Today I have the privilege of sharing a teaching for the First 5 app as we walk through our current study, “Seeing Jesus in the Old Testament.” Here’s a preview . . .

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Today’s Reading: Exodus 17; Numbers 20

Numbers 20:11 (ESV) “And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their livestock.”

Have you ever gotten one of those persistent tickles in your throat? You try to discreetly cough, but that makes it worse, and now people are staring. You try to ignore it and hope it disappears. It’s hard to think of anything else but what you need: a drink of water.

In today’s passages, the Israelites faced something much worse than a prickly throat. On both occasions, they were camping in a desert with no water. (Exodus 17:1; Numbers 20:2) They were thirsty and knew if they didn’t find a source of water they would die. (Exodus 17:3; Numbers 20:4)

Throughout their wilderness journey, the Israelites repeatedly displayed grumbling, distrustful hearts. Rather than crying out to God for His help, they cried out against Moses with bitter complaints and angry accusations. (Exodus 17:2-3; Numbers 20:3-5) Their rebellion deserved punishment, but instead, God graciously provided the water they needed to live and thrive.

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You can read the entire teaching here, or download the app and join us through the rest of our study!

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We’re wrapping up our study of Joshua today at First 5, and I’m sharing a teaching from Joshua 24. Here’s a preview . . .

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Today’s Reading: Joshua 24:29-33

Joshua 24:32 (ESV) “As for the bones of Joseph, which the people of Israel brought up from Egypt, they buried them at Shechem, in the piece of land that Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for a hundred pieces of money. It became an inheritance of the descendants of Joseph.”

When my kids were younger, I often made futile attempts to convince them to stop getting older. When I suggested to my 5-year-old son that he might consider being 4 again, he replied, “No, you have to be each age one time, and then you die.”

The truth my son stated so matter-of-factly is a harsh reality we’d rather avoid. But today’s passage doesn’t let us escape the fact that everyone dies. While acknowledging the reality of death, these verses also give us hope that our God is faithful both in life and death.

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Click here to read the rest of the teaching or download the First 5 app and join us on our studies in 2022!

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Today I’m sharing a teaching for First 5 from Joshua 13. Here’s a preview . . .

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Today’s Reading: Joshua 13:1-7

Joshua 13:1 (ESV) “Now Joshua was old and advanced in years, and the LORD said to him, ‘You are old and advanced in years, and there remains yet very much land to possess.'”

I have a love-hate relationship with to-do lists. I love the sense of accomplishment that comes from checking tasks off my list, but I feel defeated when I realize I didn’t get anything done. Sometimes I have to cross out “Monday” from the top and replace it with “Tuesday.” Many days, there aren’t enough hours to get it all done, and some days, there aren’t enough hours to get even one thing done.

In today’s passage, God pointed out that Joshua was “old and advanced in years” (Joshua 13:1). This reality creates tension in the story because there was still “very much land to possess” (Joshua 13:1). As we read about the regions that still needed to be conquered, we might start to get nervous. Will Joshua be able to finish the job in the time he has left?

We find the answer in Joshua 13:6b-c, where God said: “I myself will drive them out from before the people of Israel. Only allot the land to Israel for an inheritance, as I have commanded you.” Joshua had his marching orders from the Lord, and they didn’t include fretting over how much still needed to be done.

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Click here to read the entire teaching, and you can also download the First 5 app to join us on our journey through the book of Joshua!

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