Be With Me: 7 Minutes of Biblical Wonder

Jephthah makes the Hall of Fame of faith because he choses to be faithful to the family of God even though they were not faithful to him.  He choses community, even though they are imperfect. He choses the family of God despite the fact they weren't much of a family to him.  He gets his identity right.

He's in there for us today.  Not everybody is blessed with perfect parents. Maybe there is family strife amongst siblings that centers around money.  If so, you are in good company now and in 1200BC.  Jephthah choses to not play the victim. He rallies and knows that he belongs to the Person of God and the People of God, as imperfect as they may be.

Join me tomorrow by subscribing and listening 7 minutes on Apple Podcasts, Google, FB, and bewithme.us.

What if our WHOLE life of staying on MISSION only resulted in a beginning?  Only in the start of something? What if at the very end of our life, we would not see the task complete, the promise fulfilled?

Welcome to the life of SAMPSON. He had a task he was involved in every day of his life.  His life even ended while "on task".  Yet, what he accomplished was only the beginning of the end of the goal.  He gained a beginning.  One might say, he gained only a beginning. His life counted.  He was faithful throughout all his years. The promises were not seen.  Only the beginnings of the promises were seen. Sampson was faithful to the end to gain only a beginning.  We should be like him.  Let's be faithful, when all we may see is the beginning.

For another step toward the promises, join me tomorrow by subscribing at bewithme.us and Apple Google Spotify podcasts.

What's the big deal with BARAK? He's a great example of applying NEW COURAGE to an OLD PROBLEM. Deborah, a prophetess of God, is the one who reminds him, "Hasn't the Lord ALREADY TOLD you about this? Hasn't He already promised that He'll be with you and will show up in your great battle?"

Fortunately, the Lord is not silent in conviction. Perhaps the Lord has been spiritually tugging in you about something. Maybe it has to do with your tongue, or wallet, or eyes, or thoughts or zipper. Maybe you need the courage of Barak who applies NEW FAITH directed toward an OLD PROBLEM.  May the Lord give you COURAGE OF ACTION for the thing He's already given CLARITY OF CONVICTION.

We DO have time to consider how the Lord considers a nobody from the 12th Century BC: Gideon. "The Lord is with you o might man of valor".

Gideon is thinking: Not quite. This is a terrible time. Very bad circumstance. I'm not brave, in fact at this very moment I'm hiding from the conquering Midianites.

God is thinking: I am with you. You are a mighty man of valor. You will save Israel. You will be clothed with my Spirit.

The BRIDGE between these two thoughts is FAITH. Faith is trust in the Person of God before the circumstances are clear.  Gideon is a wonderful example of that.  Let's let his real circumstance resonate with us: "I will be with you"

The hero of today's story is someone who gave parts of herself sexually to people who weren't her spouse.  But this tale asks us to look beyond her sin (who of us has lived with perfect purity of zipper and mind?) to her FAITH. Honor Rahab "the prostitute" for not stopping there.  She becomes Rahab the FAITHFUL. 

Of note, her faith gets to help those that belong to her. The benefits of her belief spilled out into her family and to those associated with her family. She practically asks, "Who belongs to me?" She crams these people into her apartment and they all are saved during the destruction of Jericho. The corollary we should all be considering is, "Who belongs to ME that God wants to belong to HIM?"

Join me for a great story of this great woman of great faith who did greatly for those who belonged to her. Bewithme.us to subscribe for tomorrow's story.

All of us live in Jericho. We've all committed more than one sin. We all have before us the normal payment to satisfy justice: the giving of a life.  Unfortunately, we are on the hook with our OWN LIVES. This is the part where no one actually wants justice, especially as it relates to my personal falling short. IMHO justice is one of the most unpalatable aspects of Christianity.

Jericho gets what it justly deserves: destruction. Life for payment of sin.  The destruction of Jericho is exactly what it deserves.

You might think this quite UNPALATABLE. I agree.  So does God. In fact, He orchestrates an elaborate rescue plan to offer to help all those who "live in Jericho" today. Jericho is destroyed to help us see the end result of sin. In a sense, Jericho is destroyed for you. Let's pay attention. And, pay attention to the RESCUE God offers to the worst of the worst in Jericho.  Maybe that is you.  Find out tomorrow by subscribing at bewithme.us, Apple Google Podcasts, or write at [email protected]

The Red Sea is DEEP. It is 1000m; 3500 feet; ⅔ of a mile down if you walked across it like the Israelites did.  Every person "voted with their feet" as to whether they believed the Lord could hold those walls of water back.  Every single person had faith, admirable faith, to make those steps down deep and then back out.

Faith has a difficulty element: it is best applied in adversity and testing.
Faith has a time element: it is exerted BEFORE we see how it all turns out
Faith has a unseen element: it is this hope and sure expectation of the unseen part
Faith has a thinking element: it is how we consider the PERSON of God before we see how it all is going to turn out...especially when you are walking under a 3500' wall of water.

I know you have some real difficulty today. Is God able and trustworthy to help? Find out tomorrow by following on Instagram and visiting bewithme.us and your favorite podcast provider.

Faith is a considered "sight" before certain sight.  Abraham considered God able even to raise the dead before he saw it. Sarah considered God faithful before she saw the endpoint. Moses considers the reproach of people around him as a valuable spiritual benefit.  In fact, it is equated with the same reproach that Jesus received in the persecution He received when bringing in the New Kingdom.

All these considered God in a certain way BEFORE they saw how it was all going to turn out.  Listen 7 minutes to hear about how Moses pleased God by his faith. bewithme.us or follow on instagram and FB.

Isaac throws a "prayer-pass" down the corridor of time and has FAITH that God will catch that pass in the future and have it be EFFECTIVE.  It is a big ask.  It assumes that God cares, that God hears now, that God can effect THEN.

We are admiring historical people for things they do that please God; that is, for what they do that is FAITHFUL.  We should be admiring and emulating Isaac for believing that prayer can time-travel and for believing in the One who can effect that prayer in the future. Faith is the trust in the Person of God and the Abilities of God. Here we add a time element of believing in the Person of God and the abilities of God IN THE FUTURE.

Pray for this Podcast now and in the future. Listen 7 minutes now and in the future by subscribing at Spotify and bewithme.us.  Join our FB group by using the photo link above.

Abraham is honored in Hebrews 11 for his faith in God's ability to RAISE FROM THE DEAD.  He applied this faith in a circumstance of the possible sacrifice of his own son Isaac.  In tension with this was his belief in God's promise that a big nation would come from this specifically named son.  How could both things be true? God would have to raise Isaac from the dead.

Similarly, a CRITICAL ELEMENT of OUR faith is our belief in God's ability to RAISE FROM THE DEAD. The resurrection from the dead of Jesus is a central element of OUR faith too.  No wonder we are directed to admire it in Abraham.

Join me for 7 minutes as we consider whether God has the ability to RAISE FROM THE DEAD.  bewithme.us Apple Podcasts google podcasts.