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It's Supposed to be Gross: Shred Day 21

Ezekiel 13-47

“In the same way, I became disgusted with Oholibah and rejected her, just as I had rejected her sister, because she flaunted herself before them and gave herself to satisfy their lusts. Yet she turned to even greater prostitution, remembering her youth when she was a prostitute in Egypt. She lusted after lovers with genitals as large as a donkey’s and emissions like those of a horse. And so, Oholibah, you relived your former days as a young girl in Egypt, when you first allowed your breasts to be fondled. ‭‭Ezekiel 23:18-21

I've known about this verse for a while as just a gross thing in the Bible, but reading this in the context of the entire book (really the entire Old Testament) shows how important it is that there's this kind of imagery in the Bible. It's supposed to be shocking and disturbing, because it's explaining just how significant our rebellion against God is. It's vile, and we should understand exactly what all comes from us turning away from God.

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He Keeps All of His Promises: Shred Day 20

Jeremiah 37 - Ezekiel 12

Lamentations 3 is such a good example of hope in the middle of sorrow. If God is keeping His promise of being just then He’s going to keep His promise of blessing His people. Every morning His blessings are brand new.

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Some Things Aren't For Us: Shred Day 19

Jeremiah 4-36

The message of the cup of gods anger is fascinating. The idea of every king in the land drinking from it and then being overtaken by it is such an interesting picture of how our hearts can be corrupted. It is almost like this righteous anger from the Lord can only be handled by Him, and that if we, as humans, try to take a hold of that which is intended only for God to wield then we will be overcome by it.

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Just Look!: Shred Day 18

Isaiah 35 - Jeremiah 3

“The Lord says, “I was ready to respond, but no one asked for help. I was ready to be found, but no one was looking for me. I said, ‘Here I am, here I am!’ to a nation that did not call on my name. All day long I opened my arms to a rebellious people. But they follow their own evil paths and their own crooked schemes.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭65:1-2‬

God doesn’t ever leave His people. His people just don’t look for Him!

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Cut Down, But Not Destroyed: Shred Day 17

Song of Solomon 1 - Isaiah 34

The bunt stump of Israel is still the hope of the world because God’s promise to bless the world through Abraham is still in tact. Even despite our betrayal of God, He still sends the one true King to save us!

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Learn How to Suffer: Shred Day 16

Psalms 148 - Ecclesiastes 12

Understanding suffering is such a key part of our faith. So much of our scripture revolves around trying to make sense of suffering. Ecclesiastes can either be a downer or a hopeful gift depending on how we read it!

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Comfort in the Law: Shred Day 15

Psalms 79-147

Psalm 119 is the longest one and does such a good job of actually laying out a deep desire for the law. What a backwards way of thinking compared to our culture. The law is actually comfort and something that we should want, not something that’s oppressive.

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Humiliate Them Please?: Shred Day 14

Psalms 19-78

David calls on God to humiliate his opponents a lot, which I always thought was kind of a non-Christian thing to do. But I noticed that he never asks God to to give him the ability to humiliate others, but rather he leaves it in God’s hands. Maybe that’s the key, simply leaving that desire of revenge at God’s feet and letting Him do with it whatever He chooses to do.

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We Need a Mediator: Shred Day 13

Job 6 - Psalms 18

So many times Job lamented for a mediator between God and man. It took a while but God sure listened. Job's anguish reveals the deep desires that we all share deep in our hearts.

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That "Wisdom" Sucks: Shred Day 12

2 Chronicles 34 - Job 5

“It came to me in a disturbing vision at night, when people are in a deep sleep. Fear gripped me, and my bones trembled. A spirit swept past my face, and my hair stood on end. The spirit stopped, but I couldn’t see its shape. There was a form before my eyes. In the silence I heard a voice say, ‘Can a mortal be innocent before God? Can anyone be pure before the Creator?’” ‭‭Job‬ ‭4:13-17‬

Sometimes we confuse “wisdom” of our own with wisdom that is from God. Job’s friends are just like the YL kids that think they’ve cracked the code of how the universe really works, or just like us when we think that we can fully understand God. But all of us are mistaken, and God is far more complex than what our small eyes can see.

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Rescue Will Come: Shred Day 11

1 Chronicles 21 - 2 Chronicles 33

““If they sin against you—and who has never sinned?—you might become angry with them and let their enemies conquer them and take them captive to a foreign land far away or near. But in that land of exile, they might turn to you in repentance and pray, ‘We have sinned, done evil, and acted wickedly.’ If they turn to you with their whole heart and soul in the land of their captivity and pray toward the land you gave to their ancestors—toward this city you have chosen, and toward this Temple I have built to honor your name— then hear their prayers and their petitions from heaven where you live, and uphold their cause. Forgive your people who have sinned against you.” ‭‭2 Chronicles‬ ‭6:36-39‬

This is the entire point of Chronicles. The author highlights Solomon's prayer here to show that the heart of God and the hope of the people is that even though we cannot avoid sin God will still hear us and rescue us when we call out to Him!

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Get it From God: Shred Day 10

2 Kings 9 - 1 Chronicles 20

“So Saul died because he was unfaithful to the Lord. He failed to obey the Lord’s command, and he even consulted a medium instead of asking the Lord for guidance. So the Lord killed him and turned the kingdom over to David son of Jesse.” ‭‭1 Chronicles‬ ‭10:13-14‬

Saul did get what he was looking for through the medium, he saw Samuel. You can get what you’re looking for without God’s help, but this passage shows that this isn’t the point. The point is that you get what you’re looking for THROUGH God. Then maybe you will have Him redirect you or fill you. Maybe you are already on the right track, but without putting your trust in God you aren’t actually gaining what’s important - a connection with the creator.

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Very Conditional Love: Shred Day 9

1 Kings 2 - 2 Kings 8

All of Solomon’s wives ended up turning him to the false gods. God actually tells us to have a very conditional love when it comes to our intimate relationships with other humans. The condition is that they acknowledge and believe in the one true God just like we do. When that’s not true something has to give; either their love for the false gods or our love for ours. Unfortunately Solomon shows that more often than not the thing that gives is our love for our God.

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Not Ours to Take: Shred Day 8

1 Samuel 23 - 1 Kings 1

Over and over again David told his warriors not to take revenge on others, even if they probably deserved it. Just like He didn’t kill Saul when he had the chance. He trusted that revenge was something reserved only for God. For all of his faults, David always was consistent in this.

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What We Really Want: Shred Day 7

Judges 10 - 1 Samuel 22

““I am the seer!” Samuel replied. “Go up to the place of worship ahead of me. We will eat there together, and in the morning I’ll tell you what you want to know and send you on your way. And don’t worry about those donkeys that were lost three days ago, for they have been found. And I am here to tell you that you and your family are the focus of all Israel’s hopes.”” ‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭9:19-20‬

Samuel, channeling God, knows what Saul is really looking for before Saul does. So often we look for what we think we want only to have God reveal to us that our hearts are hungry for something totally different.

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Your Choice: Shred Day 6

Deuteronomy 33 - Judges 9

“But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.”” ‭‭Joshua‬ ‭24:15‬

I love how straight up this choice is. You want the crap the rest of the world has or you want the one true God? One sucks and one is extravagant. Your choice.

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Strong and Courageous: Shred Day 5

Numbers 32 - Deuteronomy 32

"Be strong and courageous." Moses knows that Joshua is facing a big task in leading his people. Joshua has a choice whether or not to be strong and whether or not to take courage. Moses knows that God gives us strength to do both so he tells Joshua to take it himself and lead his people!