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Message summary: Throughout the Bible we have many warnings. People must choose between the gods of the age or the one eternal true God. Today, let us reverence the Lord our God and renounce the many false gods of our age. Let us determine that we will faithfully serve Him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength!
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"To
whom can I
speak and give
warning? Who
will listen to
me? Their ears
are closed so
they cannot
hear. The word
of the LORD is
offensive to
them; they
find no
pleasure in
it” (Jeremiah
6:10). “But
they were
unfaithful to
the God of
their fathers
and
prostituted
themselves to
the gods of
the peoples of
the land” (1
Chronicles
5:25). "Take
care,
brothers, lest
there be in
any of you an
evil,
unbelieving
heart, leading
you to fall
away from the
living God"
(Hebrews
3:12).
Several
weeks ago I
had a dental
bridge
installed,
essentially a
false tooth
glued in
beside two
existing
natural teeth.
I was missing
a front lower
tooth which
had fallen
out. That
would be fine
if I was
acting as a
hillbilly at
Silver Dollar
City in
Branson.
My dentist recommended I use a water jet flosser to keep the space under the new tooth clean so among my exciting Christmas gifts this year was a Philips Sonicare Cordless Power Flosser.
The device works by squirting a very strong, concentrated stream of water. Now I have a confession to make, I don't always read all the warnings and cautions that come with most new products today. But I did look over the list for the water jet flosser and want to share two possibly helpful highlights for our readers:
1)
It should not
be used to
wash the eyes.
Just in case
any of our
thoughtful
readers would
consider doing
that!
2)
It should not
be used above
4500 meters.
So when you
climb a
mountain above
15,000 feet or
if you happen
to live in the
world's
highest
inhabited
place, La
Rinconada,
Peru do
not use this
flosser.
(By the way,
if anyone
reading this
happens to
live there I
would find
that very
interesting.)
Wherever
you are today
you are
surrounded by
warnings and
cautions. In
fact we are so
flooded with
warnings that
we may tend to
ignore even
reading them
since they
generally
state the
obvious. Even
a tube of
toothpaste has
a warning.
Some warnings
are needed;
many others
are imposed by
the legal
system as a
precaution
against a
potential
lawsuit. Some
warnings
ignore common
sense (like
using a dental
flosser to
wash your
eyes) in part
due to the
fact that many
lack common
sense these
days and
others might
be illogical,
even humorous
such as these:
- Warning on a small Ziploc bag: Do not climb inside this bag and zip it up. Doing so will cause injury and death.
- Warning label on a baby stroller: Remove child before folding.
- Warning label on a wheelbarrow: Not intended for highway use.
- Warning label on Apple’s website: Do not eat iPod Shuffle.
- Warning label on a carpenter’s electric drill: This product not intended for use as a dental drill.
- Warning label on a dishwasher: Do not allow children to play in the dishwasher.
But
there's
nothing funny
about the
warnings of
Scripture,
even though
for many they
are a source
of mockery. We
must never
grow hardened,
indifferent or
neglectful of
these
warnings.
Today’s verses
are certainly
not the
typical
Scriptural
promises of
encouragement
we normally
use in this
devotional
series, but we
can be
thankful for
God’s warnings
and should
actually see
them as
evidence of
His love. The
apostle Paul
wrote in 1
Corinthians
10:6 regarding
the spiritual
failures of
people in the
past, "These
things
occurred as
examples to
keep us from
setting our
hearts on evil
things as they
did".
Today’s second
verse is an
historical
record
regarding the
descendants of
the half tribe
of Manasseh.
They had a
reputation as
being "brave
warriors,
famous men,
and heads of
their
families"
(v. 24). But
spiritually
they had
failed
miserably as
bluntly
described in
our daily
text, "They
were
unfaithful to
the God of
their fathers
and
prostituted
themselves to
the gods of
the peoples of
the land".
We may on the
surface
consider this
verse to be a
mere record of
the apostasy
(falling away)
of an ancient
people (this
happened some
3000 years
ago). Surely
such a crude
and graphic
expression of
apostasy would
not apply to
our day would
it?
Well, let’s
open our eyes!
It's not any
different!
The
character of
God has not
changed. His
holiness and
hatred of sin
has not
diminished one
iota. "For
I am the LORD,
I change not"
(Malachi 3:6).
Surely His
assessment of
the condition
of modern
humanity would
be the same as
that of
today’s verse,
although the "gods
of the people
of the land"
are modernized
to reflect our
time period.
In our
estimation we
may feel that
we’re more
sophisticated
than past
peoples.
Throughout the
centuries
people must
choose between
the gods of
this age or
the one
eternal true
God. Today,
let us
reverence the
Lord our God
and renounce
the many false
gods of our
age. Let us
determine that
we will
faithfully
serve Him with
all our heart,
soul, mind and
strength!
Be encouraged today, Hebrews 3:13
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer:
Father, we
want to serve
You with all
our heart
loving You
above
everything and
everyone. We
want to serve
You with all
our soul, as
it lives for
all eternity.
We want to
serve You with
our mind as we
acknowledge
that You are
the Dispenser
of wisdom,
knowledge, and
understanding.
We want to
serve You with
all our
strength,
knowing that
when our
strength
weakens it is
then that we
truly find
Your strength.
We want to be
faithful to
You, the God
of our
fathers, so
that we are
not tempted to
sell our souls
to the gods of
the peoples of
our land. In
Jesus' name we
pray. Amen.
Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources
"I
Have Decided
To Follow
Jesus"
Watch
on YouTube
Selah
This was one
of the first
choruses we
learned as
young
Christians in
the 70's. Now
some 50 years
later we sing
it as a
steadfast
resolve to
follow after
Jesus all the
days of our
existence here
on planet
earth.
La
Rinconada,
Peru
elevation
16,700 ft
(provided as a
courtesy to
any who may be
considering
moving there.
Just don't
take a water
jet flosser!)
To donate
directly
online click
here.
(This will
open to a page
that
designates the
offering to:
Stephen and
Brooksyne
Weber -
700001-237376
serving in
specialized
chaplaincy
(Daily
Encouragement
is our
endorsed
special
chaplaincy
ministry).
In considering support we are so pleased when we hear from you, our readers, that our messages are a source of teaching and encouragement to you. We also urge you to consider the mission aspect of these daily teachings that are freely available and read by many all over the world.
Stephen & Brooksyne
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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version and a variety of other versions.
Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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