…Shall misfortune or evil occur [as punishment] and the Lord has not caused it? Surely the Lord God will do nothing without revealing His secret to His servants the prophets. (Amos 3:6-7)
Hey Neighbor!
We’ve had a few difficult and/or tricky riddles and trivia questions, as of late; so today I am giving you an easy one🥰
Now, I love it when God says “Behold! I am about to do a New Thing!!”
Now this could either be good news, or bad news…depending on who is on the receiving end of God’s ‘New Thing.’ 😂
But Amos reminds us, as God’s mouthpiece, and as one who comes forth to communicate with man, after having been in the very presence of God, listening to His thoughts, His Words, and the plans He has for us….
Amos says that God, in His merciful nature, will not Do His Thing, without communicating His plan and His program to His prophet, first!!
Now there was another prophet in the Bible, who received a firsthand heads-up from God, while God was actually en-route to utterly destroy the wicked.
And because this prophet was well-aware of God’s abundantly merciful nature…and because he knew that God would not ‘unjustly’ destroy the righteous, along with the unrighteous, this prophet negotiated with God, to spare his ‘righteous’ relatives, before God proceeded on His way to Do His Thing against a very ‘pride-full’ group of people!! *********************************************
Take a census of the Kohathite division among the sons of Levi, by their families, by their fathers“ houses, From thirty years old and up to fifty years old, all who can enter the service to do the work in the Tent of Meeting…(Num 4:2-33)
Hey Neighbor!
What was so significant about the age of 30, in the Bible??
In the scripture above, we see where the sons of Levi (Kohathites, Gershonites, and the Merarites) were deemed ‘ready’ for the warfare of the Lord’s Service at the age of 30.
But can you name at least three (3) more 30 year olds from the Bible, who God deemed ready to wrestle (spiritually) in the service of The Kingdom of God, after having reached this ‘milestone’ birthday??
Here is this Week’s Riddle; he was a ‘faith-full’ man from the bible who was not just a faith-full follower of Moses, but he was also a courageous, first-place leader of ‘lions.’
Can You Solve My Riddle??
Have Fun 🤩
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When the Lord called for the sacrificial offering, I was the first to arrive
Bringing forth rams, goats, and lambs; each of them numbering five
From amongst all of Jacob, I was head of the host and my tribe’s ancestral lead
Mary would nurse the Lamb, from the tribe of my seed
I was ‘numbered’ in the wilderness, by my brother-in- law, the high priest
Though I failed to be counted, when the Promised Land was reached.
-I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency- (Phillippians 4:13)
–
Hey Neighbor!
It’s Flashback Friday!!
I have another ‘oldie’ for you; this one was stirred up by my ‘lost train ticket’ post, and it’s really funny!!
This is Part 1.
🤩Enjoy‼️
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I hope You enjoyed the story I shared with You this week about my lost Train Ticket.
I have an older and much wiser Cousin who I spoke with Yesterday.
She really blessed me…as she shared How God had blessed Her with this Weeks Story/Lesson, “Quit Looking and Start Leaning on The Holy Spirit.”
Her Name is Janet😍
This is Her Funny Story…
Janet sent me a text yesterday, asking me to give her a call…ASAP!! I did…praying that everything was alright. She sounded well when she answered the phone, and as she began to tell me How the Lord had blessed her with the CareBibleStudy Blog.
She told me how she had been searching…and…searching for some very important papers that she had misplaced.
She wasn’t sleeping well, because she was worried about getting these documents submitted on time.
She was not having any success finding her lost documents, but she did find herself in a frenzy…frantic and frustrated, as she sat down on the side of the bed at 4 AM!!
She was sitting there on the bed, trying to think of what stone to overturn next…when she said she reached over to pickup her phone, and read this message…’Quit Looking!!’
WOW!!
It was her daily text message from Tam…and as she continued reading the message, it said…
‘….And Start Leaning on The Holy Spirit!!’
Suddenly, she realized that she had not been depending on God for ALL of Her ‘Stuff.’
She had been frantically, Flying around her house, wearing her ‘SuperCape’…with the TWO BOLD LETTERS -‘SW’- on her
chest…because she had convinced herself that SHE was ‘Super Woman!!’
She was an independent, self-sufficient, ‘Super’ Christian…saved, filled with the Holy Spirit…and yet, she had not been depending and leaning on Him!!
She realized that she had not been willing to release ALL of Her Cares, Worries, Troubles, and Anxieties to God…and she found herself repenting before the Lord for walking in her own self-sufficiency, instead of leaning on Christ’s Sufficiency.
I think as Christians, sometimes We don’t feel that We need to ask The Holy Spirit to help Us with ALL our stuff…like the things that We ‘believe’ that We are proficient at…You know…The Stuff We Do Well!!
For Example…
I’ve been rehabbing houses for nearly 20 years now, so when it’s time to paint the walls in a new house, I just put on my SuperCape…and I AM transformed into ‘SuperPainter’…with the ‘SP’ on my chest!!
So I tend to forget to Ask The Holy Spirit to Help Me with my painting job.
As Christians, We’ve been blessed with an abundance of gifts, talents and abilities…and sometimes We forget that those blessings were bestowed on Us Because of God’s Grace, His Divine Blessing and Favor…
And He wants ALL of His Glory!!
But…Of Course…We’re more experienced at taking off Our Capes, when We’re running to the throne because We’ve been beaten up, scarred and broken-down by Life…
But We’ve Got to Learn to practice unsnapping that SuperCape more often…and ask the Holy Spirit for His Help in our Everyday…ALL-Day Lives!!
We can Start by surrendering our Cape to God while doing the little things…like taking a shower and getting dressed.
Then We can move on to Asking The Holy Spirit to equip Us to do the Things that We’ve already been blessed to Do Well- Even Better…and Give Him Glory!!
Then…before You know it…The next time You’re looking for Your shoes, or Your Keys…or even that Lost Earring…
You Will hear Your Helper, the Holy Spirit…whispering to You, saying….
“Don’t Fret…I’m Here…Just Ask Me!!”
So I Blessed God, as I was So Blessed by my Cousin, Janet.
I am so pleased that the Lord Blessed Her with the CareBibleStudy Lesson.
She said she had ‘Church’ up in Her Bedroom at 4AM…Glorifying and Magnifying God!!
Hallelujah!!
So Please Pray For Janet, as We believe, together…that the Lord is going to continue to Bless Her and Show Her where Her ‘Papers’ are.
Let’s Also Pray that Janet will continue to Rest Her Cape in His ‘CAPE-ability!!’ Lol
Remember…God Loves You and So Do I!!
💕Tam
Has the CareBibleStudy Blog been a blessing to You, if so…leave a reply and share Your testimony!!
Don’t forget to Be a blessing to Others – Share the Blog with Your Friends, Family, and Your Neighbors -As You Love Them- As Yourself!!
He will guard the feet of His godly ones, but the wicked shall be silenced and perish in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail. (1Samuel 2:9)
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Hey Neighbor!
This Week’s Nugget will hopefully help those of you, who are sick of suffering with dry, cracked 👣****************************************
I am so glad that Spring 🌹is in the air!
We had a few days of spring-like weather last week, and I found myself out in the garden – just as Barefoot🦶🏾and I was Quite Contented!!😌
I love to run around outside without shoes and/or sandals when the weather is nice; but this actually drives my husband nuts!!
He is always saying…
Girl, You better put on some shoes out here‼️
But my feet were Fed-up from Fall🍁🍂
And Wearied with Winter🥶❄️
No more Socks 🧦 and Boots 👢 for Me‼️
My feet were Crying out for Freedom🗽
In fact, just a few weeks prior, my feet were so dry, that they had begun to crack.
My regular arsenal of remedies together, were not resolving the problem; but then I remembered that I had taken some of my dried-out Rosemary (stems included) along with some Oregano leaves, and I had stuffed them down into my bottle of extra-virgin olive oil, with intentions to use the mix for a deep-conditioning hair treatment.
What’s good for the hair, was even better for my feet‼️
My feet were in desperate need for deep-conditioning, so I lathered the oil onto my clean and dried feet, slapped on some socks for insulation, and I went to bed…repeated…And after a couple of nights, my feet 👣were back to soft and supple, once again…
And I was a Happy Girl with Happy Feet‼️
You ought to try this!!
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Once Again…I am not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV!!
So Ultimately, You must do your own research, and talk with your physician to make the best health choices for yourself and your family.
-Do not forget or neglect or refuse to extend hospitality to strangers [in the brotherhood–being friendly, cordial, and gracious, sharing the comforts of your home and doing your part generously], for through it some have entertained angels without knowing it. (Hebrews 13:2)
Hey Neighbor!
In the above scripture, the Writer of The Book of Hebrews reminds us that, if we have a heart to share with others, and a spirit of hospitality, we should graciously welcome and entertain the strangers, that we meet along the way.
Our scripture tells us that ‘some’ have done so, graciously, and have found themselves ‘entertaining’ angels without even knowing it.
Can you name 2 (two) men from the Old Testament, who entertained ‘heavenly’ strangers underneath their family’s terebinth tree??
Now, these ‘strangers’ appeared to be ordinary men, passing through and/or resting up for a moment, from their long journeys.
AndLittle did either of these (Bible) ‘entertainers’ know, nor did they actually realize it; but they had it ‘made in the shade,’ In The Presence of The Lord!!
So Solomon expelled Abiathar [descendant of (1Ki 2:27) Eli] from being priest to the Lord, fulfilling the word of the Lord which He spoke concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh. (1Ki 2:27)
Hey Neighbor!
These are the families of Levi according to their generations. Amram took Jochebed his father“s sister as wife, and she bore him Aaron and Moses
In the lead Scripture above, we see where God was finally fulfilling his promise, and wielding the final fateful blow upon the House of Eli!!
You may want to go back and get some essential background information from our 2 previous Lessons on Eli and The Fall of the Church in Shiloh.
Now, The first blow ( 1 Sam 4:17) resulted in Eli’s 2 sons (Hophni and Phinehas) being slain together…on the battlefield…on the same day, after they willfully and recklessly departed from the Tabernacle at Shiloh, with the ark of the Lord.
Now the demise of these two wicked boys had already been foretold by the man of God in 1 Samuel 2:34
To Eli: And what befalls your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, shall be a sign to you–in one day they both shall die. And I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest (Priest), who shall do according to what is in My heart and mind.
You see Eli was an ‘Unfaith-full’ High Priest!!
He was the Judge, and the Chief Magistrate in Shiloh.
He was a Levite, and a direct descendant from the priestly line of Aaron. (See the chart above)
Now Eli’s grandfather, Aaron, Israel’s High Priest, had also lost two of his young sons (Nadab and Abihu), after they too, had also profaned the Lord’s altar in the tabernacle.
–AND NADAB and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, and put incense on it, and offered strange and unholy fire before the Lord, as He had not commanded them. And there came forth fire from before the Lord and killed them, and they died before the Lord. (Lev 10:1-2)
Aaron’s Four (4) Sons
Now after Aaron had lost his first two sons – Eli’s uncles- Aaron obviously became much more watchful and diligent to train up his two remaining sons in the fear and admonition of the Lord.
After all, as God’s High Priest, Aaron had a sacred responsibility to honor and revere the Holy things of God; and He had a responsibility, as parent, to keep a continual eye upon Eleazar and Ithamar, as they were ‘priests- in- training,’ before the Lord.
–So Eleazar and Ithamar ministered in the priest“s office in the presence and under the supervision of Aaron their father (Num 3:4)
Now, if only Eli had learned from his grandfather, maybe he would have been more alert and attentive, when he first began to train up Hophni and Phinehas.
Maybe he would have been more diligent to restrict, restrain, rebuke, and/or even to remove Hophni and Phinehas from their honored positions of service, at the first sign of their willfulness and/or disobedience.
You see after God had slew Nadab and Abihu, Aaron became a full-time father, fully alert, and a priest who actively followed The Lord’s commands, within and without the tabernacle.
He became both a ‘faith-full’ High priest and parent.
Aaron was not a ‘sometimey’ part-time parent/priest, like Eli!!
Remember it was Eli’s lackadaisical parenting style, and his direct neglect and lack of supervision that caused his father, Ithamar’s (priestly) branch to break off and die in Shiloh…whereafter, God’s anointing was later transferred to Eleazar’s (priestly) branch in Jerusalem…under the reign of King Solomon!! 1 Kings 2:27
Let’s look at the gradual downfall of The House of Eli!!
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Now after the death of Hophni and Phinehas on the battlefield, there came the fall of Eli…when he ‘fell’ out of his chair in Shiloh; he broke his neck and he died. (1 Sam 4:18)
That was the final nail in the coffin for The Church in Shiloh – after The Presence of God was departed from the Tabernacle.
Then there was the bloody fall of Eli’s great grandson, Ahimelech at Nob, where He and all of Eli’s remaining descendants were utterly slaughtered – except for Abiathar, Eli’s only descendant who survived to mourn and tell the story!!
Do you Remember this (below) forewarning, prophesied by the very same man of God…to Eli??
– Yet I will not cut off from My altar every man of yours; some shall survive to weep and mourn [over the family“s ruin], but all the increase of your house shall die in their best years. (1Sa 2:33)
You see, after the demise of the Church in Shiloh, Eli’s remaining descendants, (grandsons by Phinehas) made their home in the priestly city of Nob – (minus the Ark of the Lord.)
Now Ahimelech was the High Priest on duty at Nob, When his family was judged and punished (by the hand of King Saul, and an Edomite), and where another 85 men from Ithamar’s branch, plus all of the women, children, sucklings, and even the animals were utterly slaughtered in 1 Samuel 22:18.
–And I [now] announce to him that I will judge and punish his house forever for the iniquity which he knew, for his sons were bringing a curse upon themselves [blaspheming God], and he did not restrain them. (1Sa 3:13)
Again, God spared the life of Abiathar, who fled and narrowly escaped with his own life; but ultimately, he too would soon become another male, destined to fail and fall from the priesthood – from the House of Eli!!
Friend, Our God is not a man, that He should Lie!!
The Lord had previously proclaimed that he would both Judge and Punish Eli’s house forever!!
Remember that Eli was fully aware of the sins of his sons, and yet, he had failed to stop them!! 🛑
But Our Great God of Justice, will not Stop until He Puts an end to this foolishness that’s going on in His House…even today!
Remember when God told Jeremiah that He was always on duty, alert, and fully active to watch over His Word; He said he would completely fulfill it!!
–Then said the Lord to me, You have seen well, for I am alert and active, watching over My word to perform it. (Jer 1:12)
And Indeed God was about to dot every ‘i’ and cross every ‘t’ where his Words were concerned against Eli.
Remember when God told Samuel that every ear would tingle when they heard of it…Well They Did!!
– The Lord told Samuel, Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which both ears of all who hear it shall tingle. On that day I will perform against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end (1Sa 3:11-12)
So next week, we will continue with Part II, where we will learn more about the doom and demise of Eli’s great-grandson, Ahimelech…
And we will also witness God’s final rebuke upon the ‘unfaith-full’ Abiathar, (Eli’s great, great, grandson) and ultimately, Abiathar’s removal from both the priesthood, and from before The Presence of God, in The Lord’s House!!
We will also see how David was used by God, even upon his deathbed, to fulfill God’s oath against Eli’s House; as He (God) was actively transferring his anointing from Ithamar, (Eli) to Eleazar, (Zadok)
Get Ready for Your Ears👂To Tingle!!
–But the Levitical priests, the sons of Zadok, who kept the charge of My sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from Me, shall come near to Me to minister to Me, and they shall attend Me to offer to Me the fat and the blood, says the Lord God (Ezekiel 44:15)
Of the sons of Issachar, men who understood the times, with knowledge of what Israel should do, their chiefs were two hundred; and all their kinsmen were at their command.
(1Chronicles 12:32)
Hey Neighbor!
Then there arose another man to rescue Israel…
This man was one from amongst the 12 tribes of Jacob, whose descendants would someday come to understand the signs of the times and thus, they would also comprehend what actions Israel must take to prevail against their enemies.
This judge governed Israel after the death of the Shechemite’s ‘chosen’ king, whose skull was crushed by a woman with a millstone.
– But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty (1 Corinthians 1:27)
Hey Neighbor!
After the death of Joshua, in the Old Testament, and just prior to the reign of Israel’s first King (Saul), Israel was ruled by the Judges.
Specifically, in the Book of Judges, we learn that God raised up 11 men and 1 woman to rule and govern his ‘stiff-necked’ children.
Now there was generally something surprising, or even ‘odd’ about each one of these judges, that would most likely cause you or I to question God’s choice of deliverer; like when God called the woman, Deborah!!
But again, we do know that God uses the ‘foolish’ things of this world to confuse and perplex those who believe themselves wise.
Do you know which Judge God chose and sent forth from the tribe of Benjamin, to govern and deliver Israel for 80 years, because of the the oppressive hand of the Moabites??
What was surprisingly odd about this particular Judge, that worked to his advantage, as God’s chosen deliverer??
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