April 27-May 1

A land of wheat and barley,

of vines and fig trees and pomegranates,
a land of olive oil and honey;
a land where you shall eat food without scarcity,
in which you shall not lack anything;
Deuteronomy 8:8-9a

Moving day is always a bustle of activity. “Throw that away! It’s no good! Don’t know why we’ve kept it this long!” “No, leave that behind! We aren’t going to need it!” “Put that where we can get to it easily!” “Handle that with care! It’s extremely valuable and important!” Moses continues to give the orders that will prepare the Israelites for the big “move.” He continues to prioritize and instruct. Some things are not to be taken into the land where they are going, while other things are to be handled with the utmost of care.

Ten years ago Greg and I discovered that we were not going to be able to build the extension for the offices on our house due to the setback lines on our property. We put our house up for sale while we hunted for a new one. Once we found it, we found ourselves in a dilemma because our house hadn’t sold yet. It was a frustrating time for the next couple of weeks. I found myself stressing and anxious. One day I finally said to God, “Why am I so anxious? If this house never sells and I have to stay here, why am I concerned? I have always loved this home, so why can’t I just be content?” God’s answer came quickly as He said, “Because your hope is set on someplace else.”

Moses understood the power of hope! Although he is diligently making sure they understand that the Law of God is to govern them when they enter the land, he is also encouraging their hope. He skillfully painted the picture that where they were going was far more pleasant than where they were. As wanderers, they never knew when they would have to pick up and leave. There was no such thing as planting crops, trees, or vineyards. Honey does not exist in the barren wilderness. Where there are no flowers, there is no honey! Cultivating and enjoying wheat, barley, vineyards, fig trees, pomegranates, olive trees, and honey all spoke of being planted; staying in one place long enough to see the fruit of it! Can we even begin to imagine what that would have meant to these desert drifters?

For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing forth in valleys and hills. Deuteronomy 8:7

What a powerful hope! How many times had the children of Israel wondered if they would survive the desert because of lack of water? Perhaps that’s what Moses failed to understand when God led this second generation of Israelites to Kadesh where there was no water. Didn’t God know the place lacked water? Of course He did! Could it be that God was creating in them a greater thirst than that of a mere drink of water? What must God’s promise of brooks of water, fountains and springs, flowing forth in valleys and hills have sounded like to their thirsty souls? No more uncertainty of camps without water! A study of the water sources mentioned reveals even greater promise. “Brooks” of water (lAjÅn) only flow when there is an abundance of rain. “Fountains” (NˆyAo) speak of waters below the surface of the earth, while “springs” allude to unfathomable depths and boundless resources as the water supply. What hope these promises would have brought! After all they had experienced, these words could have only caused a greater thirst for possession of the land.

On Wednesday we hear Moses speak some pretty strong instructions.

“When you drive out the nations that live there, you must destroy all the places where they worship their gods – high on the mountains, up on the hills, and under every green tree. Break down their altars and smash their sacred pillars. Burn their Asherah poles and cut down their carved idols. Completely erase the names of their gods! (Deuteronomy 12:2-3)

“Completely erase the names of their gods!!!” I can’t hear Moses speak those words without wondering how it could possibly be that we Christians call the highest holy day of the year, the day that Jesus assured salvation for us, by the name of the most detestable god mentioned. The only god, actually goddess, mentioned by name in this instruction is Asherah. She was the mother goddess, also known as the goddess of fertility. In German she was known as Ēostre, pronounced Easter in English. Why was Resurrection Sunday removed from its connection with Passover and moved to the time of the celebration of Ēostre? Why was the name changed from “The Great Sabbath” and “Resurrection Sunday” to “Easter?” Why have the symbols and customs of Ēostre, the Ēostre bunny, eggs, egg hunts, etc, survived in Christian celebrations? Ham was substituted for lamb, and hot-crossed buns took the place of unleavened bread, while Passover traditions, and the Passover meal Jesus instructed us to remember Him by were tossed aside? Oh God, where did it all go so wrong!!! I have to believe Satan takes great delight in keeping this name “Easter” alive! So much for erasing the name of their gods!!!

Moses continues to review the instructions God had given to the first generation at Mt. Sinai. You may be asking, “Haven we heard all of this before?” But unlike all of us who have a copy of the “Manual” in our hands, the Israelites learned by hearing and repetition. And since it is a proven fact that we only retain 10% of what we hear, it makes sense that we see these things repeated over and over. And to think I was concerned that I might preach the same message twice in one place!!!

Ahhh yes, so much to do, so much to set in order before the big move! It won’t be long now before we start heading into the land. Hopefully, we won’t forget all that we’ve heard once we get there!!!

XXXXXX

Trail Stops

This week I am going to give you a challenge. Rather than me posting questions for each day, I’m asking you to post something that you read, and when read it you said, “Wow, I never saw that before!” I think it would be great to just share around the campfire for a while. I look forward to hearing what has come to life for you. I’m sure we will all be blessed!!!

Special Information

We have received several requests for the reading schedule. Some are new people, some are confused people, and some can't remember where they put their schedule. To help you in whatever situation you may be in, I am posting a copy of the reading schedule here. We are also putting a copy of it on our website at www.carpentermin.bizland.com. I'm including the schedule for those who are using the same Bible as we are (The One Year Chronological Bible NLT - with the red cover. See blog at the beginning of the year), and also the one for those who are using a different Bible. Hope this helps!


SCHEDULE FOR ONE YEAR CHRONOLOGICAL BIBLE
APRIL 2009
Date Pages Read up to, but not including
Wed 1 228-231 The Census of the Levites
Thu 2 231-235 Protecting Marital Faithfulness
Fri 3 235-239 The Israelites Leave Sinai
Mon 6 239-242 Twelve Scouts Explore Canaan
Tue 7 242-245 Read to end of page
Wed 8 246-249
Thu 9 No Reading
Fri 10 No Readng
Mon 13 249-253 Moses Strikes the Rock
Tue 14 253-256 Balak Send for Balaam
Wed 15 256-260 Balaam’s Third Prophecy
Thu 16 260-264 The Tribe of Judah
Fri 17 264-267 Joshua Chosen to Lead Israel
Mon 20 267-271 Laws Concerning Vows
Tue 21 271-275 Remembering Israel’s Journey
Wed 22 275-279 Women Who Inherit Property
Thu 23 279-283 Victory over Sihon of Heshbon
Fri 24 283-286 There is Only One God
Mon 27 286-290 The Privilege of Holiness
Tue 28 290-293 New Tablets of Stone
Wed 29 293-297 A Warning against Idolatry
Thu 30 297-300 Passover and the Festival of …

MAY 2009
Date Pages Read up to, but not including
Fri 1 300-304 Cities of Refuge
Mon 4 304-307 Regulations for Sexual Purity
Tue 5 307-311 Harvest Offerings and Tithes
Wed 6 311-314 Curses for Disobedience
Thu 7 314-318 A Call to Return to the Lord
Fri 8 318-320 The Song of Moses
Mon 11 321-324 Moses’ Death Foretold
Tue 12 324-328 The Death of Moses
Wed 13 328-331 Read to end of page
Thu 14 332-335 Ai Defeats the Israelites
Fri 15 No Reading
Mon 18 335-338 The Gibeonites Deceive Israel
Tue 19 338-341 Read to end of page
Wed 20 342-345 The Land Give to the Tribe Gad
Thu 21 345-349 The Inheritance of Ephraim
Fri 22 349-353 The Land Give to Issachar
Mon 25 353-356 Territory for the Levites
Tue 26 356-360 The Lord’s Covenant Renewed
Wed 27 360-363 The Lord’s Messenger Comes..
Thu 28 363-366 Read to end of page
Fri 29 No Reading

JUNE 2009
Date Pages Read up to, but not including
Mon 1 367-371 Gideon Becomes Israel’s Judge
Tue 2 371-374 Gideon Kills Zebah & Zalumnn
Wed 3 374-377 Shechem’s Revolt against …
Thu 4 377-381 Jephthah’s Vow
Fri 5 381-385 Samson’s Vengeance on the …
Mon 8 385-388 Micah’s Idols
Tue 9 388-391 Israel’s War with Benjamin
Wed 10 391-395 Elimelech Moves His Family …
Thu 11 395-399 The Descendants of Boaz
Fri 12 399-402 Elkanah and His Family
Mon 15 402-406 The Lord Speaks to Samuel
Tue 16 406-408 The Philistines Return the Ark
Wed 17 409-411 Saul Meets Samuel
Thu 18 411-415 Samuel’s Farewell Address
Fri 19 415-419 Israel Defeats the Philistines
Mon 22 419-423 Samuel Anoints David as King
Tue 23 423-426 Israel Routs the Philistines
Wed 24 426-430 David Escapes to Ramah
Thu 25 430-434 David at the Cave of Adullam
Fri 26 434-437 Psalm 52
Mon 29 437-441 Nabal Angers David
Tue 30 441-444 Read to end of page

SCHEDULE FOR OTHER BIBLES

April 20-24

But watch out!

Be careful never to forget what you yourself have seen.

Do not let these memories escape from your mind as long as you live?

And be sure to pass them on to your children and grandchildren
Deuteronomy 4:9

Memory is a powerful gift; that God-given ability to recall experiences, instructions, and conversations of the past. This week we walk with Moses as he prepares to hand over the leadership mantle he has walked in for the past forty years. As he sets things in order to pass the baton to the new commander in chief, Moses spends a great deal of time recalling the journey they’ve been on.

Our week begins with Moses reminding the Israelites of their responsibility in the daily offerings, sacrifices for Sabbaths, new moons and sacred festivals. It was a reminder that God was not to be relegated to three holidays a year – He was to be honored and remembered every day!

Tuesday we go into battle with Moses and the sons of Israel. You remember Balaam, you know, the one that wasn’t as smart as a dumb ass, the man who could speak the word of God, but didn’t know the heart of God! If we remember what we read concerning Balak’s summoning of Balaam to curse the Israelites, Phinehas’ zeal to stop the corruption that had come into the camp because of cult prostitution, and the numbering of the warriors, we will more fully understand the war against the Midianites. Remember that God had told Moses he was to strike the Midianites for what they had done. This is why God had instructed them to number the troop; it was preparation for war! God’s instruction was that Phinehas the priest that should lead them. Of course it would be Phinehas! He was the one who zealously and fearlessly stood against the infiltration of the Minianites damning influence. As you can quickly see, to understand all that is being said this week, we needed to be paying attention to the details or our journey last week.

We also learn the true nature and character of last week’s would-be holy man, Balaam. Balaam was determined to curse what God blessed. If he couldn’t get God to speak a curse over His people, he would get them to curse themselves. Disobedience to God’s commands brings its own curse. Just get them to go against His word and they will reap the consequences of their disobedience. Today there are many people who are determined to break generational curses over people, but never address the root of disobedience and wrong choices. There are more people who are destroying themselves through their willful disobedience than those who are suffering from curses. God’s Word declares that if we walk in obedience, we WILL be BLESSED. God’s promises and blessings are far more powerful than the curses of man! But His blessing requires obedience!!!

We continue to watch Moses put all things in order. Moses begins a mental journey of God’s faithfulness to them. He has been keeping record of every stop they’ve made and every experience they gone through. He reminds them of where they’ve come from, while turning their focus on where they are going. They are about to go from wanderers to warriors, to settlers. He is speaking to people who have only known life as vagabonds. Most of them weren’t even born when they left Egypt and those who were, had to be under the age of nineteen when they left, and were not counted in the first census. Moses had to cause this second-generation army to embrace the challenge with more determination than their fathers possessed. He had to get them to understand that this was their battle, and they could obtain what their predecessors failed to possess. And so Moses begins the task of rehearsing all that they have come through. The journey has been long, but there is victory and blessing waiting for them if they will be faithful and obedient! Oh God, give us ears to hear and hearts to obey!!!

April 13-20

Personal Note:
Before I begin the entry for April 13-17 (Which is coming at the end of the week, instead of the beginning), I want to thank you for your patience. I’ve just returned from five weeks in New Zealand. My clothes are still waiting to be unpacked. I’m still trying to get my body to get out of bed at 7:30 a.m., while trying to convince it that it needs to become sleepy before 12:00 am. My last couple of weeks in New Zealand couldn’t have been any busier and there were just not enough hours in the day to accomplish everything that was on my to-do list. I didn’t want to completely skip over this week’s entry. Hopefully, “Better late than never,” applies to this situation. Anyway, I apologize for the tardiness of the entry and thank you for your understanding. Heaps of blessings on your head!


APRIL 13-20

The people spoke against God and Moses,
“Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness?
For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this miserable food.”
Numbers 21:5

It’s amazing what we humans can find to grumble about. Psalm 78:23-25 tells us

Yet He commanded the clouds above, and opened the doors of heaven; and He rained down manna upon them to eat, and gave them food from heaven. Man did eat the bread of angels; He sent them food in abundance.

Angel’s bread!!! Provisions from heaven!!!! And still they complained. It just goes to prove that mankind has a tendency to only be happy when God answers our prayers our way! Heaven’s best can still be a source of contention if it’s not what we want. I wish that this were only true for the Israelites, but we Christians (myself included) can often murmur if God’s answers don’t fulfill our requests according to our desires.

We’ve covered a great deal of territory this week. We’ve gone from the high priest’s walking stick becoming fruitful overnight, to Moses and Aaron making the biggest mistake of their lives! “Why was God so harsh on them,” you may ask. The answer to that question is actually found in a couple weeks’ time, but we can look ahead for a moment. Moses is giving his last speech to the children of Israel before he goes up into the mountain to die. He gives a few more details of the conversation he and God had after he failed to speak to the rock. God said he would die on the mountain and not enter the land because he “broke faith” with Him. Because of the grumbling of this new generation, Moses and Aaron felt they would do the same thing their fathers had done, and for a brief moment, Moses and Aaron feared that God would not be able to keep His promise. They doubted God’s ability and magnified the younger generation’s weakness. They lost faith! Obviously, they were not seeing the scene from God’s perspective. God’s attitude toward them was not the same as it had been with their fathers. With the first generation, God told Moses to strike the rock; with this generation He had instructed Moses to speak to the rock. The anger Moses expressed to this generation was Moses’ anger, not God’s! God’s words were, “You did not treat Me as holy!” Sometimes it is easy to mistake our reaction to a situation as God’s. I don’t think anyone is more capable of teaching this seminar than Moses!!!!

On Wednesday we met a dumb ass that was smarter than a “religious” man. Oh, the lessons we can learn from Balaam. Here is a man that prides himself on only saying what God would have him say. Interesting how this story comes on the heels of Moses disobedience and harsh words. The only thing Balaam can speak is blessing, but although his words are right, his heart is wrong! Remember this man’s name and what he did! We haven’t heard the last of him!!!!!!!

Friday begins the preparations for going into the land. Before the Israelites begin the battles of conquest, God has them number their troops again. It is interesting to see how each tribe grew or diminished during their wanderings in the wilderness. You may want to take the chart below and fill in the blanks to see where each one stands. Not only did this census muster the troops, it was to serve as a gauge for dividing the inheritance of each tribe. God is putting the details in order, as they get ready to take the land! How exciting!!!

*****

TRAIL STOP
Although we have already passed through this area, you may want to go back and make note of the answer to these questions. Once again, I’m sorry for the delay.

Tuesday
1. Where was Miriam buried?
2. Where was Aaron buried?

Thursday
There is an interesting connection between Phineas and the man he killed. This was the man who brought the prostitute into his tent in broad daylight, in front of Moses and all the leaders of Israel. Can you find the subtle connection?

Friday
1. Which of Jacob’s sons has the largest number of warriors?
2. Who were all the women named in the census of the tribes?

We sent this chart out a while ago. You can either fill in the one you have or download this one. We have also blitzed a copy to all of those who are registered with us. Enjoy!












Note: For those who are unfamiliar with downloading a picture, all you have to do is:
1. left click on the image you want to download
2. right click and select "Save Image As"
3. choose a name for the image and the location where you'd like to save it so you are able to find it when you want it.
4. click "save" and you're done!

Once you've done that, you can insert the image into a document using Microsoft Word or Works, or any other program you desire and you can then make it any size you choose.

Special Entry

Hi fellow journeyers. I just wanted to let you know that I will get to the questions you have posted at the beginning of next week. My schedule has been extrememly busy and I just not have had to the time to address them. Thank you for your understanding and patience! Heaps of blessings on your heads!!!!!

April 6-8

If the Lord is pleased with us, then He will bring us into this land, and give it to us – a land flowing with milk and honey.
Numbers 14:8


Although this week our journey is shorter than normal due to the events we will celebrate, the territory we cover is of major importance. Here we are, standing with Moses and the Israelites, on the brink of seeing God fulfill His promise to His people. The land God promised them is in our view and the first step, spying out the land, has commenced. God’s instruction to the 12 spies sent into the land was to get a good look at six things - the land, the people living in the land, the towns, the soil, the trees and the produce. God wanted them to see that the land was worth the fight. He also wanted them to see that they could not do it without Him. To take the land was going to require faith in God’s ability to drive out the inhabitants, which He had already promised them He would do!

You can only stop and ask, “How could they have seen so much of God’s power and provision, and still fail to believe He was able to perform His word and keep His promise?” And yet as we walk within the confines of the camp on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, it is not too difficult to put your finger on a large portion of the problem. Almost as soon as the Israelites leave Mt Sinai, we hear the murmurings of the mixed multitude. Egyptians, who had married Israelites and those who came along with them for other reasons, now longed for “home.” If they were that homesick, why didn’t they just gather together and head back to where they came from? They were ready to get rid of Moses anyway. Why not just appoint a leader and leave? But that wouldn’t do. They had to spread their discontent to everyone who would give them an ear. They complained about anything and everything. They complained about the food, they complained about the leadership. Manna satisfied man’s hunger, but it could not satisfy a greedy appetite! They had come along for the journey because they desired the comforts of life, not because they wanted to know the God who had delivered them. Their constant complaining made Moses’ burden so heavy that he cried out, “Either help me or kill me!!!”

Moses hardly gets a chance to breathe after that crisis, when his brother and sister decide it’s their turn to take a jab at him. I mean, they haven’t even gotten to Canaan yet, for goodness sakes!!!!!!! Here Moses is doing everything God instructs him; he elevates Aaron as high priest and his sons to the priesthood. He and his sons are given the greatest distinction of anyone in the camp, and yet Aaron is swayed by a discontented sister. Miriam and Aaron look on Moses as inferior because he had not married an Israelite. It is obvious that Miriam was the ring leader of this discontented duo; she was the one who bore the mark of God’s displeasure. When Moses intercedes for her, God says, “If her father had but spit in her face, would she not bear her shame for seven days?” Unfortunately, we know that Aaron was a man who could be swayed. All we need to do is go back to Mt. Sinai and remember the golden calf.

It is not difficult to see why Miriam was so frustrated. She was a leader in her own right. Micah 6:4 says, “Indeed, I brought you up from the land of Egypt and ransomed you from the house of slavery, and I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam,” but her realm of authority was significantly less than both Aaron’s and Moses’.

There is an odd connection between the events of the murmuring multitude, the critical sister, and the way God dealt with them. With the multitude, God fed them flesh until it came out their nostrils. With Miriam her flesh was eaten up with leprosy. In both cases, flesh was the end result. Those who craved the flesh gorged themselves on it and died. Miriam, on the other hand, dealt with the shame of her flesh, the leprosy, and was restored.

On Tuesday we once again see the power of the tongue. Ten men, who cannot see with the eye of faith, and have quickly forgotten the power of their God, are able to sway the whole army with the exception of two. Do you remember how many fighting men were counted in census?!?!? And if that isn’t enough, wait until you get to Wednesday!!!!!!!!! The only thing that saved the Israelites was that Moses was more concerned with what the nations would think about God and His abilities, than he was about making a name for himself. Every time I read the account of Moses’ life, I have greater respect for the man.

I pray that as we enter this week of remembering Passover, the cross, and the Resurrection, we will consider the deliverance of the Israelites and their lack of faith to enter into the promises God had for them. May we be reminded that we can short-circuit God’s plans in our lives as well, if we get caught in the trap of murmuring, complaining, and reaching beyond our God-given realm of authority. Flesh must die, so how about if we willingly place it on the altar and deal with it ourselves. It’s a whole lot better than God having to deal with it!!!

***

Trail Stops

Monday

Moses' wife had a brother. What was his name?

Tuesday

1. What was Joshua's other name?

2. When the people grumbled, they said that something would happen. God said that their words would come to pass. What had they said?

3. When the people grumbled, they said that something would happen. God said that it would NOT be as they said. What had they said?

Wednesday

Who took part in the rebellion of Korah and what tribes were they from?