NUMBERS

I'm reading in Numbers today.  God loves numbers, He even named a book after it.   1) God speaks- In Numbers 7:89- God speaks from the mercy seat.  The mercy seat is where sin is settled and forgiven.  After sin is settled, then we have an open line of communication with God, but not before.  It is only after we accept Christ as our Savior that we can communicate with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.  After sin is paid for and applied by faith, then we see that God speaks!  God speaks to us through His Word, and by His Spirit.  Are we listening?  Lord, help us to listen as You speak to our hearts today. 2) WHAT IS REALLY FREE?- In Numbers 11:5, the children of Israel are gripping and say that "We remember the fish which we did eat in Egypt freely: the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic:"  They ate in Egypt freely??  Maybe they forgot something.... "They were slaves!!"  How does a slave eat anything freely?  And yet in verse 6 and 7, the manna was provided for them to eat and it was free!  They didn't appreciate what they truly ate in freedom.  I hope we have better attitudes about God's blessings than they did.  Lord, help me to be thankful today for all that I'm blessed with in this free country and that you indeed give to me freely.  The Bible says that God gives us "freely all things".  Wow.  Thank you Lord! Hope you have a blessed day.  Yesterday I sent my blog and it didn't upload.  I'll try again!  Pastor Mike Mutchler