Do not Harden your hearts

Psalms 95:7-9

Psalms 95:8 is a passage that hearkens back to the times of Moses. The chapter begins with praise but quickly turns into a warning for the unbeliever, and the author uses past events to drive his point home. Psalms 95:8 reads: "Do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, and on the day at Massah in the wilderness," The most profound part about this passage is it is the Lord God our maker who is speaking at this time. Verse 7 reads: "For he is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, and the sheep of His hand. Today, if you hear His voice," All of this sounds like David is writing in 3rd person, then at some point the Lord takes the pen because in verse 9 it reads "when your fathers put me to the test and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work."

Meribah & Massah

Both of these moments in time have to do with striving with the Lord. At both points of the children of Israels journey through the pyramid the people and their livestock got thirsty. And they grumbled to Moses and Aaron against the Lord. Saying things like, 'why did you bring us out here' and 'it would have been better if we stayed in Egypt'. Keep in mind this is after the Lord has already brought down the 10 plagues against Pharaoh in Egypt, He had just fed them angel food from the sky, and had already split the Red Sea so they could flee their oppressors. And yet the people tested God.

Does this Sound Familiar

Are we guilty of the same thing? I know I am. I literally witness God pull me out of a jam that I created for myself, and a day later I'm bogged down with the next challenge, worry, or anxiety of the day. Why can't we learn the lesson the first time? If the Lord pulled us out of that first jam, He will do it again. Jesus said in Matthew 7:11: If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him?"

Our Shepherd

The Lord wants to bless us, but more importantly He wants to keep us close. He is our Shepherd, and a good shepherd never lets his sheep get to far ahead or out of his sight. When we are blessed with financial abundance, we are more tempted to stray away from God and start to believe we don't need Him anymore. We start to believe in our own abilities and tend to forget all of the great and wonderful things that the Lord has done in our lives. This is one reason the Lord doesn't bless us with too much too soon. He loves us, and He wants to keep us close.

Open Your Heart

So if the Lord is tugging on your heart this day, do not harden your hearts. Open your heart to the only person that will ever truly love you unconditionally. Silence your phone, and listen to the Lord. Spend time with Him today in His word, and in prayer, and don't make the same mistake that we made back in the Moses days, nor the mistake that we all make today, do not doubt God, and do not test God. Believe in His wonderful working powers, belief in His abilities to bless and keep you right where He wants you to be, and trust and believe in His love and purpose for you and your life.