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When I was a young child, it seemed Christmas would take much longer to get here than it does now. Christmas was a magical time for me and my younger brother, Carl. We often had a part in the Christmas pageant in the country church where we grew up. Santa made his appearance, and each child received a bag of fruit, nuts, and candy. The cedar Christmas tree,  glowing with red, green, white, and blue lights, sheltered the pile of gifts that would be exchanged. The church was abuzz with […]

“Now it came about after the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord, that the Lord spoke to Joshua, the son of Nun, Moses’ servant, saying,  ‘Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel.’” Joshua 1:1-2. Moses has died, but God’s promise to Israel is alive, entrusted to the leadership of a man named Joshua. Joshua, what do you know about him? What comes to mind when you […]

Today, we resume our thinking about Moses’ legacy. Last week’s blog focused on why he was considered the greatest Old Testament prophet. https://www.cosdavis.com/moses-legacy/ . But he was more than a great prophet; he was a key figure, a vital link in God’s promise to bring our Savior into the world through the nation of Israel. Moses, Deliverer and Law-giver  God called Abraham to be the father of the nation of Israel. But God chose Moses to liberate the Israelites from Egyptian slavery and to establish them as a nation with the […]

What do you want those who know you best to remember about you when you’re gone? What will your spouse, children, grandchildren, and friends say about you? Will they remember you as a kind, encouraging person? Will they share stories about how you listened and helped them in a difficult time? Did they feel you genuinely cared about them? How do you want to be remembered? What do you want your legacy to be? Last week’s blog was an intriguing look at how Moses spent his last hours. https://www.cosdavis.com/moses-final-hours/ will […]

Who do you want to be with you when you pass from this life into the next? Maybe I’m a bit weird about the idea of dying alone, but I’ve always thought it would be comforting to have someone who has loved you and “put up” with you for many years to be with you when you take your final breath in this world. My older brother and I were with our mom when she transitioned from this life into the presence of Jesus in 2008, and that was a […]

Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah were the 5 daughters of Zelophehad. Ever heard of any of them or their father before? I’m sure I probably skimmed over their names before in one of my attempts to read through the entire Bible, but I never stopped to think about their story or why God chose to include it in Scripture. That is, not until the other day when I was considering what I would share with you about God’s promise to the Israelite people. I almost overlooked it in my […]

God’s plan for us may be deterred or delayed, but it is not defeated! Paul puts it this way in Romans 8:35, 37-39: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be […]

Last week’s blog about King Balak’s attempt to get the “seer” Baalam to put a curse on the Israelites backfired because Yahweh, the God above all gods, had chosen to bless them. https://www.cosdavis.com/the-god-above-all-gods/ . God was fully aware that his chosen people would be confronted with pagan cultures and gods on their trek to the Promised Land. When He made the covenant with them, He specified that He alone was to be their God: “You shall have no other gods before you.” Exodus 20:3. That was the first commandment and the […]

What happened after God told Moses and Aaron they had forfeited the privilege of leading the people into the Promised Land? Numbers 20:12. The Lord told Moses to take Aaron to Mount Hor and  “strip” him of his priestly garments and put them on Eleazer, making him the new priest of Israel. Aaron died on Mount Hor at the age of 123. Numbers 21 details another rebellion of the Israelites, a meandering route, and battles of the Israelites as they came to the plains of Moab, just across from Jericho […]