Infesting Sin

You know.. I never really sat down and really thought about all the sin in the world for a long time.. today's passage really shows me that sin is really strong and it can even attack the best of he church.. Sin is the farthest from what we want to be; it is the farthest of what we want to do. Like the Corinthian church, the sin that plagued it was sexual immorality. It is a sin that is so strong, it still happens today..

Paul said to take sin away is like taking the old yeast out and putting new yeast into dough. The old yeast is the old self - sinful and mean - and the new yeast is the new life we have in Christ, I think..
When we invite Christ into our lives we can not have the old yeast still within us.. with it the new yeast Christ offers will never be able to grow and rise. The only way to get rid of it, now, is to confess to God our sins.. He already knows we are sinners, but what are we doing about it? like in James 5:16 - "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective."

So let's pray for each other. Keep each other accountable.. for Christianity is about relationships.. a relationship with God and a relationship with others. We are here for each other! prayer requests anyone? :]

Spiritual Parents, Not Guardians

As teachers, we have students put into our "spiritual care," as the devotional puts it. Of course, we know that this isn't something we should take lightly. But how often do we actually care for them like parents instead of just watching them like guardians? As Paul did for the Corinthians, we need to urge our students to follow us, imitate us. But before we can do that, we need to show them a Christ-like life that they can imitate. And for us to be able to do that, we need to look to Christ (duh).

The title of today's QT is "Becoming an Effective Minister." Having an effect starts not with eloquent speech or man's skills. It begins with Christ. That's it. If we earnestly follow Christ, He will make that impact for us. When we urge our students towards Christ, they need to see why, and they should see why through our life. Our life needs to be able to speak for itself--we should ooze with the goodness of Christ. Let's ooze this week :)

True Holiness

I probably grew the most spiritually through the college years. It was at a big church where everyone seemed to be fired up for God, and having biblical wisdom and living a holy life would earn respect from all the people around you. But then, for many people, including myself, have become so self-consumed in trying too hard to be Pharisees.

In today's passage, Paul says "the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight." And also, "no more boasting about men!" He is so right. It's not how I can change on the outside so I can gain the respect and love of other people, but it's all about my internal transformation in Jesus - and me becoming less so that Jesus can become more of me. But such thought is nothing new to me. I have been making far too many commitments to set my life rooted in Jesus, without having much of a practical plan to follow through with them.

I have been feeling the power of morning QT and prayer lately. It started as an ongoing accountability thing with a friend, and the couple minutes in the mornings with God's Word really made a lot of changes throughout my day. I began to see ways that I've been selfish, and also saw how the day's QT passage fit into that situation. Then I realized, within these smaller battles throughout my day, I really felt God's big presence in my life, and the joy of victory.

Recipe for the Mature

I wonder what our students would say if we asked them "who do you follow?"... I wonder if they would respond with the "right" answer or if they would be totally honest about it... Having had grown up in the church, I often feel like I know the "right" answers to the questions being asked... Before, I would rather say what I'm "supposed" to say than be honest about what's really going on in my life... But now, with our desire to be a community, where honesty really matters, I am challenged to be "real"... to be honest... to say what it really is than what it should be...

I thank God for the opportunity and the privilege of being a worker for Him... Knowing that He is in control over all things, including our growth and the growth of our students, gives me comfort because I know I lack in many areas of my teaching and reaching out to my students... We have been given the opportunity to plant seeds and water the seeds in our students' hearts... Let us continue to serve God with humble hearts, giving Him all the glory and praise for the work He is doing in our lives as well as in the lives of our students... and let us continue to encourage our students to build an intimate and real relationship with God... so that when the time comes, they, too, can recognize how God is causing them to grow...

One Community

Recently the RBC EM ministry reviewed and decided on a new name for the group: One Community Church.
The name does not necessarily portray that our church is currently a true, one Christian community, but I believe it places the hope and dream, a vision for our community to achieve that goal, to be the one community of believers where the Love of Christ becomes evident to those around us and thus get to know God through the group.
It's interesting to note that the reason the church of Corinth could not achieve the unity; instead there was jealousy and quarreling among the group. And this is because they are acting like mere men.

We are the same. We all are mere men/women by nature, but Christ called us to be more than that, to be a mature Christian who can take solid food, not just mild from our leaders/pastors.

The problems that Paul was dealing early churches almost 2000 years ago still exist among us today, and in order for us to be different, we must be mature Christian, not looking for simply milk, but start taking in "solid food."

I think there are those of us who only wants to get what they want out of Church experience. Those who only want to hear what they want to hear from their pastors. But we need to be mature about things, and be able to train and encourage one another to grow more like Him, and at times it may mean we need to correct each other, and be able to take in "solid food", sometimes not so pleasant but all the more necessary to grow.

하나님의 영

오늘 말씀은 성령님에 대한 말씀입니다. 어리석고 모자란 저희들은 저희의 지혜로는 하나님의 뜻과 계획을 알수가 없습니다. 하나님께서는 자기를 사랑하는 자를 위해여 성령님으로 주님께서 예비하신 것들을 볼수 있게 하셨습니다.

이렇게 하나님의 영을 받은 우리들은 늘 하나님의 은혜를 감사하며 살아야 합니다. 그러나 우리는 종종 하나님의 축복을 망각하며 살때가 많습니다. 주어진 은혜에 감사하고 만족하며 살길 원합니다. 주님께서 주신 성령님을 통해 육에 속한 사람이 아닌 신령한 자가 되기 위해 노력하기를 소원합니다.

God's Power

For the first part of today's passage.. I do not really have any experience preaching sermons.. but I have taught some Bible studies and i realize that it is important to have some side dishes with your main meal.. which means it is good to have some stories to go with the main message you want to get across.. however the ultimate goal IS to teach a lesson that God wants us to know.. it is important to connect with your peers/group of people you're talking to.. but we have to make sure it does not muddle our main message.. I am sure with more practice, everyone will be able to have a good mix of both..

The second part I really take to heart because Paul does something I really don't do.. Paul let's God's power take over his ministry.. our ministry is our lives.. are we willing to let God fully lead our lives and lead it? I admit I am scared of the unknown and I seldom let God take the reigns of my life.. What class should i take? What job should i apply for? What do i want to be in the future? I always wonder able these things and worry about them. I know the Bible says not to worry about tomorrow, but being in a world as this, it is really hard not to! I would love to leave and give everything to God.. so that is my challenge.. small baby steps.. to let God take the lead in my life and let him call me to what He wants me to do.. Take the Lead God!

The Lord in You

God transformed us from people who are not to people to are. We are, not in our own names but in the name of Jesus. Though we're still weak in our human nature, God constantly lifts us up to be strong men and women of Christ. Through the story of our weaknesses, the power of God shines through because it's only through God that we were made strong. When we stand proud in the weaknesses that God has redeemed, we boast in Him, the only one in whom we should boast.

So, our lives should reflect that we have the power of God within us. The things that we do day to day can do one of two things: exalt us or exalt God--let's exalt God.

Seeking God's wisdom ...

Yeah.. it's fater 12 pm.. T.T ;;
I'm working on homework with DeWayne and..
completely forgot about this ~~
Breakfast on me.. kk

I really like today's reading..
how that gospel can look very foolish to human eyes ~~
I've been witnessing to this one guy who I happen to see
every week these days. He recently admitted that he has no
personal relatoinship with God although he's been coming to church every week.

I began witnessing, but the process is not as easy.
Whenever I tell him the word, he quickly turns the question around
to bring about weird questions, that no one can answer (like.. many of Genesis stuff)
and what happens to people in OT are they in heaven.. that kind of stuff~~

I realized through today's word, that God's wisdom is much wiser than
what we ever ask for. Maybe it is simply time to ask God... "I need your wisdom!"
I need God in this process .. I think this is same in teaching all the
teenagers these days.. we don't have all the answers, but we can offer for them
God's wisdom in their lives, just like Solomon asked God for his wisdom.
His foolishness is better than our wisdom..

Kingdom Vision

Many times, I feel inadequate to be serving. And sadly, the feeling of inadequacy is the most overwhelming when I fail to please a church leader. Sometimes I feel like I need to put my life together before coming before God to answer the calling. But these are such unworthy excuses for "waiting" a little bit longer to answer the calling - when in fact God has called me already, along with the courage and desire to carry it out.

It's not the leader or pastor I'm serving. And it's not myself that I'm worshiping. Just as Paul calls the church in Corinth to turn their eyes from selfish things to Christ. I need to put the focus back on Christ and be humble...

Inheriting from God

As I read today's passage I was actually reminded of the earlier passage in Numbers where the daughters of Zelophehad had made a bold request for their father's inheritance and received not only his inheritance but also a change in the law for other families in the same situation... From that passage, we learned to go to God and ask with boldness...

In today's passage, the lesson continues...
In my life, there are some things I feel I have control over and others that I know I have no control over... so when there is a problem, I ask myself "do I have control over this?" and if I do, I try to take care of it on my own... and if I don't, I seek help... but from today's passage, I see that it doesn't matter if I have control over things or not... With anything that is going on with my life, especially things that bring me trouble, I should go to God... because HE is interested in my life... and HE can help me through my problem...
And in order for HIS solution to work, I need to obey... no matter what...
Even if it is not something I would prefer... or it seems unfair... the best outcome results from complete obedience...

This week, I will spend more time talking to God... sharing my life with Him... especially the stresses in my life... and after I finish talking, I will sit and listen... so that I can act in obedience

Obeying God - Say what?

There are times when God seems to work in His mysterious ways, beyond our understanding and imagination. And there are times when God seems to ask us to trust Him, and obey, when taking that giant step of Faith seem like an impossible task. Sometimes we find it hard to give up our control over our lives, and tell God what we want, instead of simply obeying.

The people of Israelites spent the (extra) years wandering in the desert due to their disobedience, and though most of the time when reading the OT, we wonder why were the people of Israelites so dense, as to disobey God when He was so close to them? Yet we do the same thing. After the death and resurrection of Christ, what do we have to fear? And why do we still chase after the things of this world, when we know that Christ, our King, has defeated the king of the worlds?

The daughters from the tribe of Joseph were given a challenge and a command; in order to protect God-given blessing and vision/prize for the tribe, they had to obey the command, which meant they could not marry anyone of their choice. Say what? You mean I can't marry anyone I want to? Given the history of Israelite's disobedience in the past, they could've said that plenty and went out and marry the person of their choice; instead, they decided to obey, for the sake of the tribe and the greater good/vision.

Do I obey God at all times, despite personal sacrifices I have to make? Do I obey God, staying true to the provisions of God? Are we obeying God in all things, as we continue to protect a God-given provision called R.Y.?

피난처 되신 예수님

하나님께서는 오늘 우발적으로 살인한자를 위한 도피성에 관하여 말씀하십니다. 죄의 가벼움이나 무거움을 떠나서 하나님께서는 그들을 위한 도피성을 마련하시고 그들이 온전한 재판을 받을수 있도록 하십니다. 죄를 지은 자들이 갈수 있는 유일한 곳, 죄를 지은 자들이 두려움없이 지낼수 있는 유일한 곳이 바로 이 도피성이었습니다.

날마다 알게 모르게 죄를 지는 우리들에게 예수님이 바로 우리의 도피성이십니다.

구약시대엔 고의로 살인한 자는 죽음을 죽음으로 갚아야 했습니다. 지금 우리가 의식하고 저지른 죄에 대해 우리가 벌을 받아야 하는것이 마땅하지만 주님께서는 우리를 위해 십자가를 지셨습니다. 우리의 죽음으로 죄를 갚는게 아니라 예수 그리스도의 죽음으로 우리의 죄를 사하여 주셨습니다.

우리의 피난처 되신 주님. 세상의 어려움과 고통속에서 지치고 시달릴때 죄인들이 피난처로 달려나갔던 것처럼 저희도 주님앞에 모든것 내려놓고 달려가길 소원합니다.

Holy Devotion - Wholly Provisioned

The Levites and the Israelites are holy people, set apart by God. For them, God has also set apart land for their pastures - places where they can settle and grow their food. This just shows how much God has for us, the potential of what we can gain for being holy children of God. If we become holy.. he will provide.. because we are Christians.. he provides for us.. he blesses us with the roofs over our heads, the food in our stomachs, and the love we have from our families and friends. We really do not recognize all that He gives us, He truly is THE provider. Let us not take it for granted, like i have already done so many times.. I want to think of God more.. I want to be proactive and think of God more in my daily life..

Because he sets land for refugees, it's just a glimpse of the forgiveness, the grace, the justice he has.. even though we are sinners, he loves us and choses to exercise His love by providing refuge for those who killed others. His love for us is still unfathomable to me.. we should be able to show a love like that too.. my challenge is to love.. not to be bitter.. and forgive..

A Personal God

God was so meticulous is outlining the boundaries for the Israelites. I was really blessed to see just how carefully God prepared a place for them. It shows me that God had a good and detailed plan for them. He thought deeply about what he wanted for the Israelites and he was faithful in fulfilling his promise to them. It also shows just how much he loved them to have such specific territories laid out. He made this promise because he loved them that much.

He has also made amazing promises to each of us and each of our students. This challenges me to be a better teacher, to show them how much God loves them and how much he has prepared for them, just like he prepared a way and a place for the Israelites. As I prepare Bible Study, I need to be mindful of their needs are and really seek out what God desires to do through me to meet those needs. It's not about how eloquent I can be, or how quickly I can whip up a lesson just to spit it out and send them off. It's about humbly taking part in revealing what God wants for their lives and helping them see a glimpse of how much God loves them. So, in order for me to be able to do that, I need God. My challenge is to pray over each student before I prepare Bible Study so that I can become a better mouthpiece.

barbs and thorns

The Israelites had were given a task to
drive out all their possessions and inheritance,
as they faced another battle at hand...

And the Lord's command was to not keep any of their
inheritance, so that it will not become "barbs and thorns to their sides"

As Christians, Holy Spirit always allowed us to understand some of the
things that we need to get rid of...
It's just like my room, I know what to clean up, but I tend to wait a few
more days to clean them up... of course, when I don't clean up,
something will bother me, like "where is my cell phone??"

We all are given the priviledge to live our lives to the best but
we're algo given a task to let go of anythying that hinders our
'living to the fullest'
At the YS convention, I was challenged by so many things that
Pastors have to "give up" and "take challenge" ...
My task for this week is to learn to get go of some of the things
that may hinder me from going further in God's work processes...

Journey

I'm actually glad I got this passage today... tho it's just a long list of names that are hard to pronounce, I got curious and Googled up the journey of the Israelites to find these places on a map.

My first reaction was... what da heck? Why in the world did they take this route? No wonder it took 40 years... distance wise, it looks like I can drive from Egypt to Canaan in about 13 hours. I did hear that this passage was the only passage through the desert that could provide water and food for the people, but still.

Like it says in the reflection section today, I'm glad all these events at their camps are recorded. All their mistakes through these 40 years, as well as God's blessings, are written in the Bible. From Egypt to Canaan, the things that God revealed to the Israelites still speak strong to me today because my heart is just as prone to wander as those of the Israelites. And God is still the big, mighty and awesome god that he was back then. I want to journal my own journey with God too.

My Rights vs My Responsibilities

There are people who likes to insist in their Rights, yet when it comes to their responsibilities, they don't really care. And although I do not see myself as one of those people... is that really true?
And then there are people who simply wants to take and take and take, and get everything out of a church, yet they themselves do not wish to give back to the church, for whatever reason.
And yet there are those who do serve and perform their responsibilities, with a sense of bitterness and/or out of selfish motives/reasons, to feel self-righteous, and/or to be able to boast.

I think Christ emphasized on the condition of our hearts, and this was a point Jesus brought up over and over again; what is in your heart? what is the true motive? are you doing it to truly serve the Lord and to serve the people? Or are you doing it out of your own motives/reasons?

Sure, we can say that at least, the job got done, and we were able to do whatever was needed, but like Paul said, without love, without the right reason, it was all meaningless...

So I must watch my heart, my motives, the reason for doing whatever I do, and I hope that as I continue to align my hearts with the heart of God, that my actions will automatically be aligned according to His will, and that whatever I do, will be for the right reasons.

I kind of ended up on a tangent from the main topic of today's passage, but for me, I would like to watch the condition of my heart, when I am fulfilling my responsibilities.

하나님이 보시기에 좋은것

오늘의 말씀을 통해 하나님께서는 우리가 얼마나 이기적인 존재인지를 알려주십니다. 자기들의 가축을 쉽게 기르기 위해서 주님이 예비하신 약속의 땅을 거부하려는 르우벤 자손과 갓 자손을 보며 우리도 얼마나 눈앞에 보인것에 안주하려고 하는가에 대한 생각이 듭니다.

분명 우리의 눈에는 드넓은 목초지가 더 좋아보입니다. 그러나 하나님의 눈에는 요단강 건너 황무지가 더 좋아보이신다고 하십니다. 우리는 날마다 우리가 보기에 좋은것들, 우리가 좋아하는 것들을 쫓아서 살아가는 실수를 합니다. 하나님이 보시기에 좋은것들, 비록 그것이 우리 눈에는 아름다워 보이지 않더라도, 비록 그것이 우리 눈에는 부족해 보일지라도, 우리는 하나님이 원하시는 것을 우선시 하며 살아가야 합니다.

그 넓은 가나안땅중에 가장 거칠고 황폐한 지역을 주님이 주신 땅이라 굳게 믿고 나아간 갈렙처럼 우리는 세상의 기준으로, 세상의 잣대로 사는 것이 아니라 영원히 변하지 않는 주님의 기준으로 살아야 합니다.

하나님이 사람을 창조 하시고 보시기에 가장 좋았다고 하셨습니다. 하나님이 보시기에 가장 좋은 일들만 하는 주님의 자녀가 되길 바랍니다.

Blessing and Trust

Today's passage just really shows me that whenever we do what God wants us to do, when we do His will, he will in turn provide for us and bless us.

God wanted the Israelites to go to war with the Midianites, and little to no men on the Israelite side was lost to war, and they Israelite side won spoils from obeying God.

I can already see the blessings in my life because I am God's child and I am very thankful for it. When we trust God, He blesses us.. what more could we want? I know it is harder said than done because we do not directly see God, but that is what faith is - our trust in God.

Of all the things the Israelites attained from the war, a portion of it was given unto God, and we still have to do that too. We have to give tithes, we have to give thanks, everything we do should be offered to God. It is the least we can do for the blessings He has given us, like eternal life, friends, family, and the most important of all, Love.

Falling Prey to Sin

Today's QT talks about ridding our lives of sin and anything that can tempt us to fall back into sin. Just like the Israelites were ordered to go through drastic measures to do this, we also need to take sin seriously. Sin is a powerful thing, more powerful than we'd like to imagine. So, when we still have temptations left over, it still has control over us. Moses commanded the Israelites to kill the women. That's how far they had to take it. We need to kill sin in our lives, but individually we are powerless against sin. In the name of Christ though, we are strong. =) Getting rid of sin, whether it's sexual immorality like the Israelites or any other sin, is a long process, but it is so necessary if we are to live a healthy and full life with Christ at the head of it. I know I have a long way to go, but I've learned from past experiences that sin will always come back and bite you in the butt unless are you proactive about fleeing from it and allowing God to tackle it because God can and will win! =)

Vows

It's hard to see God's ways. My mom always tells me that I don't understand how a parent sees the child. And of course that's the case - I'm not a parent! Just as much as I don't understand my parents when they tell me things I don't want to hear, when God has his way in my life and imposes things that are out of my control, I just don't get it. But when it comes to God and me, though I've heard enough that I'm a child of God, there's something different about Him from my earthly parents. When God tells me, in whatever way that He chooses to tell me, my obedience occurs at a deeper level. (Regardless of how much I rebel.)

I guess making a vow to God is something very serious. Like, walking up to the altar at an altar call. Or getting baptized. I'm not an altar call-kinda person, but still I've made plenty of vows before. Knowing human beings, there's no way God can expect us to be perfect in loving him with all of our hearts and minds... though I wish that were true. But God still wants us to be committed to him. From God's perspective, maybe it's like having a girlfriend/boyfriend who keeps breaking up with you but keeps coming back, and you're just a fine lad with infinite amount of patience and love to be able to tolerate such act of indecency. But I know it's good to be having a relationship with God, and that's really what I want for my life. God loved the Israelites, even though they turned their backs on God numerous times. Hosea was committed to a prostitute who kept running away. Jesus loved his disciples even when they seemed to betray him.

The Joy of Future Salvation

As I read the commentary on today's QT, I was very interested in the reference to the future... to when Jesus returns... it was something that never crossed my mind before when reading the book of Numbers... I had always thought about it as something of the past... but now with its reference to what is to come gives me a new and different perspective...

As I reflect upon my life... I feel that I live in and for the present... I am so thankful for all that I have in my life right now, enjoying every part of it... but maybe I'm enjoying it too much? being too comfortable with the way things are?... even though I do have plans for my future, I don't think I've planned with the Second Coming in mind... I think because of my personality in how I want to know what's going to happen when making plans, a part of me feels reluctant about Jesus' return... I want to be more excited about it, though... and I think in order to do this, I need to give up the control over my life and my plans to God... to not be so excited in what I want and expect for my life, but to be more open to God's plans and His timing for the things in my life... and let His desires and expectations be of my own...

State of my heart

It is a simple matter of priority: Do you put higher priority on Spiritual things, or things of this Earth? When asked in its simplicity, I believe most of us would say, sure, I put my priority in Spiritual things of God, but in reality, is that true?

I ask because I always grew up believing in that fashion; after all, this life on Earth is meaningless without God, and that is what I am here for. But in my day-to-day life, there are many things and activities that constantly pop-up, asking for immediate attention, attempting to change my priorities, each and every time.

I always believed that my utmost is for God, and then family and friends. But the past couple of weeks, has not been so. I felt like I have placed work in front of everything else, and at times, even God, by choosing to skip the weekly Bible study for work. In the end, what does it matter? Sure, I need the job to pay for the mortgage, but without God, the mortgage, the house, the life on Earth, would've been meaningless anyways!

Knowing the workload that I have ahead of me for this week, a depressing topic in my mind, I am very much tempted to again skip the Bible study for the week. But perhaps I ought to keep "eternity" in mind, when approaching this week.

How can I expect God to bless me in this life, when I cannot stay focused on God in all things?

주님의 보혈

오늘 말씀은 유월절과 칠칠절의 제물에대해 말씀하고 있습니다. 이스라엘 백성이 출애굽을 할때에 그들은 대문에 어린양의 피를 발라 하나님의 자녀임을 나타내었고 이때문에 그들의 첫째 자녀들이 죽음을 피할수 있었습니다. 이는 단지 몇천년 전의 일이 아닙니다. 지금 살아가고 있는 우리들도 예수님의 보혈로 하나님의 축복을 받으며 살아갑니다.

이스라엘 사람들은 이 유월절을 통해서 하나님의 도우심을 찬양합니다. 그들은 온갖제물들을 가지고 주님께 감사를 드립니다. 그러나 예수님의 보혈로 구원된 우리들은 이런 제물들이 필요하지 않습니다. 저희의 진실된 예배가 이모든 제물을 대신하기 때문입니다.

예수님의 보혈로 구원받은 우리들..
친히 이땅에 오셔서 유월절 어린양이 되신 예수님을 높여드리는 하루가 되길 바랍니다.

Offerings

I know this is super late, but I feel like i should still do it. :]

The main point that i got out of this passage is that.. All of these things that the Israelites had to do, we do not have to do anymore because it was already done for us. And i think that is so amazing. Our sacrifice was something that was not ours (tangibly), even people like us, who lived 100s of years after Jesus.. It is His blood that is our sacrifice.. it's a feeling of love, hope, and grace and overflows in my heart..

The least we can do is spend our lives to be a whole sacrifice to God.. we should to show our thanks, we have to show our thanks.. and what a better way than to live for God. I want to live for God.

Straight Talk with Moses

I missed yesterday's QT..
so.. I am writing today's ^^

I don't remember Moses and God having such a plain conversation,
It is the final days of Moses, and God does not hesitate to bring
about what Moses did wrong to Him!
He has not honored God the way he should have...

I realize that a leader is one of responsibility,and one that
should bring God the glory.. Anything less than that, will
cause one to not only walk away from its leadership, but
perhaps even a straight talk from God for such deeds..

I am reminded again, that I have responsibilities
that are linked to God's expectations..
it's a heavy burden, but it's such an awesome priviledge
everytime I look at it~~

May God be please with our ministry !!
all of us are called to be Moses and Joshua..
let's make God happy everyday ~~

A New Shepherd

Moses shows a very obedient heart towards the Lord. He knows that he isn't allowed into the Promised Land, and he knows that his time is coming to an end and he is still obedient to God til the very end. God tells him to commission Joshua as the next leader, which Moses does. I can't imagine what it must feel like to be Moses during this moment. He went through so much to get the Israelites to this point, even though he did make mistakes along the way, and now they're at a place where they can see Canaan. But Moses can't go any closer. God tells him that this is where a new leader will rise up and Moses will step down. That kinda really sucks for Moses.. We always hear that we need to be willing to listen to God when He calls us to lead, but we see in this passage that we also need to be willing to step down when God tells us. Whichever way the calling goes, we need to be in intimate contact with God to know His will for us like Moses. I haven't kept the commitment I made last week, so I'm going to work on that again this week..