12 (Moments of Moses)

Despite pharaoh's best attempt to stop Israel from growing, Moses would survive by the grace of God and three women who God used mightily: his birth mother, adoptive mother, and biological sister. Moses would experience an inner struggle of being raised as an Egyptian, but being a Hebrew by birth. This would give him a divided heart.

Read Exodus 2:11-12

When Moses grew up, he saw the burdens of his people (Hebrews). He had the privilege of seeing their burdens without experiencing any of it. He was spared from the heavy burdens of his people, but compassion ripped out from him toward his people. It highly affected him! He wanted to relieve them of their heavy burdens from the oppressor who was his adoptive grandfather. Moses may have been a Hebrew, but he did not have to experience any of the things his brethren did. Imagine what a heavy burden it would of given him! Moses saw how the Egyptians treated the Hebrews.. Moses knew it was wrong and needed to be stopped, but he sought war~ trying to seek justice through violence by killing this Egyptian men. Why do we not treat our enemies with kindness? Treating them the way they treat us is clearly not working! It did not work for Moses. Moses knew murder was wrong. It does not justify it if someone wronged us or one of those we care for. Doing evil, even in repaying evil, is wrong! If only, we would learn this! At times, we allow ourselves to have childlike compassion, but our temper is anything but self-controlled. We need to love and have compassion, but also self control---controlling our tongue and temper… Seeking to glorify Him in everything!

Based on Mark 8:34-38, my study asks the question: Was Moses serving God or man? He was definitely serving man, particular his flesh/sinful self. His sinful self had rage and anger, yet it was uncontrolled. Our sinful self/the flesh wants to do the exact opposite of what God's will for us is. We need to keep seeking the Lord! Asking for His strength, and for Him to show us what to do. God works mightily to accomplish His purposes in our lives, as we yield to Him!

Moses did not handle his temper correctly. He did not manage his emotions. Instead, he let them spill over onto the sand where it would reek of the dead man that Moses killed. I am reminded of how different Moses and Jesus' reactions were to the injustices they saw. Moses saw the injustice and sought to kill the Egyptian man. It would not solve the problem of all the Hebrews being beaten and heavily burdened. In Matthew 21, Jesus is angry with the people. He sees all the injustices being done! Yet, his anger is controlled. He does not hurt the money handlers or those who are turning the temple into a market. Instead, he turns over the table and drives the people out. They both see injustice. It breaks their hearts. But, their reaction is totally different. Also, Ephesians 4:26 points out: "In your anger, do not sin!" God has equipped us with feelings for His reason! This does not mean that we allow our emotions to spill out. We need to be self-controlled! We need to honor God with our emotions.

Honor Him!

Seek Him!
Pray for the injustices we see!
Keep our emotions controlled.

We cannot allow ourselves to go ahead of God in rushing to what God wants to do in our lives. Moses did. He tried to save Israel 40 years too soon! He had not even encountered God yet! We, like many others, have leaps of faith and falls of the flesh. We need to keep denying the flesh, and keep seeking Him! Staying close to Him, His Word, and the Church!!

Exodus 2:5-10 (Moments of Moses)

Exodus 2:5-10

The daughter of Pharaoh and her maidens came to the river, so pharaoh's daughter could bathe…then she saw the basket, and had one of her maidens go to see what it was inside: only to find Moses crying. The daughter of pharaoh was not hard hearted like her father. No instead, she was compassionate toward baby Moses. She knew that the child was a Hebrew, but still she had compassion on him. While her father ordered Hebrew babies (boys only) to be drowned there, she would chose to rescue Moses. This would be a definitive moment that would impact pharaoh's relationship with his daughter.

Miriam willingly offered to get a nurse for pharaoh's daughter. This would be a gutsy move for Miriam. What if someone knew Moses was Miriam's brother? It required her to move by faith alone. Pharaoh's daughter (the princess) meets with Jochebed (Moses' birth mother), and she becomes Moses' nurse for a time then he will be handed over to the princess. Money is also given to Jochebed for being his nurse. God provided for Moses' family. They would not of had much money, and worked hard for what little they did have. This would be something to keep them going, and a blessing from God.. What is interesting is the princess chose a Hebrew name, which meant "drew from water"~ Moses.

Compassion is what motivated and moved the princess… It is described as "a feeling, but it is also an action" in my devotional. It is important to refocus and remind ourselves about compassion. What great compassion the Father has for us! 1 John 3:1 says it like this: "See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" God's compassion for us is enormous! Even when we were His enemies, He chose to send His son Jesus Christ to take our place on the cross, so that we may have eternal life and know the Father. God is a just God, but also full of compassion! (See Ps. 111:4)


God has put on display the compassion that He has for us!

Ps 78:38       Matt 9:36       Matt 14:14          Mark 1:40-41

In His compassion and love, we see a bigger picture of what God has in store for us. We seen how God has provided for Moses and his parents. He provided in a way that only He could. His  love is poured and overflowed in our lives, just as it was for this small Hebrew family.

Check out Isaiah 61:1-3

Our pain                                  His Provision

Poor                                         Good news

Broken hearted                        Took care of broken hearted (Like this...)

Held Captive                            Proclaim liberty

In Prison                                   Set free

Mourn                                      Comfort

Faint spirit                                place of praising Him

God has SO much more He longs to give us! What is stopping us from coming to Him, and truly giving all of ourselves to Him? What keeps us from walking in total obedience?

Matthew 22:37~ "Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."
The expressions mean generally that God is to be loved with all our powers and faculties, and that nothing is to be preferred to him. (Pulpit Commentary)