Well the tree has been put up and the fall decorations put away for another year.  Lights are hung and shining bright and the manger scenes are all arranged.  The food has been planned and the shopping has started (and mostly done in my household).  Calendar events are lined up with all the school Christmas concerts and the special activities have made the list.  There is much to do this time of year as we approach the 25th.  But more important then any of the things listed above is to turn our hearts to the meaning of Christmas.  In all the busy-ness and bustle, make sure we do not forget the spiritual aspect of this season.  Wonder anew the birth of our Savior.  Sit and ponder the message of the manger.  Read over and over the Bible stories which testify to this miracle.  Pause in our overwhelming tasks and take comfort and joy in the great glad tidings of Christmas.  May each heart be filled with the real meaning of Christmas!

Count your blessings and be overwhelmingly thankful this year.  I just want to use this opportunity to wish everyone a very thankful Thanksgiving.  May God continue to richly bless you as you praise and give glory unto him for all the gifts he has given you.

Apparently I forgot or misplaced this week’s devotional thought.

Lifestyle changes are not easy to do.  After living for years one way, to give it up and adopt to a new way of life is very difficult.  But that is what God called the children of Israel to do.  They needed to change who they were and whose they were.  They were slaves to the Egyptians.  As slaves they had to do what their master told them to do.  Now at Mt. Sinai, they are now a freed and redeemed people who were serving a new master, God himself.  And so they need new rules to follow.  And as stated in my message he only gave them two major rules.  Put me (God) first and to look out for those around you in a loving way.  And while they were expanded on here (and in the following chapters and books of the Bible), they are worded this way in Deuteronomy.  These rules have not changed in the 3500+ years since then for God’s followers.  We are to put God first in everything to do and to love our neighbors as ourselves.  And this needs a permanent lifestyle change not so quickie diet.

Flying our banner as we fight the battles here on earth is an important component to victory.  But we need to remember that “we do not battle primarily against people who want to cheat us, affect our political system in ways we disagree with, or who want to put shows on television [or in our schools] that shouldn’t be there.” (Enns commentary on Exodus pg 361)  “Our battle is truly spiritual, and it occurs in the many situations we encounter every day that vie for our attention and attempt to make us less fit for heaven . . . The battle is all around us, and it is waged in many unexpected and barely perceptible ways: the friendships we keep, fear of the future, the words we use with our spouses and children that show our self-centeredness, our avoidance of prayer, the corruption of simple pleasures that God has given us and so forth.  In other words, the battle does not concern the grand, obvious things that we sometimes think of: the direction our country is headed in or the state of the church at large. (pg 361)

Paul says in Philippians 4:19, “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”  This was true back in the days of the wilderness wanderings after the exodus from Egypt.  And it is still true today.  But like the Israelites we sometimes forget this wonderful promise and complain and grumble like they did.  But there is no need to do that God already knows what we need before we even ask him (Matt 6:8).  This should encourage us to leave it in the Lord’s hands.  But, if you are anything like me, this is easier said than done.  However, it is a good reminder about how God loves us and takes care of us, even to our most basic needs (like water and food).  A good lesson from Exodus!

Much of the sermon this last week was about the location of Mt. Sinai and where the children of Israel crossed the Red Sea.  But while the place where Mt. Sinai and the crossing is in doubt for the most part, the fact that God did part the waters of the Red Sea for the Israelites to pass through on dry ground is not in doubt.  This was the hand of God reaching down at that point in history, at a particular place, with his people and performed one of the most famous miracles of all times.  It happened.  And even if we do not know the when and where, does not negate the fact that it did happen.  And as we learned, God sometimes brings us to the point in our lives where he will part the waters for us figuratively to bring deliverance in our lives.  He can and he does.  No doubt about it.

Fall is officially here.  And with it pumpkins, apple cider, leaves changing color and cooler weather.  It is a wonderful time to see God at work.  Imagine a God with the power to change each individual leaf on each individual tree to it’s own unique color.  I am not saying that this is the way God does it, but I know he has the power to do it this way.  After all, he knows ever star in the sky (Ps 147:4) and every hair on our head (Matt 10:30) and every sand on the seashore (Gen 22:17).  So just a few leaves are nothing to him.  Oh praise the greatness of our God (Deut 32:3)