Deuteronomy 8:1-3

Deuteronomy 8:1-3 KJV
All the commandments which I command thee this day shall ye observe a to do, that ye may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the LORD sware  unto your fathers. [2] And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. [3] And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.

Deuteronomy as many know it by, is a book of remembrance. Moses at this time and not so familiar age, is addressing this letter to the new generation destined to possess the land of promise. It makes me think of Paul. Addressing his last letter to Timothy while in prison.

Remembering and encouraging are important. For Moses and the Israelites, there's something that the Lord had promised. Something physical, something tangible.  What the Lord uses Moses for, at this time, astonishes me every time. It's simply involves remembering.

For me it seems fit that these three verses remain together. Listening, Remembering, and Humility.The Lord begins to sum up what he did in the wilderness with the Israelites for the past 80+ years and why He let it be so. The escape from the Egyptians, Manna from heaven, allowing trials, and providing every victory and much much more. Although, He being God, is just, there is no need to explain Himself.  However what we read, is an explanation. And what He says is “I did what I did, to produce Humility.” Remembering involves us going to God and asking Him to make Himself known.

As I dove deeper into these 3 verses I found what these past 8 months in IGNITE have been about. As the Lord has commanded me since I was a young girl, to follow His ways, to make Him known, and to have Him number one in my heart. It became very clear that at times I had failed at this. I struggled with idolatry. Whether it was thinking too far ahead anxiousness and expectancy. Or putting someone in the Lord's place, at the center. It was clear that I was an Israelite. At times relying on my own strength to get through the day and struggling with doubt, thinking “we were better off as slaves.”

When I look back to six months ago, I see a girl who was afraid and unwilling. And as she continued on the journey the Lord put her on, her clothes did not wear out, the Lord provided manna (enough for a days supply), He provided water, and although she faced giants, every land was conquered by the sovereign Word of God. I struggled and doubted. I refused and fought. But it was all to show me that “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” For me in this season, it may not necessarily be a “physical” land that I am possessing, but there is a promise that the Lord has spoken. And it too shall come to pass. The Lord and His Word do not return void. Listening and Remembering all that the Lord has said and done produces Humility.