Be Faithful. Joshua 16-17; John 4

May the mumbling commence!

God is faithful.  God rewards people who are faithful to the Lord.  Rewards happen regardless of boundaries that you and I arbitrarily construct.  That includes the issues of gender – male and female.  Read from Joshua chapter seventeen:

However, Zelophehad son of Hepher, who was a descendant of Manasseh, Makir, and Gilead, had no sons. Instead, he had five daughters. Their names were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.  These women came to Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the Israelite leaders and said, "The Lord commanded Moses to give us an inheritance along with the men of our tribe."

So Joshua gave them an inheritance along with their uncles, as the Lord had commanded.  As a result, Manasseh's inheritance came to ten parcels of land, in addition to the land of Gilead and Bashan across the Jordan River, because the female descendants of Manasseh received an inheritance along with the male descendants. (The land of Gilead was given to the rest of the male descendants of Manasseh.) (Verses 3-6)

The Lord is faithful to His promises.  This fact rings true in the case of Zelophehad’s daughters.  They were promised portions of land along with their uncles, and they were given that land.  Even though they did not fight, they were given that land. 

The faithfulness of Mahlah and Noah and Hoglah and Milcah and Tirzah is seen in their persistence before the male leadership of Israel.  And they were blessed.  Justice was done to them and their father.

And faithfulness to the Lord is something that can sustain us better than anything else.  It is a food that satisfies us more than fresh-baked bread.  Read from John chapter four:

Meanwhile, the disciples were urging Jesus to eat.  "No," he said, "I have food you don't know about."  

"Who brought it to him?" the disciples asked each other. 

Then Jesus explained: "My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work.  Do you think the work of harvesting will not begin until the summer ends four months from now? Look around you! Vast fields are ripening all around us and are ready now for the harvest.  The harvesters are paid good wages, and the fruit they harvest is people brought to eternal life. What joy awaits both the planter and the harvester alike!  You know the saying, 'One person plants and someone else harvests.' And it's true.  I sent you to harvest where you didn't plant; others had already done the work, and you will gather the harvest." (Verses 31-38)

Nourishment comes from doing the will of God… from finishing the word God has placed before us.  Nothing satisfies more than knowing that you’ve done the work God has placed before you.  Nothing satisfies more than knowing you have brought glory and honor and praise to the Lord.

So keep your eyes peeled.  The vast acres of God’s field are ripening all about us.  Prepare yourself to bring in the harvest.  Know that God planted the seed long before you came upon the mature field.

If we do this work, we will be satisfied in ways that nothing else can satisfy us.  O Lord, help us to be faithful to You.

Enough mumbling for now…

Peace Out