Read Through the Bible in a Year 2018 Day 61: Cling to God

Good morning, everyone!

Today I read Deuteronomy 8-10.

And it's more reminders for all that God has done for the Israelites.

However, there are a few verses I want to share today.

First, the chapters begin with a reminder of how God brought the Israelites out of Egypt, and how He is taking them to a wonderful land flowing with riches.

I take this as a lesson. God does not save us from the sin of slavery for no reason. He always has a plan for our lives. As we obey Him, and follow His direction for our lives, He will bring us to the place He has prepared for us. That doesn't mean all of us will experience exponential wealth on the earth, but all of us will be blessed, and rich in God's love. We all have a blessing waiting. Sometimes there is a long wait before we get there, but God has already prepared it. He's simply allowing us to wait so that we can learn to fully rely on Him, as the Israelites did.

So, some of the verses I want to share today are ones that I found particularly encouraging or interesting this morning.

Deuteronomy 9:4 - "Do not say in your heart when the Lord your God has driven them [the enemy] out before you, 'Because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,' but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is dispossessing them before you."

I liked this one. "Don't get too big for your britches." God did this for the Israelites because the nations that had taken possession of their land were very wicked.

None of us are righteous enough to deserve a gift from God. None of us. Anything God gives us is because of His great love. And His mercy. There is nothing we can do to deserve it. Because we have all sinned. We have all sinned and grieved God at some point.

And while He wipes the slate clean when we sincerely ask for forgiveness, it still does not entitle us to a blessing. But He gives them anyway.

Deuteronomy 10:20-21 - You shall fear the Lord your God; you shall serve Him and cling to Him, and you shall swear by His name. He is your praise and He is your God, who has done these great and awesome things for you which your eyes have seen.

Now, don't swear an oath by God's name unless you intend to keep it. Seriously.

But I love the wording of this.

Fear, or reverence, God. Think of Him with awe for all that He has done.

Serve Him.

Cling to Him.

Take hold of God and don't let go. Cling to God.

I need to do that more. Sometimes I get distracted by things that take my focus off of God, and I forget to cling to Him. And that's when I usually stumble and fall down.

Cling to God with all your heart. Fear and reverence Him. Serve Him. Because He loves you.

I hope you'll join me tomorrow when I read Deuteronomy 11-13.