An Inheritance

I'm in the middle of reading the book of Joshua in the Old testament, and after doing my devotions today, I thought I'd write a little about what I'm learning from Joshua.

So, first off, I just so admire Joshua. He's appointed to lead the Israelites after Moses passes on, and he steps right up into leadership, without question or hesitation. One thing we see God speak to Joshua several times is: "Be strong and courageous." Moses says this to him when he appoints him as leader, and then the Lord speaks it to him several times throughout his life. This is something that has always stood out to me. We don't see Joshua panicking or questioning God, but God is constantly telling him to be strong and courageous. God reminds him repeatedly that He is with him, and that He will never leave or forsake him. God promises those same things to us, only if we would walk in the same kind of faith and trust that Joshua did! It's something I'm learning to do... When we take God at His word, and live without fear, we will see God's promises come alive in our lives.

Another group of people I'm learning from is the Levites. The Levites were set apart in the tribes of Israel as an offering to the Lord; to do the work in the Tent of Meeting(the Tabernacle). It was very high calling. We see in Numbers 8 where the Lord has Moses dedicate the Levites. He presents them as an offering to the Lord--not a burnt offering--but a wave offering.

**A wave offering was something done to accompany the peace offering. If was the offering of the first fruits, that was to be presented("waved" before God) and viewed as holy unto God. It was done, almost as a gift unto God, because of His covenant and communion with the people.**

So for the Levites to be presented as a wave offering to God, was to say - "These are our best men, set apart as holy, to serve Christ." What a honor! It was a high calling to work in the Tabernacle. I was thinking about this because personally I've felt called to ministry in the church, and it's what I'm learning and growing in while I'm here. As I was reading Joshua today, I was reading the sections where Joshua is dividing the land among the tribes, and this is what it say's about the tribe of Levi:

Joshua 18:7 -- "The Levites, however, do not get a portion among you, because the priestly service of the Lord is their inheritance."

I posted a blog last year on "Other's May; You Cannot." and that verse reminded me of it. It talks about how those in ministry are held to a higher standard and, as we often do with God's word, we see it as law instead of freedom. We see the things we can't do and can't have, instead of realizing everything we get to do and have! What a wrong way of thinking! As I read this in Joshua today, I just repented before God for the times when I view ministry as a burden or duty. It's the high calling of God; it's our inheritance!

I never want to get to the place where I feel like serving God is something I have to do, but instead always seeing it as an honor; an inheritance. How amazing is God, that He would choose us-finite, imperfect, human beings-to join Him in His work. He calls us to be holy, as He is holy; to be set apart, as He is set apart. What an honor! I'll take that over anything the world has to offer, any day.

So, those are just my thoughts. I'd love to hear yours! :)

This Is Life

Hey Guys! It's April 16th, I've been gone almost 3 months now and I'm surviving just fine! Who knew... haha :)

The past couple of weeks have been wonderful. Classes are still going great, each lecture is brilliant and I'm still learning SO much. Some days I'm not sure I'm retaining everything... It's a bit overwhelming because you've got the normal school/class schedule, plus church & evening meetings, plus your weekly fieldwork...all the while, God's doing open heart surgery! It's a bit crazy, but completely amazing.

On Monday, my class had our first performance day. Each of us had to sing a song (some did lead and some did background) and then our tutorial leaders assessed us. I was a background vocalist this time, and everything went great! The girl that did the lead vocal was fantastic, so she was super easy to work with. Wednesday, we switched the lead and background vocals, so now we get a go at leading a song. I'm singing a song called "Breathe Slow", we've got very limited rehearsal time, so it should be interesting... but the band and my backing vocalists are great, so it should be a lot of fun!

Recently I've been reading Revelation and God's been talking to me about intimacy and the Fear of the Lord. It's been really good. God keeps revealing himself in different ways, and our relationship has grown leaps and bounds. I've been especially impacted by my Old Testament class. I love unpacking the scriptures; seeing God's plan outworked hrough history and discovering God's character. It's incredible how God is still that same God today.

Other than that, I'm getting really excited for my family coming in July!! It's really close, and we've got some fun things planned. It will be so good to see them! In regards to being homesick, I'm doing so much better! I'm definitely more comfortable and I absolutely adore the friends I've made. I think I'm finally getting the hang of living in the "Now". It's good... God's really given me a peace about things, and a growing joy of being here and purposely seeking Him.

I hope all is well in each of your worlds! I miss and love you all, as always. Thanks for all the prayers and support, I really wouldn't be here without them!

"The Lord bless you and keep you;

the Lord make his face shine upon you

and be gracious to you;

the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace."

-- Numbers 6:24-26