Author: David LaFrance

Growing up, I can think of many phrases used by many adults when I decided to make some poor choices. I know I deserved many of these words and the consequences that came from the choices I made.   I don’t ever recall Deuteronomy 10:16 being quoted when being talked to. This verse has many versions, but I will use the Good News Version.

¹⁶ So then, from now on be obedient to the Lord and stop being stubborn.

Various mentors from churches and friends’ parents spoke to me in ways that helped plant a seed of truth and a seed to give hope to a disobedient person.  Today I still have those who speak life when the world presses in. Those who, instead of pointing to false hope, point to our true hope.  (I’m reflecting on a recent sermon I just heard)  Who speaks to you when you have any sense of doubt?

Deuteronomy 11:1-2 says, “Love the Lord your God and always obey all his laws. ² Remember today what you have learned about the Lord through your experiences with him. It was you, not your children, who had these experiences. You saw the Lord‘s greatness, his power, his might,

God is with you through it all.  We need to love, trust, and obey.  You may be asking, ” Can I wait?  What if I just put it off till another day or time? But…. as you read a little further.

²⁶ “Today I am giving you the choice between a blessing and a curse— ²⁷ a blessing, if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today; ²⁸ but a curse, if you disobey these commands and turn away to worship other gods that you have never worshiped before. 

We have today.  This is your choice.  What will you choose?

But wait, how long will we have to obey? 

Deuteronomy 12:1  “Here are the laws that you are to obey as long as you live in the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. Listen to them!

As long as we live. We have to listen, learn, trust, obey, and teach.  A while back, a friend of mine was talking about all the many amazing things he was doing to serve the Lord.  It is a true blessing how they were able to do so much.  My initial response based on what I had going on in my life was that I was praying to be more obedient.   I can tell the more obedience I have, the closer I feel to God.

⁸ “When that time comes, you must not do as you have been doing. Until now you have all been worshiping as you please, ⁹ because you have not yet entered the land that the Lord your God is giving you, where you can live in peace. 

Dear Heavenly Father,

You know what we will all face, have faced, and are facing right now.  Let us each take time now to remember and lean in close to the love, grace, and true hope we only have in you.  Father, we know our disobedient selves need you, and nothing in this world will ever give us the true peace that comes from you.  We love you and submit our will to you today.  We need you. 

Amen 

Today’s Reading: Deuteronomy 10-14, Psalm 5, Luke 8

 

God loves us, coming to Him in prayer. There is no other time more intimate than prayer. He hears us when we silence the world and look only to Him.  Have you been able to experience this feeling yet today? The moments we all experience are full of anxiousness, joy, worry, gratefulness, and pain.  The list can go on depending on where you are in your current life stage and/or the circumstance you are walking through.

Psalm 28:6-7

Blessed be the Lord.

Because He has heard the voice of my supplications! The Lord is my strength and my shield. My heart trusted in Him, and I am helped. Therefore my heart greatly rejoices. And with my song I will praise Him.

Do you need strength?

Do you need protection?

Do you need help?

God is present right now.  It helps us stay close to God. We open our hearts to Him, and He can work in and through us.  Our relationship with Him grows closer with each prayer.

C.S. Lewis said, “I pray because I can’t help myself… I pray because the need flows out of me all the time, waking and sleeping. It doesn’t change God. It changes me.”

• Delight yourself in Me; let Me become the Desire of your heart. Psalm 37:4
• “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep praying for the Lords’ people. Ephesians 6:18
• Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Romans 12:12
• Pray continually. 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Today’s Reading: Numbers 12-14, Psalm 28, Colossians 2

Writing for BibleJournal seven years ago seemed like a crazy idea initially.  Going through the bible in a year and having seven writers each week share their reflections, experiences, and wisdom they discovered as they dug into His Word and posted about it.  Yet, I was on fire for the Lord, and I had been able to see through my own and others’ life transformations in the making.  Still, to read through the Bible in a year and write about it all.  Not sure if I would be able to do this.  (I know to realize those thoughts come from the enemy speaking.)

Seven years later, we are still writing.  Like yesterday, when Lyden talked about the blueprint the Lord provides. Every day we get to share His Word, we provide blueprints to a well-lived life.  Whether we are reading, writing, praying, or listening to His Word, it is a day given to Him.

“Incline your ear and come to Me.
Listen, that you may live;
And I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
Isaiah 55:3

What about you? How does your morning, day, or night change when you are in His Word?   Let me count the ways…

Our reading today is Leviticus 12-14, Psalm 111, and Hebrews 5

The following verses grabbed my focus for today.

²Great are the works of the Lord,
    studied by all who delight in them.
³ Full of splendor and majesty is his work,
    and his righteousness endures forever.

We always take a detailed and focused interest in the projects and activities of those we deeply love.  So it is natural that we should love to study the Word of God, beginning with the Bible.

His Word is living and active (Hebrews 4:12)

Each day you spend reading, studying, and living out His Word is the opportunity to provide you with the weapons you need for our war.  You are given divine directions and instructions concerning anything you have going on in your life at this given moment.  The knowledge we receive in the Word leads to a direct path to eternal glory.

I thank you, Lord, for your Word; it is a lamp to our feet (Psalm 119:105 )

 

Have a blessed day!

Today’s Reading: Exodus 19, 20, 21, Psalm 33, and Ephesians 5

As we read through today’s readings, we come upon the Ten Commandments. I pause and meditate to remind us of them and connect some of the new testament verses to the old.

“You shall have no other gods before[a] me.	“‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’” Matthew 4:10
“You shall not make idols.”	“No servant can serve two masters.” Luke 16:13
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.”	But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, Matthew 5:34
“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.”	“The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. Mark 2:27
“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.”	Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, Matthew 10:37
“You shall not murder”	But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother[c] will be liable to judgment; Matthew 5:37
“You shall not commit adultery.	But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. Matthew 5:28
“You shall not steal.”	And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic,[h] let him have your cloak as well. Matthew 5:40
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.	I tell you, on the day of judgment, people will give account for every careless word they speak, Matthew 12:36
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”	“Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” Luke 12:15

Psalm 33:4  For the word of the Lord is upright,
    and all his work is done in faithfulness.

Trust, believe, and obey His words.  If you fall short, turn to Him, repent, and learn to live again.

Ephesians 5:1-2 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. ² And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us.

 

Dear Lord, we pray for obedience.  Your laws were first created to provide us wisdom on how to live and show us how to serve one another.  Yet we often do fall short.  Lord, you then sent your son to model and spoke the truth.  Help us to live these commands out for You and a future place in your Kingdom.  Amen

Have you ever been confused? Silly question, I know. Merriam-Webster defines confused as; disturbing in mind or purpose.  As I reflected on the world today, many people and things can pull you in a direction that can lead you down a path of confusion outside of His Word and purpose for life.

Today’s Reading: Genesis 38-39, Psalm 108, and Galatians 1

I recently talked to a friend about the tug of various influences in my life that had me feeling overwhelmed and confused about what direction to approach.  We then got into the conversation of spiritual warfare and its impact on all of us.  We talked about the devil and his schemes to make us a question and feel confused when things are not going as planned.  We reminded each other that the devil is searching for ways to impact our walk with the Lord daily.  I left the time we shared with an additional resource to keep from this temporary state of confusion. One that I plan to get started on today.  The Weapons of Our Warfare by Kenneth Scott.

I share this recent conversation and resource because of the reminders shared by David and Paul today in our reading.

Psalm 108:12-13 O give us help against those who hate us. For the help of man is worth nothing. 13 With God’s help we will do great things. And He will break under His feet those who fight against us.

Galatians 1:6-7 I am surprised you are leaving Christ so soon. You were chosen through His loving-favor. But now you are turning and listening to another kind of good news. 7 No! There is not another kind of good news. There are some who would like to lead you in the wrong way. They want to change the Good News about Christ.

The Truth and importance of not straying from His Word.  Trying to figure it out myself, relying on my resources, or not seeking His direction through prayer can confuse me.  Our Peace, Hope, and Truth can only come from Him.  Nothing in the world can provide what we think we are looking for.  An enemy is prowling daily, trying to get us confused about what we should believe, trust, and understand about our lives.

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. Matthew 6:9-13 

 

Today’s Reading: Titus 1

We all lead in some way.  Think about who you influence. I’m sure that you didn’t have to go far.  Your home, work, friends, and many spaces in between which allow you to influence others.

Paul provides Titus with the pocket version of leadership for those in the church.  These leadership essentials would be the short and sweet points we can remember today. (v. 6-7)

Blameless	Innocent of wrongdoing and without guilt
Faithful	Steadfast loyalty that isn’t easily swayed
Not Over-bearing	Trying to force others to do what I want
Not Quick-tempered	one who is predisposed to anger and easily provoked

Paul is telling Titus to be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled.  (v.8)

Gracious God, you have called us to be blameless, faithful, not quick-tempered or overbearing.  You have chosen us to be holy; I am ashamed because I am not blameless or spotless and struggle in my leading.  Yet, then I remember that I stand before you, not in my righteousness, but in the character of Christ. I know you are working Your way into my life. Help me, God, to live as one chosen to be faithful, blameless, and loving of You. Thank you for your sound doctrine we can turn to daily to help us live. 

Where have I let compromise change my walk with Him?

10 Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us? why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, by profaning the covenant of our fathers?

Yesterday Lynden gave us a great reminder about the history of the book of Malachi.  This made me reflect more on this book’s value as I thought about today’s reading of chapter 2.  Malachi was a prophet that wrote about what they were doing to break the covenant they once had with the Lord.  Malachi has a pretty straightforward approach.  The approach I need but don’t always like to hear.  

In the book of Malachi, he addresses the areas of faith and practices of the people of Isreal that are just as important to us today.  These areas include

• offerings to the Lord
• marriage and divorce
• financial giving
• leadership
• and living in the presence of the coming day of the Lord

The people of Isreal were making various small compromises in their lives.  These small compromises were changing their attitudes and hearts.  Eventually, this led to a disconnect from the Lord.  Malachi was calling them out.  Telling them to return to the Lord.

In my life, I reflect on the fast pace that can lead to compromise.  Mornings I jump into the day instead of focusing on Him, allowing myself to be short with my kids without showing the same grace He shows me, loving my wife like He loved the church, praising and thanking Him always for everything He provides instead of taking each day for granted, praying with and for the blessings and trials He puts us through with others knowing His plans are higher than ours…

My list could go on and on.  Today I pray for us/me not to compromise.  To return to Him with my whole life instead of the places that feel safe. To deny yourself daily is not easy.  The world has a highlight real of ME focus.  I pray for fewer compromises and more emphasis on His living Word like Malachi provides today.

So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful.

 

I love the outdoors.  The fresh air, the sounds of nature, the colors of trees and leaves, and the endless sight of the setting of the sky filled with clouds or stars.  When finding those moments of closeness to God and His presence, these times outdoors come to the forefront of a place that can help step away from the world’s hustle.  One of my favorite parts of the day is the sunrise that starts the day, revealing all God has created.  This morning as I watched the sunrise, the clouds turned an amazing red/ pink, illuminating the clouds closest to the sun.  A rainbow that stood out among the clouds still dark from the night appeared on the opposite side of the sun.  Amazing God’s daily presence.

When I pause in these moments, I can feel the sun on my face no matter the distance. God’s light is always there.  The grace and light He provides in the dark provide the necessary light to find your way out. The blessings provide the warmth and comfort to provide hope and life to overcome any circumstance we may be going through.

So today, no matter where you are in your circumstances, I pray that God may be gracious to you, bless you, and may His face shine upon you.

Psalm 67