He Cares For You

We worry about a great many things in our lives, don’t we? We worry about our families and our kids. We worry about our bills and our budgets. We worry about our stuff. We worry about our health. We worry about so many things. Many of our worries and fears are future based. Peter said that we can take all of our worries, fears and anxieties to the Lord for a very good reason. He wrote:

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. – 1 Peter 5:7 (NIV)

We can cast ALL of our worries on the Lord because He cares for us. We sometimes think that God doesn’t like us very much. We know that He loves us, but we aren’t sure if He likes us. Well, He does. He likes you and He cares for you. He can handle all of tomorrow’s cares as well as providing your daily bread. So don’t worry about tomorrow because God’s got it under control. Focus on loving God and loving people today.

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Every Detail

So why all of this talk about shekels and cubits?  Is it absolutely necessary to know how many cubits high and wide the altar of burn offering was?  Do we have to know how many shekels of metals were used to build the Tabernacle?  Probably not, but they are recorded anyway.  Why do you suppose that is?

I think that it is because God cares about the details.  He cares about every detail of our lives.  Every victory and defeat.  Every moment of rejoicing and every moment of sorrow.  Every celebration and every occasion of mourning.  God knows and cares about every detail.  Jesus said that even the hairs on our head (and that used to be on our head!) are numbered.  God sees every sparrow that falls from the sky.  Who cares about a sparrow?!?  God does.  He cares about every detail of His entire Creation.  He took the time to make us, even though He knew we would sin and rebel.  We are fearfully and wonderfully made in His image.  He created us to be in unique fellowship with Him.  He loves us and cares for us more than words could possibly express.  When you love someone, you want to know all about them.  Even the smallest detail.  God loves you and He knows all about you.  Your fears and failures.  Your strengths and weaknesses.  Your sins and shortcomings.  Your doubts and worries.  And He loves every single bit of you.  From the bottoms of your toes to the hairs on your head.  And He is absolutely crazy about you!

Exodus 38

New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)

The Altar of Burnt Offering

38 They built the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood, three cubits high; it was square, five cubits long and five cubits wide. ² They made a horn at each of the four corners, so that the horns and the altar were of one piece, and they overlaid the altar with bronze. ³ They made all its utensils of bronze—its pots, shovels, sprinkling bowls, meat forks and firepans. ⁴ They made a grating for the altar, a bronze network, to be under its ledge, halfway up the altar.⁵ They cast bronze rings to hold the poles for the four corners of the bronze grating. ⁶ They made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with bronze. ⁷ They inserted the poles into the rings so they would be on the sides of the altar for carrying it. They made it hollow, out of boards.

Basin for Washing

⁸ They made the bronze basin and its bronze stand from the mirrors of the women who served at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

The Courtyard

⁹ Next they made the courtyard. The south side was a hundred cubits long and had curtains of finely twisted linen,¹⁰ with twenty posts and twenty bronze bases, and with silver hooks and bands on the posts. ¹¹ The north side was also a hundred cubits long and had twenty posts and twenty bronze bases, with silver hooks and bands on the posts.

¹² The west end was fifty cubits wide and had curtains, with ten posts and ten bases, with silver hooks and bands on the posts. ¹³ The east end, toward the sunrise, was also fifty cubits wide. ¹⁴ Curtains fifteen cubits long were on one side of the entrance, with three posts and three bases, ¹⁵ and curtains fifteen cubits long were on the other side of the entrance to the courtyard, with three posts and three bases. ¹⁶ All the curtains around the courtyard were of finely twisted linen. ¹⁷ The bases for the posts were bronze. The hooks and bands on the posts were silver, and their tops were overlaid with silver; so all the posts of the courtyard had silver bands.

¹⁸ The curtain for the entrance to the courtyard was of blue, purple and scarlet yarn and finely twisted linen—the work of an embroiderer. It was twenty cubits long and, like the curtains of the courtyard, five cubits high, ¹⁹ with four posts and four bronze bases. Their hooks and bands were silver, and their tops were overlaid with silver. ²⁰ All the tent pegs of the tabernacle and of the surrounding courtyard were bronze.

The Materials Used

²¹ These are the amounts of the materials used for the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the Testimony, which were recorded at Moses’ command by the Levites under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron, the priest. ²² (Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made everything the Lord commanded Moses; ²³ with him was Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan—a craftsman and designer, and an embroiderer in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen.) ²⁴ The total amount of the gold from the wave offering used for all the work on the sanctuary was 29 talents and 730 shekels, according to the sanctuary shekel.

²⁵ The silver obtained from those of the community who were counted in the census was 100 talents and 1,775 shekels, according to the sanctuary shekel— ²⁶ one beka per person, that is, half a shekel, according to the sanctuary shekel, from everyone who had crossed over to those counted, twenty years old or more, a total of 603,550 men. ²⁷ The 100 talents of silver were used to cast the bases for the sanctuary and for the curtain—100 bases from the 100 talents, one talent for each base. ²⁸ They used the 1,775 shekels to make the hooks for the posts, to overlay the tops of the posts, and to make their bands.

²⁹ The bronze from the wave offering was 70 talents and 2,400 shekels. ³⁰ They used it to make the bases for the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, the bronze altar with its bronze grating and all its utensils, ³¹ the bases for the surrounding courtyard and those for its entrance and all the tent pegs for the tabernacle and those for the surrounding courtyard.

Fighting Spiritual Amnesia

Psalm 27

A psalm of David.

¹ The Lord is my light and my salvation—
so why should I be afraid?
The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger,
so why should I tremble?
² When evil people come to devour me,
when my enemies and foes attack me,
they will stumble and fall.
³ Though a mighty army surrounds me,
my heart will not be afraid.
Even if I am attacked,
I will remain confident.

⁴ The one thing I ask of the Lord—
the thing I seek most—
is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
delighting in the Lord’s perfections
and meditating in his Temple.
⁵ For he will conceal me there when troubles come;
he will hide me in his sanctuary.
He will place me out of reach on a high rock.
⁶ Then I will hold my head high
above my enemies who surround me.
At his sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy,
singing and praising the Lord with music.

⁷ Hear me as I pray, O Lord.
Be merciful and answer me!
⁸ My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.”
And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming.”
⁹ Do not turn your back on me.
Do not reject your servant in anger.
You have always been my helper.
Don’t leave me now; don’t abandon me,
O God of my salvation!
¹⁰ Even if my father and mother abandon me,
the Lord will hold me close.

¹¹ Teach me how to live, O Lord.
Lead me along the right path,
for my enemies are waiting for me.
¹² Do not let me fall into their hands.
For they accuse me of things I’ve never done;
with every breath they threaten me with violence.
¹³ Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness
while I am here in the land of the living.

¹⁴ Wait patiently for the Lord.
Be brave and courageous.
Yes, wait patiently for the Lord. – Psalm 27 (NLT)

 

Psalm 27 is a psalm of confidence in the Lord.  Sometimes it is hard to have faith and confidence in God.  We sometimes have spiritual amnesia.  We cannot remember all of the ways that God has come through in the past and we forget that He will come through again in the present and the future.  We can have confidence and hope in God because He is our loving Heavenly Father who will protect us and provide for us.  He will comfort us when we are sorrowful and He will give us peace in the midst of the storms of life.  He will gently rebuke us when we stray and He will accept us even when we feel unacceptable.  No matter what circumstances or situations you may be facing today, God is aware of your plight.  He knows what you are going through.  Jesus has been through it and He can give you the strength you need to get through it as well.  Trust in the Lord and His mighty power!  Take time today to fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ.  Share with Him your worries and fears.  Tell Him about your troubles and trials.  Seek His face and know that He is God and that He cares for you.

God Never Sleeps

Psalm 121

A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.

¹ I look up to the mountains—
does my help come from there?
² My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth!

³ He will not let you stumble;
the one who watches over you will not slumber.
⁴ Indeed, he who watches over Israel
never slumbers or sleeps.

⁵ The Lord himself watches over you!
The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.
⁶ The sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon at night.

⁷ The Lord keeps you from all harm
and watches over your life.
⁸ The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go,
both now and forever. — Psalm121 (NLT)

 

In Psalm 121, we see that it is “A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.” This was one of 15 songs that the people would sing on their way up to the feasts in Jerusalem. Singing traveling songs is not something new. Families still like to sing songs in the car as we travel on our way to vacations. The people in the Old Testament would sing songs about God on their way to the feasts. Psalm 121 is a wonderful song about God’s protection. The mountains that surrounded Israel were a natural source of protection from her enemies. As great as the mountains were, Israel’s true protection came from the Lord. What a comforting thought to know that God doesn’t take a break. That God doesn’t fall asleep at the switch. The Lord God watches over us all the time. We have nothing to fear for our God watches over us and protects us. Why does He choose to protect His people? Because of His great love for us. So as you face times of fear, remember Psalm 121. Know that our God is always watching us because He cares for us.  Have a great weekend!