Day 35 – As we catch the rays of light shining in the windows of our home, may we be reminded of the Rays of His Light shining in the Windows of our soul.

Todays Reading: Numbers 6:1 – 8:26

Numbers 6:22-26, “The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them, The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.”

As we come to this part in Numbers, where I would have quickly summed up that all the heads of the Israelites clans were to bring the same items as offerings to the Lord, God chose to emphasize each one by repeating over and over the same list of items. But the repeated offerings were engrained by the repetition and hedged in by the Lord’s face in front and His voice behind.

His blessing of Grace and His confirmation of Mercy.

He shined His face upon the chosen people, and through them We became chosen as well. We have become His children and He shines His face upon us and pours His blessing on our heads. When we go to Him offering ourselves as a sacrifice daily, He will speak so that we hear, to some audibly in a loud voice and others more like a whisper to their hearts.

Bask in the mighty rays of the Face of the Lord, let them shine upon you like the Light of the Sun and radiate His blessings for all to Glorify Him. Sit in His presence and Hear His Voice, allow those around you to hear Him through your testimony.

You are His sweet child.

Day 34 – Pray for your pastors. They’ve been called to lead and shepherd us, and that’s a huge job.

Todays Reading: Numbers 3 – 5

Numbers 3:5-8 “And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Bring the tribe of Levi near, and set them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister to him. They shall keep guard over him and over the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, as they minister at the tabernacle. They shall guard all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, and keep guard over the people of Israel as they minister at the tabernacle.”

God called the Levites to Himself. They were what our modern day pastors/ministers are to us today.

The Levites job was by no means just preaching the Word…which is a Huge undertaking in itself…they were charged with guarding the entire congregation as well as everything within the walls of the Tabernacle.

God said the Levites were to be His instead of the firstborn of every family, a replacement for His original requirement after the Passover. Everything they had, everything they ate, everything of theirs belonged to Him.

Many believe a pastors job must be easy, they only preach one day a week, maybe 2 if there’s a Wednesday service, maybe they say a prayer here or there, and possibly officiate a wedding or a funeral. But in reality they have one of the toughest jobs around….caring for us! They don’t have it easy, we make mistakes, we stir up problems, and they are there to help us along the way. They are always on call and they have to answer to God, but they are also human.

Dear Heavenly Father, We are a handful as a congregation but you thought of us and called pastors to be over us to lead us and guide us. Please Lord, encourage our pastors today. Give them strength, wisdom, peace, and patience. Help them to persevere and lead us closer to you. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Day 33 – God makes sure each one of His people who need to be held accountable are accounted for.

Todays Reading: Leviticus 27:1 – Numbers 2:34

Numbers 1:2-3 “Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, by clans, by fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male, head by head. From twenty years old and upward, all in Israel who are able to go to war, you and Aaron shall list them, company by company.”

Now that all the rules and regulations have been delivered to Moses and laid out for the Israelites, God now wants to make sure that all those who should be obedient were held accountable. He makes the point that the ones to be the example are those that are 20 years or older, male, and able to serve in the military.

God wasn’t just counting His people to see how grand they were or because He didn’t already know how many they were, but because He wanted each of them to know that they were to be held accountable for taking care of the rest of the people.

These that were numbered were to be fully obedient to Him. We may not be numbered anymore, but He still numbers us in the Heavens and knows our name. We are to be fully accountable to Him.

Day 32 – The Word of God is a consistent fuel to keep the light of Christ always on. Be the Light and fill yourself daily.

Todays Reading: Leviticus 24:1-26:46

Leviticus 24:2 “Command the people of Israel to bring you pure oil from beaten olives for the lamp, that a light may be kept burning regularly.”

Chapter 24 opens with God telling Moses to command the Israelites to bring a constant supply of oil for the lamps so that their light will always be on. This light was always to be kept before the Lord as a reminder that He is the light and He was always there, always an example for us to SEE…literally.

We are now supposed to be this light for others to see Christ.

As we follow His commands, He will make our burdens light, He will give us rest like he did for the Israelites through the Sabbath year (7th year) and Jubilee (the year that follows the 7th 7-year Sabbath). The Lord will free us from slavery, remove our bondage, and He will bless our obedience with a fruitful harvest and the promise of Him walking among us. But punishment is also promised for disobedience, the inability to SEE His light.

The choice is yours…Be the Light!

Day 31 – The rules of the Lord are not set to harm us or hold us down, but set out of love to make us Holy like Him.

Today’s Reading: Leviticus 19:1 – 23:44

Leviticus 19:2 “Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them, You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.”

Moses goes back through the statutes and with much more depth. He first makes the point to all the congregation of the Israelites that the reason He is giving these is because He is Holy and He wants them to be Holy as well. This is definitely a difficult task ahead but one God hopes His people can accomplish. One of the first rules given to them is to Love their neighbor as themselves. God points out the way to love: provide for the poor, don’t neglect your brother, don’t talk about others, don’t commit adultery, don’t take vengeance or bear a grudge against another, and so many more. They were to fear the Lord and keep His statues so the land in which He placed them wouldn’t spit them out.

Yet we have gone so far away from loving our neighbors: we judge, we gossip, we slander one another, we steal, take vengeance when we think we’ve been wronged, we are rude, crude, and out of control, no wonder our communities, our states, our country, and our world is out of whack. We have taken this command and loved ourselves more than others. We need to turn back to Him, think of others first, love as He loves us, and become Holy before the Lord. If we want the world to change, we must start first with ourselves. Look at your social media feed, your texts, the words you say, the notes you write, are you showing love or hate? Love your neighbor as yourself, and watch the world turn to God.

Dear Heavenly Father, Please help me to love others as you love me. Help me not to judge, gossip, or turn away from others. Please Lord, let me be an example, a light, holy, for you. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Day 30 – Some customs, even when passed from generation to generation, need to be halted when they aren’t passed through the Will of God.

Today’s Reading: Leviticus 14:1 – 18:30

Leviticus 18:30 “So keep my charge never to practice any of these abominable customs that were practiced before you, and never to make yourselves unclean by them: I am the Lord your God.”

At this time God has given the Israelites the ruling on what is deemed clean and what is deemed dirty, so He is now leading them through the laws of how to be cleansed and atoned. God makes the point that our life is found within our blood, the chromosomes and DNA that is constantly flowing through us, and when that is poured out or damaged our life is being poured out and damaged.

We must take care of the shell that is guarding our blood so that our life can magnify Him. To take care of our bodies, we must stick to His regulations and not the customs of this world. The customs of the world are constantly changing and only His Word is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

We should also not desecrate ourselves by choosing to follow or act on any sinful motivations by the people around us. We must stand upon His Word and when we do wrong we must take active strides to fix things and get Healthy again.

There are definitely similarities and differences in the struggles of the past and the struggles of today, so in the same way the cleansing of yesterday may be different from the cleansing of today. So in all our decisions and all of our actions, we should focus on how God is wanting us to stay cleansed and be cleansed, not allowing the customs of the generations before us to defile our Lifeblood and the Lifeblood that will be passed on to the generations to follow.

Dear Heavenly Father, Over time generations change and customs are modified, and not all things are good or right. Help me to be Holy because you are Holy. Help me to honor you in everything I do. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Day 29- Be it dirt, be it yellow, be it sin, be it shame, Above all Be Thankful you are like White Snow cleansed by Jesus’s Blood.

Today’s Reading: Leviticus 11:1-13-59

Leviticus 12:5 “But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation. And she shall continue in the blood of her purifying for sixty-six days.”

The Lord gave Moses strict instructions about cleanliness. This spanned from what the Israelites could eat to how long a woman was unclean after giving birth, mind you this even depended on whether she had a male or female child. I think I would have probably had to go into seclusion with all my pregnancies and Twins….oh my…..Wait, now that I think about it, maybe we need to reinstate this! 😉

Either way, when someone was found to be unclean they had to go before the priest to confirm their uncleanliness and wait out the process until they were found clean again, sometimes never.

This probably made it very difficult on families, friendships, and their own mental state, BUT God would give His Son to wash everyone clean, white as a fresh snowfall to be exact.

No matter how we look, what we eat, how we smell, how many boys, girls, or monkeys (j/k) we have, we are found clean.

In 1876, Robert Lowry penned these words that still ring true today, “What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus; What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh! Precious is the flow, That makes me white as snow; No other fount I know, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”

Dear Heavenly Father, I know that I can never cleanse myself, but I know that you will make me clean. Please Father, make me white as snow. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Day 28 – Sometimes doing good still isn’t doing Right.

Today’s Reading: Leviticus 8:1 – 10:20

Leviticus 10:1-3 “Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord has said: ‘Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.’” And Aaron held his peace.”

Moses and all the congregation of Israel were busy consecrating Aaron and his sons for the priesthood. There were specific steps and procedures God required of them, but nothing more or nothing less. It was an act of obedience to the Lord that they did exactly as He asked.

However, 2 of Aaron’s son, Nadab and Abihu, didn’t follow these rules exactly. They decided it would be good for them to offer more burnt incense to the Lord. It wasn’t bad, but it was against the Lord’s will, and they were burned to death by the fire.

Do you know that person that is a Good person, I mean a REALLY Good person, that you think to yourself, if only they followed Jesus they’d be an amazing Christian?! Or maybe, you are that person, you always do good, but you just can’t bring yourself to follow the Lord and be saved by Him?

I’m so thankful for these people and I call many of them friends, but it is my hearts desire that I will see them one day in Heaven.

Don’t let the fire get you, let Christ Save you! Turn Good into Right, and Right into God’s Glory you will Go.

Dear Heavenly Father, Some of my dearest friends and family have not yet given over their life to you. They do so much good but the good doesn’t bring you Glory. Please help me to lead them in your direction, to point them to you. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Day 27 – As you Give of what has been Given to you, your Gift is to be a sacrifice but not more than what has been Given to you by the Greatest Gift Giver of all.

Today’s reading Leviticus 5:1-7:38.

Leviticus 5:7 “But if he cannot afford a lamb, then he shall bring to the Lord as his compensation for the sin that he has committed two turtledoves or two pigeons, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering.”

We open today with the Israelites bringing their offerings to the Lord, and the question must have been brought up about the specific gifts that were to be given.

You see, even in Biblical times there were different careers, different amounts of wealth, and different levels of status. When God is asking of us a sacrifice (the act of giving up something of value to you) it is to be given by everyone, but a sacrifice for one person may not be a sacrifice for another and vice versa.

Some of the Israelites only had doves or pigeons to give where others had the nicest lamb around.

Our gifts and offerings are to be the same. A sacrifice for one person may be $100, another $1000, and another $1,000,000, and each of these are equally wonderful because it was a sacrifice.

As we give to the Lord we must remember He is the Giver of all gifts, and He can’t be out Given. He only asks of us to give back a portion of what He has given to us. Keep this in mind, each of the Israelite families could have used their pigeons and their lambs for food or money, but they gave it back willing to the work of the Lord for His Glory alone. The same goes for us today. Give to the Lord of what He has given to you. Whatever is a Sacrifice to you, will be a blessing to someone else, let God get the Glory.

Dear Heavenly Father, You have been so generous with me over the years. You have given in the meek times and in the plenty. Help me to always offer gifts in the same way you give and not to judge my gift against another’s. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Day 26 – The Act of repentance reflects the Active movement of the Holy Spirit in your life.

Todays Reading: Leviticus 2:1 – 4:35

Leviticus 4:27-28, 31 “If anyone of the common people sins unintentionally in doing any one of the things that by the Lord’s commandments ought not to be done, and realizes his guilt, or the sin which he has committed is made known to him, he shall bring for his offering a goat, a female without blemish, for his sin which he has committed. And all its fat he shall remove, as the fat is removed from the peace offerings, and the priest shall burn it on the altar for a pleasing aroma to the Lord. And the priest shall make atonement for him, and he shall be forgiven.”

Congratulations! You have made it to the 3rd book of the Bible, Leviticus. We are starting one of the more difficult books to get through, but together we can unwrap the gifts buried in the verses of these chapters.

Today, we find ourselves looking at the different offerings the Israelites made to the Lord: burnt, grain, peace, and Sin. Each offering was a gift of either bread or animal burned at the tabernacle as a pleasing aroma wafting up to God.

The Sin Offering was extremely important to them because of all the laws and regulations that the Lord had laid out through the commandments given to Moses. Just like us, the Israelites fell short of the commandments quite a bit, and often, they didn’t realize they were doing so. When their sin was brought to their attention, out of an act of repentance, the people would bring an offering of a bull or goat to wipe away the guilt that was weighing them down.

Today, we have the opportunity to have forgiveness of our sins after repentance, but the offering we have to give was given for us already. And when we accept that offering we don’t have to have someone make us aware of our sins anymore, but that offering, Jesus Christ, gave us the Holy Spirit to live in us and make us aware of every time we fall short of the Will of God.

It’s never to late to repent of your sins and accept Christ as your Lord and Savior and have complete forgiveness for life. Take that opportunity today, the door is open to you.

Dear Heavenly Father, I know I sometimes make bad decisions, things against your will, please forgive me for all of these things. Please cleanse me and fill me with your Holy Spirit and allow me to walk in the freedom of repentance. In Jesus Name, Amen.