From: takeaminute+noreply@googlegroups.com
Date: Sun, 23 May 2010 11:27:42 +0000
Subject: Take a Minute Digest for takeaminute@googlegroups.com - 2
Messages in 2 Topics
To: Digest Recipients <takeaminute+digest@googlegroups.com>
=============================================================================
Today's Topic Summary
=============================================================================
Group: takeaminute@googlegroups.com
Url: http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute/topics
- -- Sunday, 5/23/10 -- AGAINST ALL ODDS -- Joshua 5:1 [1 Update]
http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute/t/21d4ffbd53e65976
- -- Saturday, 5/21/10 -- STAYING IN FOCUS -- Joshua 4:1-3 [1 Update]
http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute/t/ec7d7e129f33d652
=============================================================================
Topic: -- Sunday, 5/23/10 -- AGAINST ALL ODDS -- Joshua 5:1
Url: http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute/t/21d4ffbd53e65976
=============================================================================
---------- 1 of 1 ----------
From: "J.R. & Bonnie Ricks" <j-r-and-bonnie@dogwoodministries.org>
Date: May 22 01:21PM -0500
Url: http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute/msg/8f2849ff6a688b6d
Take a Minute is a daily devotional ministry of
Dogwood Ministries, Inc.
If you need prayer. contact our partners in ministry.
SJ <http://sjministries.co.uk/> Ministries - Ministry of Prayer
Or simply send your request to SJMinistries@aol.com
All other requests, please see the end of the devotional
for Dogwood Ministries addresses
AGAINST ALL ODDS -- Joshua 5:1 NIV
Now when all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite
kings along the coast heard how the LORD had dried up the Jordan before the
Israelites until we had crossed over, their hearts melted and they no longer
had the courage to face the Israelites.
Israel was in an odd position. Forty years earlier, they had stood in the
same spot, with the same opposition. And they had failed because they had
placed their faith in themselves rather than in God. Now they stood in the
same place with the same opposition, but now the odds were in their favor.
Now they had a different reputation. Now they were a formidable fighting
force who had defeated several great warlords and taken over their land. In
the process of taking the children of Israel through the wilderness, God had
not only taught them many valuable lessons, He had changed the attitudes of
those around them. No longer were they that motley crew of slaves who'd
managed to outrun the Egyptians. No longer were they a seemingly spineless
hoard of misfits. Now they and their God presented a terrifying picture to
the people of Canaan. Now they were organized, obedient, faithful, and
strong. God had not changed, but the children of Israel were very
different. And now God had overcome the opposition for them. No one left
in Canaan had the courage to fight Israel.
How very many times have we seen God do the same thing today? Take a look
at your own life. Who were you when you first came to Jesus? What kind of
reputation did you have? Has that reputation changed any? Is it still
changing? Have you changed any? Are you still changing? Are you wandering
in the wilderness right now? Or are you standing at the edge of the
Promised Land, primed and ready to go in? If you're just beginning your
journey, be delighted and excited - God is about to teach you some wonderful
and glorious things! If you're "wandering in the wilderness," praise God
that He loves you enough to teach you, to work with you, to help you to grow
in Him. If you're standing at the edge of the Promised Land, be excited,
and keep your mind and spirit focused on God. on what He's done before and
what He's about to do. And don't worry about the opposition. God can
handle it. You just keep your eyes on Him.
--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~-
-
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"TakeAMinute" group.
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
takeaminute-unsubscribe@googlegroups.com
For more options, visit this group at
http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute
General correspondence or to subscribe to Take a Minute:
J-R-and-Bonnie@dogwoodministries.org
Donations to Dogwood Ministries: http://www.dogwoodministries.org
<http://www.dogwoodministries.org/>
Personal correspondence to Bonnie Ricks: bonnie@dogwoodministries.org
Personal correspondence to J.R. Ricks: j-r@dogwoodministries.org
--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~-
-
=============================================================================
Topic: -- Saturday, 5/21/10 -- STAYING IN FOCUS -- Joshua 4:1-3
Url: http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute/t/ec7d7e129f33d652
=============================================================================
---------- 1 of 1 ----------
From: "J.R. & Bonnie Ricks" <j-r-and-bonnie@dogwoodministries.org>
Date: May 21 02:37PM -0500
Url: http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute/msg/2cc89685eefb8468
Take a Minute is a daily devotional ministry of
Dogwood Ministries, Inc.
If you need prayer. contact our partners in ministry.
SJ <http://sjministries.co.uk/> Ministries - Ministry of Prayer
Or simply send your request to SJMinistries@aol.com
All other requests, please see the end of the devotional
for Dogwood Ministries addresses
STAYING IN FOCUS -- Joshua 4:1-3 NIV
When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD said to
Joshua, "Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe, and
tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan from right
where the priests stood and to carry them over with you and put them down at
the place where you stay tonight."
Okay. The Israelites are across the Jordan. They came across on dry
ground, demonstrating God's great power to them and building their
formidable reputation with the inhabitants of the land. These guys are not
to be messed with!
They probably didn't look like much. After all, they'd grown up living in
tents all over the wilderness. Not much time for the finer things in life,
like nice clothes, fancy armor, high tech weapons, good haircuts. Not dirty
or anything, because they were really into clean. But not fancy by any
means.
And they were probably getting pretty antsy. After all, they had been ready
the day before when Joshua had made them stop and listen to what God had to
say. Then they had seen that fantastic miracle of the Jordan being stopped
in its tracks. They had to be on a spiritual high. They were definitely on
the mountaintop. They were ready to take on anything the inhabitants of
this land had to dish out. They were primed. They were ready. They were
set on "go".
And God said, "Nope. Not yet, folks. I want a monument built before you do
anything else." His instructions were that twelve men (one from each tribe)
should get twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan River - from the spot
where the priests were standing with the Ark - and build a monument on the
bank of the river marking the spot where they crossed. The people probably
thought, "Hey, this could wait until later, couldn't it? We've got battles
to fight!"
No, it couldn't wait until later. Why? Because later they wouldn't
remember how high they had been. Later, they'd find some other excuse to
put it off. Later, they would forget completely.
You and I are the same. We get to the top of a spiritual mountain. We're
flying high. And within days, we've forgotten what God did for us. We're
so low, we can't even remember. But if we would stop at that moment, at
that high and glorious moment, and build a monument - something as simple as
a brief note about what God just did that we stick on our bathroom mirror -
when we eventually come down off the mountain, we can look at the monument
and remember. If we wait, life will get in the way, and we won't remember
what happened well enough to write the note... or to build the monument.
--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~-
-
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"TakeAMinute" group.
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
takeaminute-unsubscribe@googlegroups.com
For more options, visit this group at
http://groups.google.com/group/takeaminute
General correspondence or to subscribe to Take a Minute:
J-R-and-Bonnie@dogwoodministries.org
Donations to Dogwood Ministries: http://www.dogwoodministries.org
<http://www.dogwoodministries.org/>
Personal correspondence to Bonnie Ricks: bonnie@dogwoodministries.org
Personal correspondence to J.R. Ricks: j-r@dogwoodministries.org
--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~-
-
No comments:
Post a Comment