BBD 09.29.17 Sitting It Out (Classic)

#1 · September 29, 2017, 9:21 am

Quote from Forum Archives on September 29, 2017, 9:21 am
Posted by: theburningbushdevotional <theburningbushdevotional@...>

Classic from 2010

Burning Bush Devotional

29 September 2017

Sitting
It Out

The carcasses of you who have complained against Me shall fall in this
wilderness, all of you who were numbered, according to your entire number, from
twenty years old and above. Except for Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua
the son of Nun, you shall by no means enter the land which I swore I would make
you dwell in. - Numbers 14:29-30 NKJV.

Can you imagine a nine day traffic jam? It has been taking place on a highway
going to Beijing, China (In 2010). Reportedly, the traffic jam is nearly over
caused by road work but traffic is backed up into Inner Mongolia and into the
province of Hebei. We have our share of traffic jams here in the United States,
and I have sat in a few for more than an hour, but can you imagine nine days?
There must be some really cranky people sitting in those trucks and cars! While
they have been sitting out everything they usually do, they still have to live.
There have been complaints about inflated food prices. They have been at the
mercy of whoever will bring them food and water, sitting, and sitting, and
sitting for nine days!

In our spiritual lives, sometimes we are forced to the sidelines by God. The
Children of Israel had this happened to them after they refused to go into the
promised land after the majority report of the spies. For 40 years the Children
of Israel were sitting on the sidelines, and it was a forced sit out. They were
forced out of spiritual action because of their complaining and unbelief. Jonah
had a briefer period that he was forced to sit out after his rebellion against
God. Jonah sat in the belly of the great fish for three days and three nights
until he finally repented deciding he would do what God wanted.

In other situations, the Bible records those who through no sin of their own
are forced to the sidelines. Joseph of the Old Testament is one of those
individuals. His brothers sold him into slavery, and he was taken to Egypt. He
rose to prominence in Potiphar's house until Potiphar's wife lied about his
attacking her. Joseph was then sitting it out again, this time in prison, until
finally through his interpretation of dreams (Joseph makes clear the ability
was given to him by God) he is again placed in the action. God uses Joseph to
save the people of Egypt, and his own family. Joseph says to his brothers at
the end of the narrative in Genesis 50:20,
“But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order
to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.”

Are you sitting it out? Is it because of sin in some form? Rebellion,
complaining, grumbling, or immorality of some type? If so I urge you not to go
the route of the Children of Egypt wandering around in the wilderness for 40
years. Instead, repent quickly, even quicker than Jonah did, and move forward
with your life. The best way to handle sin and avoid sitting out the spiritual
action; is to immediately confess, and forsake it, asking for the Lord's
forgiveness.

Then there is the possibility that you have been sitting it out because of
reasons unknown to you like Joseph. You are in a holding pattern, and you are
waiting, and waiting, and waiting. Trust the Lord, because He means it for
good. Take advantage of the time to better prepare yourself for the challenge
that He has ahead for you. Remember Isaiah
40:30-31, “…those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall
mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall
walk and not faint.” And as the apostle
Peter says in 1 Peter 5:6-7, “…humble yourselves under the
mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care
upon Him, for He cares for you.”

Copyright © 2010 - 2017. Ed
Wrather. The Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On
June 8, 1998 the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent. Ed
Wrather began writing devotionals in the early 1990s. The distribution of those
first devotionals was primarily through the Burning Bush Newsletter sent to
prison facilities throughout the United States and Canada.

Visit the
Burning Bush websites:

www.theburningbush.net

www.theburningbush.org

The Burning Bush websites are celebrating
19 years online since January 31, 1998. Since June 8, 1998 the Burning Bush
Devotional has been spreading the truth of God's Word to more than 12,000
subscribers across the world.

The Addictions Kit - Biblical Help for Addictions by Ed Wrather is now
available for download from Amazon. The Addictions Kit provides practical Biblical steps to defeat
your addiction that actually work.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00VIYLNLM

The New Pastor's Training Manual is available for download on Amazon. Here is the link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PJ8UTGS If you prefer a paper copy of the book you can order it from
the Burning Bush website at http://bit.ly/1uXDBnk

Books now available at the Burning Bush website:

New Pastor's
Training Manual

Biblical Help for
Overcoming Substance Abuse

Biblical Help
for Overcoming Sexual Addictions In Times of
Trouble - Devotionals to Encourage and Strengthen You (Also available for
download on Amazon.)

You can leave comments/feedback
about the devotionals at www.theburningbush.net.

There is a translation tool on
theburningbush.net website in the top right hand corner of all of the pages.

Check out the Scripture Index being constructed for the
Devotionals at the Burning Bush website. The Links are in about the middle of
the home page. Topics for each devotional are now being added to the Index.

PRAY PRAY PRAY for all those
affected by the horrific Hurricane Harvey devastation and floods and from
Hurricane Irma.

Please continue to pray for
healing for Pastor Shane Hall, Michelle Abetz, Wesley Lewis, Brandy, Brad,
Damon D. & wife, Beverly (Jeanie’s sister), Brent Baker, Lexi McCalip (her
last scan was clear!), Gary Kirk, and Jeanie.

Please also pray for Aleesha
McMillan and Amy Carroll.

Please pray for an end to the
racial hatred in the USA and that it will be replaced with peace and love. Many
prayer needs are posted at the Burning Bush website on the Prayer Request page.
You can also post your prayer requests there (Of course, I am always in need of prayer - please pray for me. My
prayer focus is now that God will give me opportunities to preach. As the
apostle Paul says, “…woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!”).

You can contact Ed Wrather at theburningbushdevotional@gmail.com
View LinkedIn profile with endorsements at
http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=92988105

If you enjoy the devotional
please recommend it to your friends. They may subscribe by sending a blank
email to burningbushdevo-join@welovegod.org

There is a complete devotional
archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here is the URL: http://www.theburningbush.org/DevotionalArchive.html.

You can help support this
ministry by using this link: www.paypal.me/EdWrather

Devotion vs Devotional: We do our
devotions, we read devotionals.

You can unsubscribe to the burningbushdevo devotional group by
sending a blank email to burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org and then respond
to the confirmation email.

You may subscribe to the html text group (Because of time
constraints the devotional is only being sent now in html format) by sending a
blank email to burningbushhtml-join@welovegod.org and you may unsubscribe by
sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-leave@welovegod.org and then respond
to the confirmation email. If the link does not work, copy and paste the link.

--

To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org

Posted by: theburningbushdevotional <theburningbushdevotional@...>

Classic from 2010

Burning Bush Devotional

29 September 2017

Sitting
It Out

The carcasses of you who have complained against Me shall fall in this
wilderness, all of you who were numbered, according to your entire number, from
twenty years old and above. Except for Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua
the son of Nun, you shall by no means enter the land which I swore I would make
you dwell in. - Numbers 14:29-30 NKJV.

Can you imagine a nine day traffic jam? It has been taking place on a highway
going to Beijing, China (In 2010). Reportedly, the traffic jam is nearly over
caused by road work but traffic is backed up into Inner Mongolia and into the
province of Hebei. We have our share of traffic jams here in the United States,
and I have sat in a few for more than an hour, but can you imagine nine days?
There must be some really cranky people sitting in those trucks and cars! While
they have been sitting out everything they usually do, they still have to live.
There have been complaints about inflated food prices. They have been at the
mercy of whoever will bring them food and water, sitting, and sitting, and
sitting for nine days!

In our spiritual lives, sometimes we are forced to the sidelines by God. The
Children of Israel had this happened to them after they refused to go into the
promised land after the majority report of the spies. For 40 years the Children
of Israel were sitting on the sidelines, and it was a forced sit out. They were
forced out of spiritual action because of their complaining and unbelief. Jonah
had a briefer period that he was forced to sit out after his rebellion against
God. Jonah sat in the belly of the great fish for three days and three nights
until he finally repented deciding he would do what God wanted.

In other situations, the Bible records those who through no sin of their own
are forced to the sidelines. Joseph of the Old Testament is one of those
individuals. His brothers sold him into slavery, and he was taken to Egypt. He
rose to prominence in Potiphar's house until Potiphar's wife lied about his
attacking her. Joseph was then sitting it out again, this time in prison, until
finally through his interpretation of dreams (Joseph makes clear the ability
was given to him by God) he is again placed in the action. God uses Joseph to
save the people of Egypt, and his own family. Joseph says to his brothers at
the end of the narrative in Genesis 50:20,
“But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order
to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.”

Are you sitting it out? Is it because of sin in some form? Rebellion,
complaining, grumbling, or immorality of some type? If so I urge you not to go
the route of the Children of Egypt wandering around in the wilderness for 40
years. Instead, repent quickly, even quicker than Jonah did, and move forward
with your life. The best way to handle sin and avoid sitting out the spiritual
action; is to immediately confess, and forsake it, asking for the Lord's
forgiveness.

Then there is the possibility that you have been sitting it out because of
reasons unknown to you like Joseph. You are in a holding pattern, and you are
waiting, and waiting, and waiting. Trust the Lord, because He means it for
good. Take advantage of the time to better prepare yourself for the challenge
that He has ahead for you. Remember Isaiah
40:30-31, “…those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall
mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall
walk and not faint.” And as the apostle
Peter says in 1 Peter 5:6-7, “…humble yourselves under the
mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care
upon Him, for He cares for you.”

Copyright © 2010 - 2017. Ed
Wrather. The Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On
June 8, 1998 the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent. Ed
Wrather began writing devotionals in the early 1990s. The distribution of those
first devotionals was primarily through the Burning Bush Newsletter sent to
prison facilities throughout the United States and Canada.

Visit the
Burning Bush websites:

http://www.theburningbush.net

http://www.theburningbush.org

The Burning Bush websites are celebrating
19 years online since January 31, 1998. Since June 8, 1998 the Burning Bush
Devotional has been spreading the truth of God's Word to more than 12,000
subscribers across the world.

The Addictions Kit - Biblical Help for Addictions by Ed Wrather is now
available for download from Amazon. The Addictions Kit provides practical Biblical steps to defeat
your addiction that actually work.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00VIYLNLM

The New Pastor's Training Manual is available for download on Amazon. Here is the link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PJ8UTGS If you prefer a paper copy of the book you can order it from
the Burning Bush website at http://bit.ly/1uXDBnk

Books now available at the Burning Bush website:

New Pastor's
Training Manual

Biblical Help for
Overcoming Substance Abuse

Biblical Help
for Overcoming Sexual Addictions In Times of
Trouble - Devotionals to Encourage and Strengthen You (Also available for
download on Amazon.)

You can leave comments/feedback
about the devotionals at http://www.theburningbush.net.

There is a translation tool on
theburningbush.net website in the top right hand corner of all of the pages.

Check out the Scripture Index being constructed for the
Devotionals at the Burning Bush website. The Links are in about the middle of
the home page. Topics for each devotional are now being added to the Index.

PRAY PRAY PRAY for all those
affected by the horrific Hurricane Harvey devastation and floods and from
Hurricane Irma.

Please continue to pray for
healing for Pastor Shane Hall, Michelle Abetz, Wesley Lewis, Brandy, Brad,
Damon D. & wife, Beverly (Jeanie’s sister), Brent Baker, Lexi McCalip (her
last scan was clear!), Gary Kirk, and Jeanie.

Please also pray for Aleesha
McMillan and Amy Carroll.

Please pray for an end to the
racial hatred in the USA and that it will be replaced with peace and love. Many
prayer needs are posted at the Burning Bush website on the Prayer Request page.
You can also post your prayer requests there (Of course, I am always in need of prayer - please pray for me. My
prayer focus is now that God will give me opportunities to preach. As the
apostle Paul says, “…woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!”).

You can contact Ed Wrather at theburningbushdevotional@gmail.com
View LinkedIn profile with endorsements at
http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=92988105

If you enjoy the devotional
please recommend it to your friends. They may subscribe by sending a blank
email to burningbushdevo-join@welovegod.org

There is a complete devotional
archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here is the URL: http://www.theburningbush.org/DevotionalArchive.html.

You can help support this
ministry by using this link: http://www.paypal.me/EdWrather

Devotion vs Devotional: We do our
devotions, we read devotionals.

You can unsubscribe to the burningbushdevo devotional group by
sending a blank email to burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org and then respond
to the confirmation email.

You may subscribe to the html text group (Because of time
constraints the devotional is only being sent now in html format) by sending a
blank email to burningbushhtml-join@welovegod.org and you may unsubscribe by
sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-leave@welovegod.org and then respond
to the confirmation email. If the link does not work, copy and paste the link.

To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org