Podcasts about Horeb

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260313dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion They said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?” The LORD answered Moses, “Go out in front of the people . . . I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.” Exodus 17:3,5-6 Water from a Rock If you grew up in a home like mine and you complained about your food, you heard your parents say something like this: “There are starving children in Africa who would love to have that food.” Whether the reasoning was sound, the point was that we should be thankful for what we had instead of complaining. The temptation to be dissatisfied with what we have has plagued humanity for almost as long as this world has existed. But what if it is a basic need that seems to be missing? The nation of Israel was in the wilderness. No running water. No cool springs, pools, or streams to draw water from. We can live without food, but water is essential. Didn't God care enough to provide? But God wasn’t ignoring their need. With a miracle, he would show that he was the one who provided for them. He told Moses to strike a rock with his staff, and water flowed out of that rock for them to drink. How patient God was with them. How patient God is with us. We grumble and complain; yet he patiently continues to provide just what we need every day. The greatest gift he provides is another Rock. The Bible later comments on this time period and says, “They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ” (1 Corinthians 10:3-4). Jesus was always with them, and he is always with us, too. In his word of grace, he gives us the essential water for our spiritual lives. Through that living water that flows from Jesus, we are rescued from the wilderness we deserve because of our sins. And we are kept alive to dwell with our God, whose patient love for us always provides everything we need and more! Thanks be to God! Prayer: Jesus, forgive my grumbling and lack of trust. Pour out your living and life-giving water to quench my thirsty soul. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/family-devotions/20260309fam.mp3 Listen to Devotion The whole Israelite community . . . camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. So they quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.” Moses replied, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the LORD to the test?” But the people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against Moses. Then Moses cried out to the LORD “What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.” The LORD answered Moses, “Go out in front of the people. Take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.” Exodus 17:1-7 (selected verses) Worth More Than Water In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Have you ever been REALLY thirsty? Like after recess? Or soccer practice? Or playing outside on a super hot day? Without food, a person can live for quite a while. But without water? Only about three days! That means water isn't just nice to have. It's something our bodies absolutely need. Most of us can just turn on a faucet and—splash!—there's water. We use water to drink, brush our teeth, shower, wash dishes, water plants, and even have water balloon fights! We have LOTS of water. But not everywhere is like that. Some places are called deserts. A desert is a place that gets very, very little rain. One of the driest deserts in the whole world is called the Atacama Desert in Chile. It is said to be 100 times drier than Phoenix, AZ. Some parts of the desert have gone years without rain! Imagine waiting years for rain! Plants that grow there have to survive with almost no water. But people? People can't survive like that. Now imagine the Israelites. They had just left Egypt, and they were traveling through the desert. It was hot. It was dry. And they were thirsty. Very thirsty. They started to complain. But they forgot something important: They were not alone. God was with them. And God promises to take care of his people. So God told Moses to do something amazing. He said, “Strike the rock, and water will come out of it.” Water. From a rock! And it worked. God gave his thirsty people exactly what they needed. But God didn't just give them water. And he doesn't just give us water either. God gives us food, water, homes, and families. But he gives us something even more important. He gives us salvation. Just like a desert can't make its own water, we can't make our own salvation. We can't be good enough to earn heaven. We can't fix our sins by ourselves. And when we complain like the Israelites did—or forget to trust God—that shows us how much we need a Savior. And God gave us one. He didn't just bring water from a rock. He sent Jesus. That is worth more than water. That is worth everything. Let's never forget it. Prayer: Dear Lord, you alone provide everything that I need for my body and life. Most of all, you provide what I need for eternal life: Jesus. Thank you! Now help me to trust you and not complain. Amen. The questions below are to help families discuss this devotion. The questions are divided by age group as suggestions, but anyone could reflect on any of the questions as they desire. Questions for Younger Children Where were the Israelites traveling that made it hard to find water? We need water to live physically. We need God's Word to live spiritually. How is the Bible like water for our faith? Questions for Elementary Age Children The Israelites complained to Moses—but who were they really complaining against? What does that teach us about complaining? In your own words, what did Jesus do to save you? Why couldn't we save ourselves? Questions for Middle School and Above Where do you complain the most (Homework, chores, siblings, bedtime)? God gave the Israelites water in the desert. Water can remind us of Baptism. How does your Baptism show that God has already given you forgiveness and made you his child? Download Family Devotions Family Devotions are brought to you by WELS Discipleship. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Ref.: Joseph Carl Schneider, Heilpraktiker, Germering An die 30 Billionen Zellen hat ein erwachsener Körper - und jede von ihnen muss mit Energie versorgt werden. In der Lebenshilfe betrachten wir mit dem Heilpraktiker Josef Carl Schneider das filigrane Transportsystem für diese Brennstoffe, nämlich unser Blutsystem. Denn wenn man sich schlapp fühlt oder ständig friert, kann das auch an einer schlechten Durchblutung liegen.

Exodus 3:1-15Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!"And Moses said, “Here I am.” “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”  Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God. The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering.  So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them.  So now, go.  I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, ‘What is his name?' Then what shall I tell them?” God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.' ” God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.' “This is my name forever,      the name you shall call me      from generation to generation."

Dans l'Évangile selon Matthieu 28:16-20, Jésus ne fait pas une suggestion… Il donne un mandat : Allez.Comme le peuple d'Israël à Horeb dans Deutéronome 1:6-8, nous pouvons vivre des expériences extraordinaires avec Dieu, sans comprendre que ce n'est pas la destination finale. Horeb était un lieu de révélation, mais la promesse était ailleurs.Aller signifie :• Appliquer ce que nous avons appris,• Manifester ce que nous avons reçu,• Témoigner de ce que nous avons vu, ...À l'image de Caleb dans Livre de Josué 14:12-15, nous sommes appelés à réclamer nos montagnes, même si des géants s'y trouvent. Les obstacles, les oppositions, les systèmes contraires ne doivent pas nous immobiliser.Le mandat est donné à ceux qui ont atteint la maturité spirituelle. Soutenez-nous sur PayPal !

Übertr: Radio Vatikan, Rom, Italien

Ref.: Sr. Maria Petra Grünert OSF, Augsburg

Lured by the promise of fertile farmland and a chance to start anew, several hundred thousand men, women and children set out along the Oregon Trail between the 1840s and the 1880s. They rolled west in groups of oxen-pulled prairie schooners through grass prairies, arid deserts, and over snowy mountain passes, bound for California and Oregon.For 19th-century settlers traveling west across America by wagon train, every mile tested body and spirit. Blistered feet, choking dust, and swarming insects were just a few of the many physical challenges along the 2,000-mile, months-long journey. Settlers also had to contend with unpredictable weather in the wide-open West -- dust storms, rain squalls or blizzards.Perhaps the worst physical challenge the settlers faced was severe water shortages, often forcing them to rely on contaminated, alkaline, or meager water sources that caused disease and death. While wagon trains followed rivers like the Platte and Carson for survival, they often struggled to find enough water for animals. Many settlers took shortcuts to get to California, such as the Hastings Cutoff in Utah, which promised a faster route but led directly into harsh deserts. Or settlers would come from the last good water of the Platte 20 miles back when they arrived at Clayton's Slough here in Natrona County. The contaminated water poisoned livestock and humans. Cholera, caused by contaminated water, was the leading cause of death, followed by diseases like dysentery.These settlers were hearty souls, looking for a better land and a better life out West. They needed some water to drink along the way.The Israelites had just escaped from being slaves in Egypt. They had witnessed God's miracles with the ten plagues, the Angel of the Lord appearing as a pillar of cloud and pillar of fire to separate them from the angry Egyptian army, and Moses using his staff to part the waters of the Red Sea. About a month earlier, they complained about being hungry, so God miraculously provided them with manna from heaven and quails that landed in their camp.After receiving this miraculous food in the desert, the Israelites have been traveling for several more days. The hills are getting higher in the Horeb mountain range. The valleys are narrower and full of huge rocks. There are no springs of water to be found anywhere in this mountainous desert.This time the Israelites not only complain. They "quarrel" with Moses. "The entire Israelite community set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin as the Lord had commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. So the people quarreled with Moses and said, 'Give us water to drink'" (Exodus 17:1-2).They even threaten to stone Moses! "Moses said to them, 'Why are you quarreling with me? Why are you testing the Lord?' But the people were thirsty for water there, so they grumbled against Moses. They said, 'Why did you ever bring us up out of Egypt to let us, our children, and our livestock die of thirst?' Moses cried out to the Lord, 'What shall I do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me'" (Exodus 17:3-4)!These people are ungrateful to the Lord for rescuing them. They are thankless to Moses for his leadership. Moses is in the same mountain range where he had previously tended sheep for his father-in-law Jethro. Who would have blamed him if he had traded in his leadership staff for a shepherd's staff and gone back to tending sheep! At least they would have been pleasant to be around!The Lord had earlier directed Moses' staff and used water in his miracles by changing the Nile River into blood and then back into water again, and parting the waters of the Red Sea and then having those walls of water come crashing down on Pharaoh and his army. Now the Lord patiently deals with the quarreling children of Israel as a father deals with his crabby kids. He directs Moses to use his staff to strike a rock. As Moses obeys, water comes out of the rock for the people to drink."The Lord said to Moses, 'Go in front of the people, and take the elders of Israel with you. Also take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. Watch me. I will stand there in front of you on the rock in Horeb. You are to strike the rock. Water will come out of it, and the people will drink.' Moses did that in the sight of the elders of Israel. He named the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled, and because they tested the Lord by saying, 'Is the Lord among us or not'" (Exodus 17:5-7)?It's no wonder that Moses called that place "Massah," which in Hebrew means "testing," and "Meribah," which in Hebrew means "quarreling." Through their quarreling the Israelites were testing the Lord, demanding proof that he was still among them. In his mercy the Lord again gave evidence of his providential love to these undeserving people.We need to understand that we are very similar to these quarreling Israelites kids. God has blessed many of our family members with long lives, but we question God when he takes a loved one away through death. God has blessed us with health, but we grumble when we get really ill. God has blessed us with a home, so we don't have be camping in the desert, but we grumble when we have to do home repairs. God has blessed us with manna and quail ... and a whole lot of other foods in our fridge, freezer, and pantry. Yet we complain that we can't find anything to eat. We have indoor plumbing with water in the bathroom, washroom, and kitchen, yet we still find a way to whine about the water pressure or the temperature or the taste.God calls us today to repent of our self-centeredness, confess our quarreling; admit whining, grumbling, and complaining. We must admit that we fall into the sin of the Israelites when they became so thirsty that they questioned God's love for them asking, "Is the Lord among us or not?" When things go against us, we, too, fall into the Devil's trap of believing that God doesn't care about us.We repent and then believe. Believe that the Lord knows what's best for you. Believe that you learn more through suffering and want than through ease and comfort. That's what St. Paul is teaching in our Epistle lesson, "We rejoice confidently in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces patient endurance, and patient endurance produces tested character, and tested character produces hope" (Romans 5:3-4). Trust that whether in plenty or in scarcity, whether in suffering or in pleasure, God gives you exactly what you need. As Martin Luther said it so well, "I believe that God has made me and all creatures ... given me clothing, shoes, food and drink... [and] he richly and daily provides me with all that I need to support this body and life."Have you ever been really thirsty but had nothing to drink? The books I've been reading have thirst as a major theme in them. The Christian Crusaders leaving Europe and heading to Jerusalem. Magellan and Columbus sailing across the ocean but having no fresh water to drink. Polar explorers surrounded by ice and snow, but again, having no fresh water to drink. Soldiers fighting in the Civil War, World Wars, or wars in the Middle East. They all battled thirst.We, too, battle thirst. But not a physical thirst. A spiritual thirst. St. Paul uses the thirst of the Israelites in the desert and the water from the rock as an application for spiritual meaning to their physical actions. "For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea, and they were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them―and that rock was Christ! Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them. He had them die in the wilderness. Now these things took place as examples to warn us not to desire evil things the way they did" (1 Corinthians 10:1-6).The term spiritual food refers to the manna. The spiritual drink refers to the water that came out of the rock. The food and drink are called spiritual because they were miraculously provided. But the real source of their food and drink, the one who really did accompany and save them, was the promised Savior, the Messiah.God, in his love, quenches thirst. When our physical needs are met, when we have cozy homes, and nourished bodies, when our physical thirst is quenched, it can be easy to stop there and think, "What more could I need." So many in our world are lost in a desert of sin and unbelief and dying of spiritual thirst -- thirst for answers, for acceptance, for purpose. The problem is when we look in the wrong places to have that spiritual thirst quenched -- we become spiritually dehydrated. The danger of spiritual dehydration is eternal death.Jesus Christ is the Rock of our salvation. God called Moses to strike the rock to quench the people's physical thirst. Jesus took the guilt of our sin upon himself so that by his death and resurrection, through faith, God would quench our need for forgiveness. We receive Christ as we read about him as the Rock of our salvation in the Bible. We receive Christ in Holy Baptism as the water and the Word works to create faith, washes away sins, and grants everlasting life.Jesus answered the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I will give him will never be thirsty ever again. Rather, the water I will give him will become in him a spring of water, bubbling up to eternal life" (John 4:13-14).What is "living water"? Living water is the gospel message about Jesus. We end each of our Thirsty podcasts with the phrase, "You are thirsty, my friends, so drink deeply from the Water of Life." We become physically dehydrated because we don't drink enough water during the day. We become spiritually dehydrated because we don't drink enough of God's living water during the day and week.Drink deeply from Christ's living water by being in Bible study -- we offer a lot of them. Drink deeply by listening to various Lutheran podcasts. Drink deeply by coming regularly to worship -- we have Sunday morning and Wednesday evening, plus Holy Week is coming soon. Drink deeply by receiving the Sacrament often -- you'll be able to receive the Lord's Supper five times during Holy Week with Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, the Easter Vigil, and Easter Sunday. Drink deeply by reading and meditating on God's Word on your own or with your family. Every morning, speak the words of the invocation, make the sign of the cross, recite the Apostles' Creed, Luther's Morning Prayer, and the Lord's Prayer. Then read a portion of Scripture, meditate on it, and pray about it. Then do the same thing in the evening, except using Luther's Evening Prayer.When we drink of Christ and his Word, we have all that we need. The Holy Spirit enables us to produce the fruits of faith, which "gush" forth from our lives. The living water that Jesus offers, quenches thirst forever, because it springs up like a well inside of people, resulting in eternal life. This is the ongoing effect of Christ and his Word, that satisfies any spiritual thirst forever.The Israelites quarreled with Moses when they said, "Give us water to drink." Let us say those same words to the Lord. But may they instead be a prayer for the Lord to quench our physical and spiritual thirst. "Lord, give us water to drink." Amen.View this sermon (with video and/or audio recording) on our website: https://www.casperwels.com/sermons/give-us-water-to-drink/

Ref.: P. Peter Bretzinger, Mitgründer der geistlichen Gemeinschaft Communio Sanctorum Es gibt eine stille Kraft, die die Kirche weltweit trägt: das kontemplative Gebet. Davon ist Pater Peter Bretzinger von der Gemeinschaft "Communio Sanctorum" fest überzeugt. Mit ihm gehen wir den Fragen nach, wie Stille und Gebet zu einer missionarischen Kraft werden können, wie geistliche Gemeinschaften heute weltweit wirken und welchen Beitrag das kontemplative Leben für Frieden und Versöhnung in einer zerrissenen Welt leisten kann?

Ref.: Martin Wolf OMI, Rom, Italien Fasten Verzicht oder Befreiung? Damit durch den Verzicht in der Fastenzeit Freiraum wird Gott entsteht, dazu gibt Pater Martin Wolf heute im Kurs 0 Tipps an die Hand.

Ref.: Pfr. Jörg Fleischer, Leiter des Pfarrverbands Rotthalmünsters und Leiter des Fatima-Apostolats im Bistum Passau, Rotthalmünster (Niederbayern)

Ref.: Pfr. Armin Kögler, Königstein im Taunus

Ref.: Wallfahrtsrektor Norbert Traub, Wemding Am ersten Samstag im Monat in der Fastenzeit betrachten wir heute die Gottesmutter Maria als schmerzhafte Muttergottes, die ihrem Sohn im Leiden beisteht.

Ref.: Sonja Dengler, Tiqua-Gründerin, Heidelberg Manchmal reicht ein "Nein", um großen Schaden abzuwehren. Und manchmal ist es ein einsames "Nein". Im Bereich des Lebensschutzes stellt sich diese Herausforderung regelmäßig. Was aber so ein "Nein" im Lebensschutz für das Leben ungeborener bedeuten kann, erzählt Sonja Dengler, Gründerin der Schwangerschaftskonfliktberatung Tiqua im Wochenkommentar.

Ref.: Prof. Dr. Marius Reiser, Theologe mit Schwerpunkt neutestamentliche Exegese, Heidesheim am Rhein

Ref.: Pfarrvikar Jürgen Jung, Pfarrvikar in St. Joseph und St. Ludwig in München, München

Ref.: Weihbischof Dr. Josef Graf (Bistum Regensburg)

Ref.: Katja Heidemanns, Internationales Katholisches Missionswerk missio, AachenRef.: Johannes Seibel, Internationales Katholisches Missionswerk missio, Aachen In vielen Regionen Nigerias sind Gewalt, religiöse Konflikte und Terror Alltag. Und gerade in diesem unruhigen Land sind dieses Jahr die Vorlagen für den Weltgebetstag der Frauen entstanden. Die Nigerianerinnen zeigen, wie sie aus ihrem christlichen Glauben heraus für den Frieden kämpfen, indem sie zwischen verfeindeten Gemeinschaften vermitteln, Familien stärken und Gebetsinitiativen organisieren. In der Lebenshilfe sprechen wir am Weltgebetstag der Frauen mit Katja Heidemanns und Johannes Seibel vom katholischen Hilfswerk missio, die uns in einer Zeit der zunehmenden Kriege und Konflikte das Beispiel der mutigen Friedensstifterinnen in Nigeria vorstellen.

Sr. Dr. Christiana Reemts https://mariendonk.de/ https://www.klosterladen-mariendonk.de/c/literatur-buecher/aebtissin-christiana-reemts-osb

"The prophet was bemoaning the failure of all his efforts to glorify God, and the obstinate determination of his people to continue in their apostasy. It was thus he spent his time in the cave at Horeb, brooding over his disappointment, and lashing himself, by reflecting upon the conduct of the people. A solitary place, with nothing to do, might be congenial with such a disposition; it might foster it, but would never heal it: and thus Elijah might have succumbed to a settled melancholy or raving madness.

Sr. Immaculata Fendt OCist https://abtei.seligenthal.de/zs-termine https://www.malteser-turinergrabtuch.de/ und: Prof. Dr. Peter Schallenberg https://www.bonifatius-verlag.de/shop/glauben-und-handeln-aus-gottes-liebe/

Ref.: Pfr. Ulrich Filler, Köln

Ref.: Bischof Dr. Bertram Meier, Augsburg (Bistum Augsburg)

Ref.: P. Joachim Richter LC, Leiter des ApostelHauses Alzgern, Neuötting

Ref.: Pfr. Christoph Heinzen, Pfarrer der Pastoralen Einheit „Düsseldorfer Süden"

Ref.: Bischof Dr. Bertram Meier, Augsburg

Ref.: Bischof em. Heinz Josef Algermissen (Bistum Fulda)

Ref.: P. Elmar Busse ISch, Dernbach (Westerwald)

P. Hans Buob SAC https://unio-verlag.de/i/pater-hans-buob-sac https://www.haus-st-ulrich.org/

Gebet/ Lied zur Vorbereitung: Jesus, Jesus , komm zu mir, o wie sehn ich mich nach Dir! Meiner Seele bester Freund, wann werd ich mit Dir vereint? Keine Freud ist in der Welt, die mein Herz zufrieden stellt. Diene Liebe, Herr, allein, kann mein ganzes Herz erfreun! Innig sehn ich mich nach Dir: eile, Jesus, komm zu mir! Nimm mein ganzes Herz für Dich und besitz es ewiglich. Gebet zur Danksagung: O mein Heiland, großer König Du bist bei mir eingekehrt, freudig trag ich Dich im Herzen, dem die ganze Welt gehört. Sieh, nun sollst Du alles haben was in meinem Herzen ist, alles leg ich Dir zu Füßen weil Du ja mein König bist! Schenke mir nur Deine Gnade hilf mir durch Dein Fleisch und Blut, dass ich Deiner würdig werde lebe heilig, fromm und gut.

NO PODCAST (voice production) this week, as John has been sick and has no voice! So, written comments only. Hope to be back in tune next week!*********************************************************************************************************Hey gang — thanks for the comments and encouragement! Please keep them coming along with your requests and suggestions. I am playing around a bit with the format this week — putting a little more “meat” into each scripture section with preaching notes, some pastoral commentary with application, and a possible preaching thread to tie all the passages together. You can tell me if it works or not!RCL TextsExodus 17:1–7Israel is in the wilderness with no water, and panic turns into accusation: “Why did you bring us out here to die?” Their fear shows how quickly hardship can erase memory of God's past faithfulness. Moses cries out, and God tells him to strike the rock at Horeb. Water comes from an impossible place. The site is named Massah (“testing”) and Meribah (“quarreling”) because the people tested the Lord by asking whether God was really with them. The passage holds both human distrust and divine provision side by side. “Moses Strikes the Rock” from reformconfess.com)Preaching note:This is not just a “don't complain” text. It's a story about fear under pressure and God's mercy in the middle of distrust. Israel's panic is real; God's provision is still real.Pastoral caution:Don't shame people for anxiety, grief, or survival-level stress by flattening this into “faithful people never question God.”Application move:Invite people to name one “wilderness fear” honestly in prayer this week, then pair it with one remembered sign of God's faithfulness from their own life.Psalm 95The psalm begins as a joyful call to worship: come singing, kneeling, and remembering that we belong to the God who made and shepherds us. Then it pivots hard into warning: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.” It recalls the wilderness rebellion, where people saw God's works but still resisted trust. That contrast is the point — true worship is not just praise language; it is responsive, obedient listening in the present moment (“today”).Preaching note:The psalm links praise and obedience. It starts in celebration but insists that worship without listening becomes hollow.Pastoral caution:Avoid using “do not harden your hearts” as a weapon against wounded people who need time, safety, and patience.Application move:Give a simple daily practice: before bed, ask, “Where did I resist God today? Where did I respond?”Romans 5:1–11Paul describes what justification by faith produces: peace with God through Jesus Christ, access to grace, and a hope rooted in God's glory. He then deepens it: suffering is not proof God has abandoned us; in Christ, suffering can shape endurance, character, and hope. This hope does not collapse because God's love has already been poured into believers by the Holy Spirit. The center of the passage is God's initiative: Christ died for us “while we were still sinners.” Reconciliation is not earned by moral improvement; it is received as gift and then lived out with confidence and gratitude.Preaching note:Paul is not romanticizing suffering. He is saying suffering is no longer meaningless in Christ because God's love and reconciliation come first, not last.Pastoral caution:Never imply people should be grateful for trauma or that pain automatically produces maturity.Application move:Encourage people to replace self-condemning language with Romans 5 language this week: “I have peace with God,” “I stand in grace,” “I am reconciled in Christ.”John 4:5–42Jesus meets a Samaritan woman at Jacob's well and asks for water, crossing social, ethnic, religious, and gender barriers in one move. The conversation shifts from literal water to “living water,” then to her real life. Jesus names her story truthfully but without shaming her, and she stays in the conversation rather than withdrawing. She recognizes him first as prophet, then in messianic terms, and becomes a witness to her town: “Come and see.” Many Samaritans believe, first through her testimony and then through encountering Jesus themselves. The text shows evangelism as overflow from being truly seen and offered grace.Preaching note:Jesus meets someone at social and spiritual distance, begins with a request, tells truth without humiliation, and turns a marginalized person into a messenger.Pastoral caution:Do not preach this text in a way that reduces the woman to a stereotype of sexual failure; the text's center is revelation, dignity, and mission.Application move:Call the church to one “well-side conversation” this week: listen to someone outside their normal circle with curiosity, not agenda.A Sermon Outline: “When You're Running on Empty”Core claim: God meets thirsty people with mercy, truth, and living water.Opening (Name the thirst)• “Most people aren't living rebellious lives; they're living depleted lives.”• Name common thirsts: peace, clarity, forgiveness, belonging, hope.• Bridge line: “Today's texts are for people running on empty.”Exodus 17 (Fear + Provision)• Israel has no water; fear turns to accusation.• They ask: “Is the Lord among us or not?”• God brings water from a rock — provision in an impossible place.Pastoral sentence: “God is not surprised by panic prayers.”Psalm 95 (Worship + Listening)• Starts with praise, shifts to warning.• Worship is not only singing; it is hearing and responding: “Today… do not harden your hearts.”Key line: “A lifted voice means little with a closed heart.”John 4 (Living Water + Honest Grace)• Jesus crosses boundaries to meet the Samaritan woman.• He asks for water, offers living water, tells truth without humiliation.• She becomes a witness: “Come and see.”Pastoral sentence: “Jesus does not expose people to shame them; he reveals truth to heal them.”Romans 5 (Peace + Hope)• Justified by faith → peace with God.• Access to grace is present reality, not future possibility.• Suffering is real, but not final; hope does not disappoint because God's love is poured out by the Spirit.• Christ died for us while we were still sinners.Key line: “Your standing with God is grounded in Christ's work, not your performance.”An IllustrationA healthy family doesn't erase a child's place at the table because of one bad day.Imagine a kid who has a meltdown, talks back, slams a door, and fails a test all in the same week. There are still consequences. There are still conversations. But at dinner, the plate is still there. The name is still theirs. The address hasn't changed.That's the distinction Romans 5 helps us make: discipline is real, but belonging is deeper.Paul says we are “justified by faith” and therefore “have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” He doesn't say, “We have peace with God because this week we behaved well.” He says our standing with God is through Christ. That means our relationship is not recalculated every morning by our spiritual performance score.So yes, Christians confess sin. Yes, we repent. Yes, we grow.But we do all of that from grace, not for grace.From belonging, not trying to earn belonging.Concrete Application (This Week)Choose one:1. Name your thirst honestly before God (no editing).2. Take one reconciliatory step (call, apology, forgiveness, boundary).3. Have one well-side conversation with someone outside your normal circle.4. Pray nightly: “Lord Jesus, give me living water for tomorrow.”Narrative Lectionary, March 8, 2026 (Lent 3) the text is:Narrative LectionaryJohn 18:12–27 — Jesus before Annas; Peter's denial1) Expanded Text SummaryJesus is arrested and brought first to Annas, the former high priest, in a scene where political power, religious authority, and fear are all in play. Jesus is questioned about his disciples and teaching, but he responds with calm clarity: he has spoken openly, not in secret. He is struck for answering, and the legal process already feels tilted before formal charges are even set. In parallel, Peter stands in the courtyard and is asked if he belongs to Jesus. Three times he denies it, and the rooster crows. The passage intentionally contrasts Jesus' steady public witness with Peter's anxious self-protection, showing both the cost of discipleship and the fragility of even devoted followers.2) Major Themes• Truth under pressure• Public courage vs private fear• The loneliness of faithful witness• Failure is real, but not final (as the larger Peter arc shows)3) Preaching Arc * 1. Name the pressure — fear changes what people say and do.* 2. Watch Jesus — clear, non-defensive, truthful in hostile space.* 3. Watch Peter — close enough to observe Jesus, not steady enough to confess him.* 4. Name ourselves in the text — we're often both: courageous sometimes, evasive sometimes.* 5. Gospel turn — Jesus remains faithful even when his friends fail him.4) Preaching Notes + Caution + ApplicationPreaching note:John places Jesus' hearing and Peter's denial side by side so the congregation feels the contrast: Jesus bears witness at personal cost; Peter avoids cost by distancing himself.Pastoral caution:Don't preach Peter as a cartoon hypocrite. Fear responses are human, especially when people feel exposed or unsafe.An IllustrationThink about how courage usually fails.It's rarely in dramatic, movie-scene moments. It fails in ordinary settings — by a fire, in a hallway, in a break room, in a group chat. No one is threatening prison. No one is holding a weapon. But social risk feels real: embarrassment, exclusion, eye-rolls, being labeled, losing status.A person can be bold in principle and shaky in practice.On Sunday, they say, “I'll stand with Jesus no matter what.”On Tuesday, someone asks a simple question — “You don't really believe that, do you?” — and they pivot, soften, dodge, or joke their way out of clarity.That's Peter in John 18.He's not indifferent to Jesus. He followed Jesus into danger.He's not evil. He's scared.He wants proximity without exposure, closeness without cost.And that is exactly why he is so relatable.The good news is not “real disciples never falter.”The good news is “Jesus remains faithful when disciples falter.”Failure is real, but it is not final.The rooster crow is not just exposure — it's invitation back.Application move:Invite one concrete “truthful confession” this week:• owning faith in a conversation,• admitting a moral compromise, or• choosing honesty where silence is easier. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lectionarypro.substack.com

Ref.: Walter Nitsche, Arbeitsgemeinschaft seelsorgerlicher Beratung e.V. Vergebung ist keine Kleinigkeit - manchmal scheint sie gar unmöglich. Wem echtes Unrecht angetan wurde und wer unter jemandem wirklich gelitten hat, der wird nicht einfach "Schwamm drüber" sagen können. Aber das ist es auch nicht, was Jesus mit Vergebung meint, betont Walter Nitsche. Warum Vergebung ein ganzheitlicher Prozess ist und welche Schritte dafür getan werden können, das erläutert der erfahrene Seelsorger in der Lebenshilfe.

Übertr: Radio Vatikan, Rom, Italien

Ref.: Alexander Egger, Motivationstrainer und High Performance Coach, St. Gilgen, Österreich Disziplin galt lange als ein Relikt aus finsteren, obrigkeitshörigen Zeiten. Doch inzwischen zieht man die gute alte deutsche Tugend wieder aus der verstaubten Schublade - vor allem wenn es um Selbstregulierung und Fokus geht. Vielleicht weil die Folgen von mangelnder Disziplin in Familie, Schule und Arbeitswelt so deutlich zu spüren sind? Alexander Egger weiß als Motivationstrainer, dass ohne ein gewisses Maß an Disziplin keine echten Ziele zu erreichen sind. Das merken wir ja auch jetzt in der Fastenzeit. Wofür in unserer Zeit Disziplin wichtig ist - und wie man sie erlangen kann, das sagt er uns in der Lebenshilfe.

Ref.: Dr. Veronika Ruf, theologische Fachreferentin für Liturgie der Diözese, Augsburg Im Siebengestirn der Sakramente sind zwei am meisten verkannt und aus dem Gebrauch gekommen: die Beichte und die Krankensalbung. Die Beichte wird fast gar nicht mehr in Anspruch genommen, die Krankensalben meist nur noch auf dem Sterbebett. Dabei sind beide Sakramente für den häufigen Gebrauch bestimmt. Warum, wie und welchen Situationen - das erklärt die Theologin Dr. Veronika Ruf in dieser Ausgabe des Grundkurs des Glaubens.

Ref.: Dr. Georg Bollig, Leitender Oberarzt für Palliativmedizin am Helios Klinikum Schleswig, Initiator der "Letzte Hilfe-Kurse" Der Tod ist für uns Normalsterbliche ein fremder Geselle geworden. Und je mehr er uns fremd wird, desto mehr macht er Angst. Dr. Georg Bollig hat deshalb als Palliativmediziner - analog zu den verbreiteten Erste-Hilfe-Kursen - einen Kurzkurs zur "Letzten Hilfe" entwickelt. Er sagt: "Der Abschied vom Leben ist der schwerste, den die Lebensreise für einen Menschen bereithält. Deshalb braucht es, wie auf allen schweren Wegen, jemanden, der dem Sterbenden die Hand reicht. Diese Hand zu reichen erfordert nur ein bisschen Mut und Wissen." In der Lebenshilfe vermittelt Dr. Bollig in drei Teilen die wichtigsten Grundzüge dieses Wissens für eine liebevolle Begleitung von Sterbenden. Im ersten Teil erfahren wir erst einmal, was beim Sterben genau im Körper passiert.

Want to reach out to us? Want to leave a comment or review? Want to give us a suggestion or berate Anthony? Send us a text by clicking this link!A cloud on Sinai, bread in the desert, and three days in the heart of the earth: today's journey moves from spectacle to substance, asking what truly builds a life aflame with God. We read Exodus as Moses steps into the cloud for forty days, follow Elijah from exhaustion to angelic strength on the road to Horeb, and listen to Jesus refuse showy signs while pointing to Jonah and to the deeper family formed by doing the Father's will. These texts sketch a path through fatigue and doubt toward fidelity, where zeal is not noise but a steady yes.From there, we open Divine Intimacy and face a hard kindness: venial sin does not kill love, but it cools it. We explore how deliberate small faults chip away at fervor, how habitual concessions breed spiritual lethargy, and why the saints insist on sorrow even for slight offenses. At the same time, we draw hope from the distinction between frailty and willfulness. Stumbles borne of weakness, met with quick contrition and humility, can become doorways to deeper trust, a lived discovery that without Christ we can do nothing.We end with the Lenten Ember Days, those seasonal waypoints that knit prayer, fasting, and intercession to the rhythm of the year. You'll hear practical ways to abstain and simplify meals, offer reparation, and pray for priests and vocations, not as box‑checking but as a way to refill the “swept house” with grace. If you've felt your zeal thinning, this conversation offers a clear, concrete plan: hate even small sins because you love greatly, confess promptly, repair generously, and let simple practices warm the heart. If it helps, share this with a friend on the road and leave a quick review—then tell us what Ember practice you're embracing this week.Support the showNeed seafood for Lent? Check out https://shoplobster.com/ and use code AB10 to get 10% from Maine's ONLY Catholic lobster company.Check out our new sponsor, Nic Nac, at www.nicnac.com and use code "AB25%" for 25% off of your first order!********************************************************Please subscribe! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKsxnv80ByFV4OGvt_kImjQ?sub_confirmation=1https://www.avoidingbabylon.comMerchandise: https://avoiding-babylon-shop.fourthwall.comLocals Community: https://avoidingbabylon.locals.comFull Premium/Locals Shows on Audio Podcast: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1987412/subscribeRSS Feed for Podcast Apps: https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/1987412.rss

Ref.: Peggy Paquet, Therapeutin für Logotherapie und Liebevolle Zwiesprache, Germering Angststörungen gelten inzwischen als regelrechte Volkskrankheit. Millionen Deutsche sind jedes Jahr davon betroffen, vor allem Frauen. In der Lebenshilfe sprechen wir mit der Logotherapeutin Peggy Paquet Pakee über ein beklemmendes Lebensgefühl, das zu völliger Antriebslosigkeit, körperlicher Erschöpfung und dem Verlust der Lebensfreude führen kann. Peggy Paquet macht Mut: Die Angst muss nicht das letzte Wort haben!

Following the miraculous crossing of the Red Sea, the Israelites find themselves in the wilderness—a place of disorientation, testing, and revelation. This sermon explores the "Wilderness" as an evergreen metaphor for the Christian life. It is the mandatory field trip between deliverance and the Promised Land, where our fickle hearts are exposed, and our faith is refined. As we enter the season of Lent and prepare for a congregational digital fast, we examine how the desert serves as a paradox: a place of intense danger and lack, but also the "God country" where miracles and spiritual power are found.Scripture ReferencesExodus 15:22–27: The waters of Mara and the transformation of bitterness.Exodus 16: The grumbling of the community and the provision of manna.Exodus 17:1–7: The striking of the rock at Horeb.1 Corinthians 10:4: Paul's identification of the Rock as Christ.Key PointsThe Paradox of the Desert: The wilderness is both a place of exposure and a place of divine intimacy. It is where visibility is low, familiar markers are gone, and we are forced to put one foot in front of the other.The Necessity of Testing: You cannot trust what has not been tested. The wilderness reveals the true contents of the heart. It is a place of "wrestling" with God, learning to navigate relationship without causing harm.The Teacher is Quiet: In the wilderness, the silence of God during the "test" is a primary challenge. However, promotion and spiritual clarity often lie on the other side of this silence.Fickleness and Unholy Nostalgia: We are prone to wander. Within days of a miracle, we resort to grumbling and "unholy nostalgia"—selectively remembering the "meat pots" of our past captivity while forgetting the chains.The Cross in the Wilderness: * The Tree at Mara: Just as the log made bitter water sweet, the Cross of Christ makes the bitter experiences of life drinkable.The Struck Rock: In a divine reversal, God stands upon the rock to receive the blow of judgment deserved by the grumbling Israelites. Christ is the spiritual Rock who was struck so that we might receive the water of everlasting life.ConclusionThere is no making it through the wilderness by trying harder or merely following rules. We must cling to the Cross. In the desert, pain is not the greatest danger; rather, the danger lies in where we turn for relief. If we turn to Christ, the one who was struck for us, we find that even the most desolate place is filled with His presence.Calls to ActionParticipate in the Digital Fast: Join the church-wide digital fast starting March 1st. Use the provided guide to redirect your focus from screens to God's voice.Identify Your Wilderness: Acknowledge where you are experiencing disorientation or testing. Stop "trying harder" and start clinging to the Cross.Resist Grumbling: Be mindful of the urge to complain or romanticize past sins. Practice gratitude for God's present provision, even when it is "manna" rather than "meat pots." Support the show*Summaries and transcripts are generated using AI. Please notify us if you find any errors.

If you ____________________ who God is, you will misunderstand ____________________ else.[Exodus 3:1 ESV] Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.God speaks clearly in ____________________ seasons.[Exodus 3:2 ESV] And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed.God's presence ____________________ us.[Exodus 3:3 ESV] And Moses said, "I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned."Revelation begins with ____________________.[Exodus 3:4 ESV] When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am."Before God ____________________ what He will do, He ____________________ who He is.[Exodus 3:5 ESV] Then he said, "Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground."Holiness is not a ____________________, it is God's ____________________.[Exodus 3:11, 14 ESV] But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?" [14] God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." And he said, "Say this to the people of Israel: 'I AM has sent me to you.'"Your ____________________ does not rest on who you are, it rests on who God is.[Exodus 4:10-11 ESV] But Moses said to the LORD, "Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue." [11] Then the LORD said to him, "Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD?Don't let your ____________________ turn into ____________________.[Isaiah 43:1-3a] But now, O Jacob, listen to the LORD who created you. O Israel, the one who formed you says, "Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. [2] When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. [3] For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

Übertr: Radio Vatikan, Rom, Italien

Ref.: Pfr. Peter van Briel, Sprecher der Karl-Leisner-Jugend, Hopsten-Halverde (Bistum Münster) Für den Glauben gibt es kein Patentrezept. Gott finden und den Glauben im Leben gut umsetzen, in Einheit mit der Kirche ist eine immer neue Herausforderung, bei der Fragen auftauchen. Im Grundkurs des Glaubens können sie diese Fragen stellen und sich beantworten lassen. In "Frag' den Pfarrer zum Glauben!" ist Pfarrer Peter van Briel live mit Ihnen im Gespräch und gibt Antworten auf Fragen rund um Glaube und Kirche.

Ref.: Eva-Maria Admiral, Schauspielerin und Autorin Angst und Sorgen sind regelrechte Krafträuber. Doch die meisten Gefahren, die ein Mensch jahrelang befürchtet, treten nie ein! Dennoch gehören Ängste zum Leben dazu. Die Schauspielerin Eva-Maria Admiral hat selbst lange unter Selbstzweifeln gelitten, verbunden mit der Angst, zu versagen. Doch an der Hand Gottes hat sie gelernt, kreativ mit Angst und Sorgen umzugehen. Wie, das verrät sie uns in der Lebenshilfe. Eva Maria Admiral wirkt als freie Schauspielerin in Österreich, Deutschland und der Schweiz mit Soloprogrammen wie etwa mit dem Bestseller von Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt Oskar und die Dame in Rosa. Außerdem bietet sie international Seminare und Workshops zu zahlreichen Themen an, wie Stimmtraining, Medien oder Selbstannahme.

Ref.: Sandra Geissler, Autorin und fünffache Mutter, Nierstein

Tuesday, 17 February 2026   And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. Matthew 17:3   “And you behold! They appeared to them Moses and Elijah, conversing with Him” (CG).   In the previous verse, Jesus was transfigured. His appearance changed, becoming dazzling. With that noted, it next says, “And you behold! They appeared to them Moses and Elijah.”   Several things can be gleaned from these words. There is a way of accessing both Sheol and heaven. For example, Samuel was raised by the witch of En Dor in 1 Samuel 28. Moses died, and he was buried. Despite Jewish commentaries that contradict this, it is stated as a fact in Deuteronomy 34.   The location of his grave was unknown, maybe to avoid it becoming a place of idolatry. But more importantly, it was a typological point that when the law is dead, it is no longer to be remembered. Christ's fulfillment of it is the end of the law.   Messengers are seen to come from elsewhere to speak the word of the Lord at various times in both testaments. Unlike Moses, Elijah was taken to heaven in a whirlwind, not seeing death. And yet, he appeared on earth. Thus, the symbolism here is that Jesus has full control of access to both Sheol and heaven and to the living and the dead.   Further, Moses is given as a type of the law. Elijah is given as a type of the prophets. Their appearance with Jesus thus signifies that He is the embodiment of the law and prophets, something He stated both in Matthew 5:17 and then after the resurrection in Luke 24:44. This is also confirmed in Acts 28:23 –   “So when they had appointed him a day, many came to him at his lodging, to whom he explained and solemnly testified of the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus from both the Law of Moses and the Prophets, from morning till evening.”   Both Moses and Elijah were referred to in the last chapter of the Old Testament –   “Remember the Law of Moses, My servant, Which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel, With the statutes and judgments. 5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. 6 And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.” Malachi 4:4-6   The people of Israel were told to remember the Law of Moses. This was not an admonition for either Israel after Jesus' coming or something the church is to adhere to. Rather, it was a word to Israel to pay heed to the coming of the Messiah, who was promised earlier in the book of Malachi, as well as throughout the Law of Moses.   Moses and the prophets spoke of His coming, and the people were to remember this and receive Him. In their failure to do so, they received the curse of the law upon their land. Of the appearance of these two, it next says they were “conversing with Him.”   A new word is used, sullaleó, to talk together, and thus to converse. This wasn't just an apparition. Rather, these two, one long dead and the other gone from Israel to heaven hundreds of years earlier, had appeared and were conversing with Jesus. Luke specifically records that the conversation was “of His decease which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.”   Jesus had told the disciples that He would suffer and die in Jerusalem. Peter rebuked Him because of this. Now, these two are confirming Jesus' words in front of Peter, James, and John.   Life application: The Bible teaches that the dead, until the coming of Christ, will go to Sheol/Hades. To understand that this is doctrinally correct, the sermon from the Superior Word entitled “Where Do Believers Go When They Die? What the Bible Says” should be referred to.   This is upsetting to some who want to believe our dearly departed will suddenly be in heaven, which is based on a misinterpretation of several verses in Scripture. But there is nothing wrong with us being in Sheol. Jesus has full access to it for the departed loved ones. His resurrection from Sheol proves He possesses this authority and power.   Paul confirms that the day is ahead when those in Christ who are in Sheol will be raised. At that time, the victory over the grave will be realized –   “For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory.' 55 ‘O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?' 56 The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 15:53-57   Let us not be upset about how God has structured and ordained things. Rather, let us rejoice that God has done it at all. We stood on the opposing side when He sent Jesus to restore us to Him. If we get an extended nap in Sheol, we should be grateful that it will not end in an eternal swim in the Lake of Fire. Thank God for Jesus Christ.   Lord God, we confidently await Your return. If it is not before we die, we will rest easily until that day when You raise us to meet Jesus in the clouds. We are content as we anticipate that wonderful day. And Lord, may it be soon! Amen.

Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.Then the LORD said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them.DEU.1:9 And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone:DEU.1:10 The LORD your God hath multiplied you, and, behold, ye are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude.DEU.1:11 (The LORD God of your fathers make you a thousand times so many more as ye are, and bless you, as he hath promised you!)DEU.1:12 How can I myself alone bear your cumbrance, and your burden, and your strife?DEU.1:13 Take you wise men, and understanding, and known among your tribes, and I will make them rulers over you.DEU.1:14 And ye answered me, and said, The thing which thou hast spoken is good for us to do.DEU.1:15 So I took the chief of your tribes, wise men, and known, and made them heads over you, captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, and captains over fifties, and captains over tens, and officers among your tribes.DEU.1:16 And I charged your judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him.DEU.1:17 Ye shall not respect persons in judgment; but ye shall hear the small as well as the great; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God's: and the cause that is too hard for you, bring it unto me, and I will hear it.DEU.1:18 And I commanded you at that time all the things which ye should do.DEU.1:19 And when we departed from Horeb, we went through all that great and terrible wilderness, which ye saw by the way of the mountain of the Amorites, as the LORD our God commanded us; and we came to Kadeshbarnea.DEU.1:20 And I said unto you, Ye are come unto the mountain of the Amorites, which the LORD our God doth give unto us.DEU.1:21 Behold, the LORD thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged.DEU.1:22 And ye came near unto me every one of you, and said, We will send men before us, and they shall search us out the land, and bring us word again by what way we must go up, and into what cities we shall come.DEU.1:23 And the saying pleased me well: and I took twelve men of you, one of a tribe:DEU.1:24 And they turned and went up into the mountain, and came unto the valley of Eshcol, and searched it out.DEU.1:25 And they took of the fruit of the land in their hands, and brought it down unto us, and brought us word again, and said, It is a good land which the LORD our God doth give us.DEU.1:26 Notwithstanding ye would not go up, but rebelled against the commandment of the LORD your God:DEU.1:27 And ye murmured in your tents, and said, Because the LORD hated us, he hath brought us forth out of the land of Egypt, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us.DEU.1:28 Whither shall we go up? our brethren have discouraged our heart, saying, The people is greater and taller than we; the cities are great and walled up to heaven; and moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakims there.DEU.1:29 Then I said unto you, Dread not, neither be afraid of them.DEU.1:30 The LORD your God which goeth before you, he shall fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes;DEU.1:31 And in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how that the LORD thy God bare thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ye came into this place.DEU.1:32 Yet in this thing ye did not believe the LORD your God,DEU.1:33 Who went in the way before you, to search you out a place to pitch your tents in, in fire by night, to shew you by what way ye should go, and in a cloud by day.DEU.1:34 And the LORD heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and sware, saying,DEU.1:35 Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers.DEU.1:36 Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him will I give the land that he hath trodden upon, and to his children, because he hath wholly followed the LORD.DEU.1:37 Also the LORD was angry with me for your sakes, saying, Thou also shalt not go in thither.DEU.1:38 But Joshua the son of Nun, which standeth before thee, he shall go in thither: encourage him: for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.DEU.1:39 Moreover your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, and your children, which in that day had no knowledge between good and evil, they shall go in thither, and unto them will I give it, and they shall possess it.DEU.1:40 But as for you, turn you, and take your journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea.DEU.1:41 Then ye answered and said unto me, We have sinned against the LORD, we will go up and fight, according to all that the LORD our God commanded us. And when ye had girded on every man his weapons of war, ye were ready to go up into the hill.DEU.1:42 And the LORD said unto me, Say unto them. Go not up, neither fight; for I am not among you; lest ye be smitten before your enemies.DEU.1:43 So I spake unto you; and ye would not hear, but rebelled against the commandment of the LORD, and went presumptuously up into the hill.DEU.1:44 And the Amorites, which dwelt in that mountain, came out against you, and chased you, as bees do, and destroyed you in Seir, even unto Hormah.DEU.1:45 And ye returned and wept before the LORD; but the LORD would not hearken to your voice, nor give ear unto you.DEU.1:46 So ye abode in Kadesh many days, according unto the days that ye abode there.Chapter 2DEU.2:1 Then we turned, and took our journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea, as the LORD spake unto me: and we compassed mount Seir many days.DEU.2:2 And the LORD spake unto me, saying,DEU.2:3 Ye have compassed this mountain long enough: turn you northward.DEU.2:4 And command thou the people, saying, Ye are to pass through the coast of your brethren the children of Esau, which dwell in Seir; and they shall be afraid of you: take ye good heed unto yourselves therefore:DEU.2:5 Meddle not with them; for I will not give you of their land, no, not so much as a foot breadth; because I have given mount Seir unto Esau for a possession.DEU.2:6 Ye shall buy meat of them for money, that ye may eat; and ye shall also buy water of them for money, that ye may drink.DEU.2:7 For the LORD thy God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hand: he knoweth thy walking through this great wilderness: these forty years the LORD thy God hath been with thee; thou hast lacked nothing.Interdimensional Captain Recruitment BUY MY SUPERNATURAL NOVEL!https://www.amazon.com/Kingdom-Romance-Episode-1-ebook/dp/B07ZRJV6SHDOWNLOAD THE APP!fringeradionetwork.com DON BASHAM MINISTRIES 1,000,000,000 GIVE SEND GO:https://www.givesendgo.com/bashamPAYPAL:spiritforce01@gmail.comBITCOIN:3H4Z2X22DuVUjWPsXKPEsWZmT9c4hDmYvyVENMO:@faithbucksCASHAPP:$spiritforcebucksZelle:faithbucks@proton.mePATREON:Michael BashamHOME BASE SITE:faithbucks.com

***We encountered some technical difficulties with this audio so we apologize for the lower quality on this particular sermon.QUOTES FOR REFLECTION“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance; it is the illusion of knowledge.”~Stephen Hawking (1942-2018), theoretical astrophysicist and cosmologist “It is an ironic habit of human beings to run faster when they have lost their way.”~Rollo May (1909-1994), psychologist and author “When man subverted order he did a great deal more than merely fall away from the rationality of his nature…; he brought disorder into the divine order, and presents the unhappy spectacle of a being in revolt against Being. [...] Every time a man sins he renews this act of revolt and prefers himself to God; in thus preferring himself, he separates himself from God; and in separating himself, he deprives himself of the sole end in which he can find beatitude and by that very fact condemns himself to misery.”~Étienne Gilson (1884-1978), French philosopher and scholar “Human beings are not self-referential. You don't make yourself feel loved by telling yourself ‘I love you.' We are relational beings, and so we need something outside of ourselves to tell us we have value and worth.” “What the heart loves, the will chooses, and the mind justifies.”~Dr. John Ashley Null, theologian and Anglican Bishop of North Africa “If you want your own way, God will let you have it. Hell is the enjoyment of one's own way forever.”~Dorothy L. Sayers (1893-1957), English novelist, playwright, and critic “The concept of substitution may be said, then, to lie at the heart of both sin and salvation. For the essence of sin is man substituting himself for God, while the essence of salvation is God substituting himself for man. Man asserts himself against God and puts himself where only God deserves to be. God sacrifices himself for man and puts himself where only man deserves to be. Man claims prerogatives which belong to God alone. God accepts penalties which belong to man alone.”~ John R. W. Stott (1921-2011) in The Cross of Christ “This is perfect and pure boasting in God, when one is not proud on account of his own righteousness but knows that he is indeed unworthy of the true righteousness and is justified solely by faith in Christ.”~Basil of Caesarea, Homilies on Humility, 20.3SERMON PASSAGERomans 1:16-32 (ESV)Romans 116 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. Romans 21 Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. Proverbs 17 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of   knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction. Psalm 191 The heavens declare the glory of God,  and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.2 Day to day pours out speech,   and night to night reveals knowledge. Psalm 10619 They made a calf in Horeb   and worshiped a metal image.20 They exchanged the glory of God   for the image of an ox that eats grass.21 They forgot God, their Savior,   who had done great things in Egypt,22 wondrous works in the land of Ham,   and awesome deeds by the Red Sea.23 Therefore he said he would destroy them—   had not Moses, his chosen one,   stood in the breach before him,   to turn away his wrath from destroying them.

Evening lessons: Psalms 106:19-46; Jeremiah 42; 2 Corinthians 10.  They made a calf in Horeb and worshipped a molten image.

2.23 During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. 24 And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 God saw the people of Israel—and God knew.3.1 Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” 4 When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” 5 Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” 6 And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.7 Then the Lord said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, 8 and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 9 And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” 12 He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”