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The Buffer Became the Bridge

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  Numbers 3:38 “Moses and Aaron and his sons were to camp in front of the tabernacle, on the east, in front of the tent of meeting, toward the sunrise, guarding the sanctuary for the people of Israel; and any outsider who came near was to be put to death.” Hebrews 4:15–16 “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Romans 8:13 “For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” Numbers 3 shows us something sobering about holiness. God’s presence was not casual. The tabernacle was guarded, and the Levites were placed as a living boundary so that wrath would not fall on the people. Sinful humans could not approach holy God on their own. The buffer was not cruelt...
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The Heart of the Wilderness

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  Numbers 2:2 “The Israelites are to camp around the Tent of Meeting at a distance from it, each of them under their standard and holding the banners of their family.” Numbers 9:17–18 “Whenever the cloud lifted from above the tent, the Israelites set out; wherever the cloud settled, the Israelites encamped… At the Lord’s command they encamped, and at the Lord’s command they set out.” Exodus 33:14 “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Israel was not yet home. They had no permanent houses, no established borders, no rooted vineyards. They were between what had been and what would be. And yet, in the middle of that unsettled season, God instructed them to arrange themselves around His dwelling. The Tabernacle was not placed off to the side, nor outside the camp, nor waiting in a future land. It was set directly in the center. Their identity as a people was not built on geography but on proximity to His presence. Even in motion, the order remained. When the c...
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God’s Presence in a Broken System

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  Acts 23:11 (ESV) “The following night the Lord stood by him and said, ‘Take courage, for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome.’” Paul had just endured a humiliating and unjust scene. He had been struck on command by the high priest. The religious leaders who were supposed to uphold God’s law erupted into argument and division. The situation became so volatile that Roman soldiers had to intervene to prevent him from being torn apart. This was not a shining moment for spiritual leadership. It was political, fractured, and deeply human. And then night came. Scripture does not say that the Lord corrected the Sanhedrin that evening. It does not say that the corrupt were exposed or that justice was immediately restored. It says something quieter and far more personal: the Lord stood by him. Jesus did not prevent the injustice. He did not dismantle the broken system in that moment. He did not remove Paul from danger. He stood. ...
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Safe In His Holiness

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  Leviticus 15:31 (ESV) “You shall keep the people of Israel separate from their uncleanness, lest they die in their uncleanness by defiling my tabernacle that is in their midst.” Leviticus 15 is not a chapter most of us would naturally choose for a quiet time. It is detailed, physical, and at first glance, uncomfortable. But beneath the surface, there is something deeply reassuring about it. In this chapter, God gives Israel specific instructions about bodily uncleanness and purification. What stands out is that many of these conditions were not sins. They were simply part of being human. Weakness. Vulnerability. The reality of living in bodies that break down, bleed, and need restoration. “Unclean” did not mean “morally corrupt.” It meant there were boundaries around approaching a holy God. It meant that coming near required cleansing. God was not shaming His people. He was protecting them. He was teaching them that His presence is holy and life-giving — and that He Himself w...
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When God Wakes Us in the Prison

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  Acts 12:7 (NIV) Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists. Peter was sleeping so deeply in prison that the angel had to strike him to wake him up and lead him out. I’ve often heard this described as a sign of Peter’s great trust—how else could someone sleep so soundly on the night before a trial? And that may be true. But today, as I read Acts 12, I saw something different. Peter wasn’t just resting peacefully. He was imprisoned. Likely unfairly. And not because he had done something wrong, but because he was faithfully doing the work God had called him to do. If I were in his place, I imagine discouragement would have been close at hand. Why am I here if I was obeying you? Why did you allow this when I was serving you? That question feels uncomfortably familiar. There was a season in my life when I was teaching in a Christian school, beli...
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Filled for the Work God Calls Us To Do

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 Exodus 35:31 says that God filled Bezalel with the Spirit of God, giving him wisdom, understanding, knowledge, and all kinds of skills. Bezalel and Oholiab were former slaves, newly freed and wandering in the wilderness, yet God chose them to build the tabernacle—His dwelling place among His people. Scripture does not say they were simply talented or experienced; it emphasizes that they were filled with the Spirit of God . Their ability to work with such precision and beauty was not merely learned skill, but divine empowerment for a holy purpose. In the Old Testament, the Spirit of God often came upon people to equip them for specific tasks. Here, it is craftsmen—ordinary workers—who are filled with the Spirit to do sacred work. This shows that God values obedience and availability over credentials. The tabernacle was not built by human strength alone, but by the Spirit of God working through willing people. This passage points forward to the New Testament truth that those who b...
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Solitude Isn’t Escape — It’s Preparation

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  Exodus 34:28–29 (ESV) “So he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights… And when Moses came down from Mount Sinai… Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God.” Matthew 4:1, 17 (ESV) “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” “From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” Both Moses and Jesus intentionally withdraw from people to meet with God. Moses goes outside the camp to the tent of meeting; Jesus is led into the wilderness. These places of solitude are not escapes from responsibility but spaces of preparation before public ministry. Both remain there forty days and forty nights , a number repeatedly associated in Scripture with testing, purification, and preparation. In the quiet, distractions fall away, dependence on God is sharpened, and identity is clarified. When Moses returns, his face is radiant—God’s glory visibl...
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