What Do They See?

Today’s Passage – Deuteronomy 27 – 28; Proverbs 9

Second Milers also read – Galatians 1 – 6; memorize John 1:1

“And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.” – (Deuteronomy 28:10)

I was captivated by the verse above. Notice that it says that people will see that the Israelites were called by the name of the Lord. It does not say that the people will hear mere words. The people were not to just talk about their relationship with God, they were to live it; and live it so powerfully that the surrounding nations would fear them.

It is rare today that the world looks into the life of a Christian and sees the hand of God working so evidently and powerfully in them that they are actually feared. For the most part Christians today are mocked and made fun of, but not feared. Why are we the laughingstock of the world today? There are many reasons, but I believe the main one is that our lives do not demonstrate the power and abundance of the life of faith. We dabble in God, but we don’t let Him get all of us, and unless He has all of us He cannot demonstrate His power in our lives.

Christians should be walking billboards illustrating the power and blessing of an omnipotent God. People should be able to take one look at us and tell that there is something radically different about us; something almost intimidating. The story is told of the great preacher, Charles Finney, who visited a factory one day in New York, and after merely making eye contact with a woman in the factory, she began to weep uncontrollably. That is pretty powerful. Our lives should declare loudly and boldly that we are the children of an awesome and all powerful God. People may not agree with us, but if our lives are fully surrendered to the Lord, they should respect us. Do the people around you fear you because of the presence of God in your life, or do they mock you? Sobering thought.


Posted in Thoughts from Deuteronomy by with 2 comments.
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Katelyn Erickson
Katelyn Erickson
13 years ago

Great mid-week motivation! Thanks Dad!

Meredith King
Meredith King
13 years ago

“And they shall be upon thee for a sign and for a wonder, and upon thy seed for ever. Because thou servedst not the Lord thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things…” –Deuteronomy 28:46-47
One of the finest opportunities to show His power and blessing is the ability to blind ourselves to the difference between what we want and what we get.In other words, to be content. Most people(myself being one of them) find it difficult to be thankful when things are not going how we would like. Gratitude doesn’t come easily; how often does it happen that we remain thankful in the face of opposition, challenges, and sad moments in our lives? Do we recognize that it’s God’s hand at work when we succeed and life is going according to plan; or do we take credit for accomplishments? I hope to show the world that I belong to the Lord by thanking Him and keeping a smile on my face even when life is not going how I’d like. Remember-when we grumble because our car needs costly repairs, we can be thankful that we have a car. When we don’t feel like cleaning up after dinner, we can be thankful we have food to eat. If the neighbor’s music is too loud and a nuisance, we can appreciate our ears and ability to hear. When our children give us a hard time, we can think about what it would be like not to have them. Each purportedly negative aspect of our lives can point us to thankfulness. When the roof leaks, we can be happy we have a home. The sink being backed up can remind us we have the blessing of clean,running water. Our aches and pains can help us to be grateful that we can feel. A long trudging walk you never planned to take can bring the realization of life confined to a wheelchair. If we complain about work,we can be grateful we are able to work and not disabled. When we are depressed about things in our life, we can be grateful we have a life. No matter what happens, we can use it as a reminder of the abundance God has given us. Try it; any negative can help us to remember the positive.Not even one sparrow can fall on the ground without our Father’s knowledge and permission; His hand guides our lives just as much whether we see it our not. Just a thought.

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