{"id":6300,"date":"2019-11-17T20:00:24","date_gmt":"2019-11-18T03:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/?p=6300"},"modified":"2019-11-17T16:00:38","modified_gmt":"2019-11-17T23:00:38","slug":"ezra8_1-36","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/ezra8_1-36\/","title":{"rendered":"When You Set Out On a Mission Trip"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ezra 8:1-36 Click here for Bible Verses<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Ezra 8:1-36.\u00a0\u00a0Let\u2019s go!<\/span><\/p>\n

In this chapter Ezra takes a group of approximately 1,500 Jewish exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem.\u00a0\u00a0Keep in mind that many, if not most, of the people traveling with Ezra have never been to Jerusalem before, as they have spent most if not all of their years in Babylon and Persia.\u00a0It is not an exaggeration to say that Ezra and these 1,500 exiles were on a mission trip, sent by King Artaxerxes to restore the worship of the Lord in Jerusalem.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Likewise, we are called to live out loud and lead others to Jesus, both in our own city and abroad.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s why I encourage everyone at Thrive to go on a mission trip at least once, and preferably multiple times, while you still can.\u00a0\u00a0In this chapter, we learn some valuable lessons on how to set out on a mission trip.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

On verses 1-14:\u00a0\u00a0Ezra records the people who went with him from Babylon to Jerusalem, trying to account for all of them.\u00a0\u00a0What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0Before setting out on a mission trip, take stock of what you have and who you have with you.<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

On verses 15-20:\u00a0\u00a0Before proceeding on their long journey to Jerusalem, Ezra stops at a canal for three days and takes stock of the people who have come with him.\u00a0\u00a0Ezra notices that he does not have Levites who can assist with all the work of the temple (v15).\u00a0\u00a0So he sends some of his leaders to go and secure the help of 38 Levites from two different families as well as 220 temple servants.\u00a0\u00a0Wise move, Ezra.\u00a0\u00a0If Ezra had gone back to Jerusalem without a team of people who could minister at the temple, his entire journey would have been a waste.<\/span><\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0Before setting out on a mission trip,<\/strong>\u00a0make sure you have everything you need.\u00a0\u00a0If you are lacking in a certain area, look to your brothers and sisters in Christ, your God-fearing neighbours to see if they can lend some support.<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

On verses 21-23:\u00a0\u00a0Ezra proclaims a fast and leads the people to humble themselves and petition the Lord for a safe journey.\u00a0\u00a0Likewise,before setting out on a mission trip, humble yourself before God and ask for His help.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Realize that you can\u2019t just rely on your own smarts, strength and experience.\u00a0\u00a0You need the Lord\u2019s help, wisdom and protection, so ask for it earnestly through prayer and fasting.\u00a0Fasting is not twisting God\u2019s arm (as if we could) to do what we want to do.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s humbling ourselves in His presence so that we can be more usable in His hands.<\/span><\/p>\n

On verses 24-30:\u00a0\u00a0In the presence of the leading priests, Ezra measures out how much silver, gold and precious articles they have with them and tells the leading priests to guard them carefully.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0If you have been entrusted with money to take with you on the journey, be sure to handle it and guard it with great integrity and care.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0Leaders in God\u2019s kingdom need to be above reproach in the way they handle other people\u2019s money.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0Ezra was wise to appoint a team of leading priests to handle this aspect of their journey.<\/span><\/p>\n

On verses 31-38:\u00a0\u00a0Upon safely arriving in Jerusalem, Ezra and his group of exiles rest three days (v32) and then they get right down to business:<\/span><\/p>\n

–<\/span>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0they measure the money they have once again to make sure that nothing was stolen and that everything is accounted for.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

–<\/span>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0they sacrifice burnt offerings to the Lord in Jerusalem, just as King Artaxerxes had sent them to do.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

–<\/span>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0they deliver to the governors of that region the endorsement letter that King Artaxerxes had written for them (Ezra 7:11-26).\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0When you go on a mission trip and reach your destination, get the rest you need when you arrive but don\u2019t waste time.\u00a0\u00a0Quickly get to the tasks for which you have been sent.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Finally, notice how twice in this chapter Ezra says \u201cthe hand of the Lord was upon us\u201d\u2013 once when God provided Ezra with Levites and temple servants (v18) and again when Ezra and his crew arrived safely in Jerusalem without being harmed by enemies and bandits (v31).\u00a0What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0When anything good happens during your mission trip, be sure to give praise and credit to God, for every good and perfect gift comes from Him (James\u00a01:17).\u00a0\u00a0We can\u2019t do anything good without Him.<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Heavenly Father, thank You for every person reading this GAME sharing today.\u00a0 I pray that they would know today that You call them Your missionaries, Your representatives, and Your messengers.\u00a0 May we not be afraid to travel outside of our comfort zone to bring God’s love to people and places in need.\u00a0\u00a0May we wisely use the time, talents and opportunities You have given us to reach people for Jesus.\u00a0\u00a0Thank You and let Your kingdom come.\u00a0\u00a0In Jesus\u2019 name, AMEN!<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

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<\/div>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

TToday\u2019s passage is Ezra 8:1-36.\u00a0\u00a0Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

In this chapter Ezra takes a group of approximately 1,500 Jewish exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem.\u00a0\u00a0Keep in mind that many, if not most, of the people traveling with Ezra have never been to Jerusalem before, as they have spent most if not all of their years in Babylon and Persia.\u00a0It is not an exaggeration to say that Ezra and these 1,500 exiles were on a mission trip, sent by King Artaxerxes to restore the worship of the Lord in Jerusalem.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Likewise, we are called to live out loud and lead others to Jesus, both in our own city and abroad.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s why I encourage everyone at Thrive to go on a mission trip at least once, and preferably multiple times, while you still can.\u00a0\u00a0In this chapter, we learn some valuable lessons on how to set out on a mission trip.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On verses 1-14:\u00a0\u00a0Ezra records the people who went with him from Babylon to Jerusalem, trying to account for all of them.\u00a0\u00a0What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0Before setting out on a mission trip, take stock of what you have and who you have with you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6301,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6300","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gametime-sharing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6300","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6300"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6300\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6303,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6300\/revisions\/6303"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6301"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6300"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6300"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6300"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}