It was just after sunset and all the fireflies were out. We only have them for about three wondrous weeks in Tennessee, and the show from our hilltop is breathtaking. Walks to see the fireflies are special.
My youngest son, Leo, and I were starting a trek up the hill in the fading light. Rowan ran out of the house to join us. I really like him too—just as much as I like Leo. But this was a walk for two. I sent the older fella back and we kept walking up the hill. On his way back to the house, I know he didn’t think it was quite fair.
It’s definitely not fair. But I often wonder if we really want fair, or if we just want things to go our way. When my own heart cries “no fair!” I have to check myself against the Word. And anytime a child tries to plead fairness with me, I try to lead them right down the Roman Road: we are all guilty, we all have earned death, Jesus died to pay our debt, and in Him we have glorious salvation.
The gospel isn’t fair. It’s gracious. It seems so unfair that Moses didn’t get to see the promised land. He was a man of the law. But he was forbidden from entering because of a single offense. God brought the Israelites, who spent years complaining in the wilderness, “into the land [He] swore to them” (Deuteronomy 31:23). The faithfulness of God has never been dependent on the faithfulness of men. It isn’t rooted in our sense of fairness, our timing, or our preferences. Every good gift is from God’s own hand. Every gift is full of grace.
And boy, do we need that grace because we just don’t have the full picture here on earth. Our hearts clamor for temporal fairness, but God offers us eternal grace. Moses didn’t set foot in Canaan, yet he inherited eternal fellowship with God. Like all of us Israelites at heart, he received grace upon grace, to inherit a promise that he did not deserve.
From our earthly perspective, it’s pretty hard to parse out what we do or don’t deserve. Did Rowan deserve to walk with us to the top of the hill to see fireflies? I could have taken him along, but he also needed the blessing of a good night’s rest, and Leo needed some extra time with his mama. I’m an imperfect caretaker. But God is perfect, and He invites us to join Him on some walks and to see some wonders in His good providence. We can fix our hope on the God who replaces “fair” with “beauty, goodness, and truth.” Thanks be to God.
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47 thoughts on "Joshua takes Moses’s Place"
I was also concerned about the treatment of the children here. The point surely is that neither child ‘deserved’ a trip up to the fireflies and neither should ever have to deserve, or earn such a trip. Sending one child back as a consequence for bad behaviour if they had been well warned in advance might be ok, but sending back a child simply because the parent wanted them to learn life isn’t fair seems very harsh on little ones. Let them both enjoy the grace of a special trip and don’t deny one of them a special nature experience, and particularly don’t justify being harsh on one of them with some theological explanation. It did sort of have echoes of coercive control, where the parent, int his case, runs the roost and gets whatever they want when they want it, regardless of any one else’s feelings.
I’m very much hoping Rowan is the husband and not another child. Even for a spouse I don’t think what this lady did was great, surely if someone wants to see the beauty of the fireflies they should be free to, even if she didn’t want him with them, he could go separately, to see the beauty and the wonder…It really unsettled me, and it didn’t seem about fairness at all, but more about control, it felt like she was trying to control Rowan’s life.
How distracted and blinded the world and I can be judging God’s “unfairness” rather than praising Him for all the blessings poured upon us/me! How good you are, God!
Early this morning, I battled a fresh case of morning sickness on my way to drop off my husband for yet another deployment. My heart was screaming “This isn’t fair!”
So thankful for this devotion reminding me that God can use this time where I want fair to show me His “beauty, goodness, and truth.” Though, I know I will feel alone during this time I am choosing to focus on Deuteronomy 31:6 “For the Lord your God is the one who will go with you; He will not leave you or abandon you.”
Thank you SRT!
❤️
Thanks for that devotion. Often we want fair at someone else’s expense. May I continue to show grace when circumstances don’t seem fair❤️❤️
Praying for you K Swenson that God may hold you tightly in His righteous right hand and give you comfort and help you with your battle with PTSD.
Praying for you my sister in Christ
Is “fairness” something that I was needing to hear today? (Another devotion via podcast also talked of “fairness” today!) I need to remember that His faithfulness does not depend on mine… good thing, right? Sleep well tonight, sisters!
I miss Churchmouse. Has anyone heard anything about her? I have been doing these studies for years, and always read her comments. It’s so strange to not see them.
” Be strong and of a good ciurage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: For the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee”
Moses was such a good leader during the time he was with the Israelites! I pray that he will always get the respect from us and future generations that he deserves. Also, the Israelites turning away from God after being brought into the promised land remind me of how many people are given a blessing, or a lucky break from God, given a victory, and rarely thank Him. Even in the times where God saves us from doing something dangerous, people still don’t thank Him. I will always hope that in the future, we will all give God all of our victories, and failures. It is by His strength and timing that we go through them, not ours.
ANGIE – I pray God will guide you. You are in a tight spot. When I read that you think your SIL will think you are interfering, pay attention to that. One of my SIL’s moved right on the lake we live on. I just told my husband that she is very intrusive. I feel that she interferes a lot. Even though she thinks she’s doing the right thing, it is driving me crazy. As a matter of fact I was planning on asking for prayer for my heart to be softened towards her. They may be believers, but only from catholic guilt. They do not have a relationship with God. It is so hard for me to have been happy in my home to now feel like when she’s here that she takes over all the time. I feel like I’m just complaining, but it feels so real to me. I’m struggling. My husbands family tend to be a very controlling. Ugh…
I loved where Rebecca said “the the gospel isn’t fair, it is gracious.” It’s not rooted in our sense of fairness, our timing, or our preferences. Every good gift is from God’s own hand. Every good gift is full of grace. We need that grace.
I read Psalm 103:10 today and I think it goes perfectly with this reading: “He has not dealt with us as our sins deserve or repaid us according to our iniquities.” Thank God “the gospel isn’t fair. It’s gracious.” ❤️
Wow!! Rebecca’s devotion really packed a punch for me today. Part of what Rebecca wrote I had to copy down to remember later because of the message it brought across to me. This is what I copied, “The faithfulness of God has never been dependent on the faithfulness of men. It isn’t rooted in our sense of fairness, our timing, or our preferences. Every good gift is from God’s own hand. Every gift is full of grace.” I always enjoy reading Rebecca’s devotions.
Be blessed sisters and have a great day.
Angie, I read your post at 3:30 AM PST time. I was still so sleepy then I wasn’t able to respond. But I did pray for you. I am in the youth ministry. I will be praying for discernment. But this is your sister-in-law. Your family. And as a mother of a teenage daughter, I would want to know. I would want somebody to say something to me. But meantime, I will be praying for you Angie.
Beauty, goodness, and truth. I loved this morning‘s devotion. And this is who our God is. He wants the best for us. And though I don’t understand why I am where I am today it does not stop me from loving my God. And I’ve had to humble myself and let “others“ help me. One thing that I’ve always said to both my kids. Life is full of disappointments. We live in a fallen world, with fallen people. And we are those people. But as long as Christ is on our side, we can conquer anything.
Father, we pray and come against PTSD in the name of Jesus. That is not our portion. “The path of the righteous shines brighter and brighter until the perfect day.” Psalm 4:18
Our portion is for things to get brighter and brighter, not darker and darker.
Maybe try some essential oils for depression. I know they worked on my skin, so wonderfully!
Horrible itching, along “leathery feeling” upper back, all dissolved into smooth, peaceful soft skin. In 3 applications, and has not returned!
Will continue to pray for your brighter and brighter portion… In Jesus name.
Angie—I would encourage you not to violate your niece’s trust. It is a sacred thing, and you are not the Holy Spirit. Only He can convict her of her sin. You don’t wasn’t to lose the opportunity to speak into her life by violating her trust in you as a confidante.
Angie—I would encourage you not to violate your niece’s trust. It is a sacred thing, and you are not the Holy Spirit. Only He can convict her of
her sin
Angie—I would encourage you not to violate your niece’s trust. It is a sacred thing, and you are not the Holy Spirit. Only He can convict her pf her sin
My previous comment was meant for Taylor
I also noted those words of God’s foreknowledge. “For I know what they are inclined to do even today, before I have brought them into the land that I swore to give.” – Deuteronomy 31:21” He was indeed gracious and merciful regardless of their future disobedience. We serve a mighty God!
Gracious, these passages can be hard to read- God can seem so harsh. But I’m continually reminded not to lean on my own understanding, even if I need to wrestle with the Lord a bit in the process. I pray that we would each have eyes to see His tender mercies. If you would, please pray for me as I battle PTSD. I’ve been having a particularly tough week and could use your support! Thank you, SRT ladies!
Angie, thank you for the recommendation. I grew up with 2 sisters and very much need boy parenting advice. We are so blessed to be here after God brought us through infertility and a miscarriage earlier this year, if the baby never sleeps at all I wouldn’t care ! What a difficult situation with your SIL and her daughter. Bless you for ministering to these girls and I am praying for you in this situation. CeeGee, Sarah Joy, Jessica Pittman, Arina, thank you for praying and for sharing in this miracle that God has done! Thank you all for praying.
My throat choked up a little bit and I stopped over the phrase when God told Moses he was going to die soon. For myself, it made me cry because I loved this Bible character, but it made him so heartbreakingly real when I remembered he was human, and so he HAD to die. But in those moments, where he was old, frail, and breaking down, he might’ve looked back over how God had been faithful. Even in our frailest, wrinkliest moments, God can and will use us. Our use doesn’t have an expiration date with God. And I hope I am like that when I am old, a person in close friendship with God, remembering how good he was to me, and how I’ll see him soon.
My throat choked up a little bit when God told Moses he was going to die soon. For myself, it made me cry because I loved this Bible character, but it made him so heartbreakingly real when I remembered he was human, and so he HAD to die. But in those moments, where he was old, frail, and breaking down, he might’ve looked back over how God had been faithful. And I hope I am like that when I am old, a person in close friends
Amen! Beautiful prayer. I hope the same when I am old.
Truth!!!!
Angie, that’s a tough situation. Praying that God gives you discernment on what to do.
Victoria E- Congrats on having a little boy!
Nads, I hope your body feels better.
Girl you know you could’ve let him come on that walk
I often struggled with why God didn’t allow Moses to enter the promised land after all he had gone through to get there for a seemingly harmless moment, but I’ve learned that what Moses did wasn’t actually harmless at all. God is very specific about his “types” and “antitypes”. The rock represented Jesus, our cornerstone, it was the “type” and Jesus, the anti type. On the cross water flowed from his side, just as water flowed from the rock. To strike the rock twice messed up this symbol of things to come, because Jesus died once and for all, and what God told Moses to do was supposed to be a representation of that. The beautiful thing, is that although God didn’t allow Moses to cross the Jordan, in His love and Mercy He allowed Moses to see the true promise, Jesus, at the transfiguration.
Hello, my Lovelies,
Yesterday was such a moving day. I attended Danny’s funeral…what a beautiful person, who served faithfully and joyfully even in the midst of great hardships re: his life and health. It was his wife and sisters who comforted the REST OF US! I loved that the young children were present at the funeral to celebrate/worship.
Lord, Jesus, may I please You even half as much as Danny did in his 42 years of life and may I be ready when You call me home. Lord, please hold closely his whole family, namely his 7 year-old, his Mama and his wife.
**
The last few days, I have had incessant headaches and body aches…but, as I walked up the stairs, I thought of every one of you (truly!!) my SRT sisters and of Danny and the importance of pushing through, to serve and love God even when… especially when it is difficult.
Thank you for inspiring me EVERY DAY ❤️
@ANGIE – I agree with JESSICA PITTMAN…I pray God will give you the discernment to say just enough to light a spark in parents’ mind (to help protect your niece) without oversharing and losing the confidence of all the girls who trust you. This is a very challenging situation…I pray the Lord will take the reigns of your tongue and all your non-verbal to DO miraculously more than we can imagine!
VICTORIA E – God bless and be with you; I LOVE infant boys!! I pray that yours will be a great big brother ;) one day and a man after God’s own heart! Am I getting ahead of myself?! :)
MELANIE – praying for you!
ERB & MAURA, good morning!
I am behind on reading comments for past few days but, do pray with you each time I read.
Thanks KELLY for baby learning to walk analogy!
Hey ladies- I’ve never posted but often read your posts and pray for you! @victoria I can’t see your post but read Angie’s message. I have 3 boys (and then my much later surprise baby happened to be a girl). With number 2 and 3 I had a little disappointment that it wasn’t a daughter, but after they were born I could see what a gift they were. Raising boys strong in their faith is a such a high calling!!
Angie I will be praying for discernment. Such a hard call. Maybe you could shed some light with your SIL without oversharing and betraying trust.
Hey ladies- I’ve never posted but often read your posts and pray for you! @victoria I can’t see your post but read Angie’s message. I have 3 boys (and then my much later surprise baby happened to be a girl). With number 2 and 3 I had a little disappointment that it wasn’t a daughter, but after they were born I could see what a gift they were. Raising boys strong in their faith is a such a high calling!!
Hey ladies- I’ve never posted but often read your posts and pray for you! @victoria I can’t see your post but read Angie’s message. I have 3 boys (and then my much later surprise baby happened to be a girl). With number 2 and 3 I had a little
My feelings may be fickle, but my God is constant.
Yesterday I read something that helped me better understand God’s repeated call to obedience. From the enduring word commentary: God was not expecting the impossible from Israel when He expected them to keep this covenant. He never expected Israel to perfectly obey the law. That is why He provided for the sacrifice as part of the covenant. God expected Israel to trust in the atonement made by sacrifice to make them righteous, ultimately pointing to the perfect sacrifice of Christ.
VICTORIA E – what great news! Praising God and asking for God’s continued blessing over your pregnancy
ANGIE – praying for wisdom for you today
“That’s not fair”
How often I get confused with God’s ways because they don’t make sense.
– Mother of 3 with stage 4 breast cancer
– Family loses 3 people in one car accident
– Father gets let go of his dream job
– Teen gets healed from cancer inexplicably
– Young soldier becomes a firefighter in record time
– Grandmother gets to meet her new grandson under miraculous circumstances
“Why God?”
We don’t always know the why. This causes conflict for children everywhere. We want what we want when we want it. It’s sinful nature – selfishness really. God does so much through His “unfairness,” and often the why reveals something more lovely than I could have dreamed.
So today I look for the grace of God. I will cry out in the face of pain and suffering and seek God as He draws me close. I will rejoice in the unexpected (and undeserved) gifts and pour the grace along to others. God let it be so in me.
This passage is so powerful. KELLY, I had the same thought about the consequences discussion of yesterday when I read!
VICTORIA E. what joy for you!!! We had 3 boys and like Angie I loved being a mom to them.
ANGIE – praying for your heart and for discernment, for your niece and her parent’s hearts – that they will not turn against you.
What an amazing God who still made the covenant with the Israelites even though He KNEW they couldn’t uphold it. What an amazing God who still took the Israelites to the promised land even though He KNEW they would turn and worship other gods. Thank you Rebecca Faires for the quote in today’s devotion “The faithfulness of God has never been dependent on the faithfulness of men.” How often am I prone to wander? Yet “The Lord Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Deuteronomy 31:8) So thankful to serve such a loving and compassionate God. He is FOR US
ANGIE – you are such an important presence in the lives of those girls. May God grant you wisdom. To be honest, raising three girls makes me a little overwhelmed at times. Your stories put the fear of God in me. I pray God gives us direction for how to raise them and point them to the Truth. And a heart to trust God’s love for them.
VICTORIA E. – congratulations! So exciting. I always wanted a boy. God chose girls for us, and I pray someday we get to love the young men who will eventually come.
The faithfulness of God isn’t dependent on the faithfulness of man – isn’t that the truth! So thankful for that gift of grace.
God is good. Amen
I love Deuteronomy 31:21 “For I know what they are prone to do, even before I bring them into the land I swore to give them.” God isn’t surprised by Israel breaking the covenant and still He chose to make it with them. God isn’t surprised by my sin and still He chose to send His Son for me. What a beautiful picture of His heart! Sometimes we shy away from “the God of the Old Testament” because we don’t understand some of the hard things we read. But underneath is the Father’s heart of love and compassion for His wayward people. Praise be to God!
Victoria E…a little boy. Congratulations! I grew up with two sisters and then upon being a mommy I had 2 little boys. They are so wonderful. They are so different than girls. It is so fun to be a mom to boys. Dr. Dobson has an old book, I believe it is titled, Mothers and Sons – it was super good for me. I would encourage you to pick it up and enjoy it now while your brain is still working, you are getting some sleep (hopefully), and you have a little time. Once that little guy arrives, your time, hands and heart will be filled in ways you never imagined, only dreamed of. Those middle of the night crying spells might make you think they are nightmares but not so my sister and friend. You are in for one of the absolute best gifts God gives (next to salvation and His presence). So excited for you. The days to come are the most tiring, and the very best days. Enjoy!
I feel a little like Moses right now. All but one of the senior girls that comes to my home is dabbling in sin. They tell me more than I wish I knew. I answer in truth and love. One of the girls is also family. I know that she is not telling her parents everything about a boy. She is telling them what they want to hear and what will cause them to like him. She is not telling them that he made a bet he could get her virginity, or that she snuck out to be with him. She is really mad at me right now because I told her that she needs to tell her parents the truth and break off this relationship. She has broken it off, only to go back to him multiple times. They were not even “together as a couple,” when all this was happening. Just “hooking up.” I told her that this guy is trouble. This girl has/had the closest relationship with God. She was the only one who went to youth group…she stopped that when she started partying. She has still come to Bible study and let me speak truth to her and love on her. This week we are not going to meet. It is my grandson’s birthday party and 3 of the girls soccer game got changed to today. That would have left 4, so we would still meet except my niece and one other girl cancelled too. I know Hayley (my niece) is angry because I didn’t go along with things. I feel like I am trying to present God’s truth with honesty and love but firmness and they are like the Israelites…knowing what they should do but loving sin more. Right now I am trying to decide, do I tell her mom (my SIL) that Hayley is not telling her everything about this boy. They are allowing things because they only know the good. I don’t think I can share specifics without going against the trust Hayley has given me…I mean, she doesn’t have to tell me all this stuff. I’ve lost a lot of sleep over it. (Victoria E…my boys were so much easier…). Anyway, please pray for me today. I think I am going to make a call and just put a bug in my SIL ear. My SIL may not take it well. My SIL could be mad and feel like I am interfering in something I shouldn’t be. They attend church but are not really living it in the every day presently. I bet it was so hard for Joshua (You get to take over Joshua, just know the people are going to break my covenant, there will be consequences.) No wonder the Lord said, Be strong and very courageous. Thank goodness it is His strength that empowers us and His courage that we depend on. Thank the LORD for His great love and redemption for each one of us, sinners saved by grace. Me included. Amen.
Here is an example of yesterday’s discussion on consequences. God loved Moses and called him “friend” but Moses’ disobedience cost him something. If God had “looked the other way” at Moses’ actions, He would have set aside His holiness and the honor due to Him.
Where is His grace and compassion?
God still made water come from the rock. Later, Moses was in the Promised Land – with Jesus on the mountian. And he will be with God forever in His land of rest.
God is gracious and good