Deaf Devo - The Deaf Missions in Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States for Friday, 23 June 2017 "Exodus (6)" Bible Reading: Exodus 20:1-17

Deaf Devo - The Deaf Missions in Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States for Friday, 23 June 2017 "Exodus (6)" Bible Reading: Exodus 20:1-17  Exodus 20:1 Then God said all these words: א 2 “I am Adonai your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the abode of slavery. ב 3 “You are to have no other gods before me. 4 You are not to make for yourselves a carved image or any kind of representation of anything in heaven above, on the earth beneath or in the water below the shoreline. 5 You are not to bow down to them or serve them; for I, Adonai your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sins of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but displaying grace to the thousandth generation of those who love me and obey my mitzvot. ג 7 “You are not to use lightly the name of Adonai your God, because Adonai will not leave unpunished someone who uses his name lightly. ד 8 “Remember the day, Shabbat, to set it apart for God. 9 You have six days to labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Shabbat for Adonai your God. On it, you are not to do any kind of work — not you, your son or your daughter, not your male or female slave, not your livestock, and not the foreigner staying with you inside the gates to your property. 11 For in six days, Adonai made heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. This is why Adonai blessed the day, Shabbat, and separated it for himself. ה 12 “Honor your father and mother, so that you may live long in the land which Adonai your God is giving you. ו 13 “Do not murder. ז (14) “Do not commit adultery. ח (15) “Do not steal. ט (16) “Do not give false evidence against your neighbor. י 14 (17) “Do not covet your neighbor’s house; do not covet your neighbor’s wife, his male or female slave, his ox, his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” (A: vii) 15 (18) All the people experienced the thunder, the lightning, the sound of the shofar, and the mountain smoking. When the people saw it, they trembled. Standing at a distance, 16 (19) they said to Moshe, “You, speak with us; and we will listen. But don’t let God speak with us, or we will die.” 17 (20) Moshe answered the people, “Don’t be afraid, because God has come only to test you and make you fear him, so that you won’t commit sins.” ------- God gave Moses laws for the Israelites. Some of these laws are listed in our Bible Reading today. Usually we call these ten laws the "Ten Commandments." God gave these laws so the Israelites would know how to honor Him and to live peacefully with each other.  Recently I read through the Ten Commandments. As I read each command, I thought about how I try to love God every day and to obey Him. But when I read verse 8, I stopped and thought for a long time about my life. Verse 8 talks about setting aside time to rest and to honor God.  Americans are very busy people. We have our jobs, families, church activities, social media and many other things to keep us busy. We live very stressful lives. Often we do not take time to do two important things - honor God and rest our bodies.  Set aside some special time to rest and to focus on God. You will receive both physical and spiritual blessings for doing this. "My Lord God, I praise you with  all my heart. I will honor your  name forever!" [Psalm 86:12]  PRAYER: Dear God, I love You so much. Be with me as I take time to honor You and rest my body. In Jesus' name. Amen.

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Deaf Devo - The Deaf Missions in Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States for Thursday, 22 June 2017 "Exodus (5)" Bible Reading: Exodus 18:13-20,24-27  Exodus 18:(ii) 13 The following day Moshe sat to settle disputes for the people, while the people stood around Moshe from morning till evening. 14 When Moshe’s father-in-law saw all that he was doing to the people, he said, “What is this that you are doing to the people? Why do you sit there alone, with all the people standing around you from morning till evening?” 15 Moshe answered his father-in-law, “It’s because the people come to me seeking God’s guidance. 16 Whenever they have a dispute, it comes to me; I judge between one person and another, and I explain to them God’s laws and teachings.” 17 Moshe’s father-in-law said to him, “What you are doing isn’t good. 18 You will certainly wear yourself out — and not only yourself, but these people here with you as well. It’s too much for you — you can’t do it alone, by yourself. 19 So listen now to what I have to say. I will give you some advice, and God will be with you. You should represent the people before God, and you should bring their cases to God. 20 You should also teach them the laws and the teachings, and show them how to live their lives and what work they should do.  (iii) 24 Moshe paid attention to his father-in-law’s counsel and did everything he said. 25 Moshe chose competent men from all Isra’el and made them heads over the people, in charge of thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 26 As a general rule, they settled the people’s disputes — the difficult cases they brought to Moshe, but every simple matter they decided themselves. 27 Then Moshe let his father-in-law leave, and he went off to his own country. ------- Moses and the Israelites were camped near Mount Sinai. Moses' father-in-law, Jethro, heard about the wonderful things God had done for the Israelites. So Jethro went to visit Moses.  While Jethro was visiting Moses, he saw all the hard work that Moses did. Verse 13 of our Bible Reading tells us that "Moses had the special job of judging the people. There were so many people that they had to stand before him all day." Jethro told Moses, "It is too much work for you to do alone...It wears you out. And it makes the people tired too" (verse 18a). Then Jethro suggested that Moses choose some good men to help him judge the Israelites.  Sometimes we may have a project at work or home or in the church. But we become tired and want to give up. That's when it is good to ask someone to help us. A person with new ideas may be able to help us finish the job quickly. If you are struggling with a job today, ask God to show you someone who can share your load. "If you do this as God directs you, then you will be able to do your job without tiring yourself out."  [Exodus 18:23a]  PRAYER: Father, I am willing to accept Your guidance today. In Jesus' name. Amen.   Watch latest Deaf Devo in ASL on:  Website  |  YouTube  |  Facebook  |  App

Deaf Missions 21199 Greenview Road Council Bluffs, Iowa 51503, United States

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