Following the Trail of God's Promises: The 40-Day ChallengeSample

24. The Covenant Confirmed

After all that the Lord has done, delivering the Israelites from Egypt, providing for them an escape through the Red Sea, providing for them resources to sustain them in the desert, they now arrive at the base of Mount Sinai. God then leads Moses up the mountain to talk about establishing a new covenant. God begins by going through the numerous glimpses of grace that the Israelites have experienced while following Him. Then we can see the serious part of this covenant as God establishes the terms of the covenant. There is one thing that God asks of them: "If you obey Me fully and keep My covenant, then out of all nations you will be My treasured possession." But God does not just talk about obeying, He desires for them to decide to be in a covenant with Him. God provides a way to be communal with Him but there is a call to action, and that is to make a decision to obey Him, and follow His commands. Moses then brought all these things that he had heard and told the Israelites all the commands God had given to them. The Israelites now have a decision to make and so do we. In this season of lent, we need to take a step back and remember what God has done in our lives and take a step forward by asking ourselves: Do we want to enter into a covenant with God? Are we prepared, like the people, to respond to His call to a covenant by saying, “We will do everything the Lord has said.”?

PRACTICAL CHALLENGE

Day 24. Create your own “Miracles Journal”. Make a list of all the situations when the Lord has answered your prayers, when He has blessed you in some way. Describe every occasion when you’ve seen God at work as a testimony. Write down God’s miracles in your life, starting with the one when He saved you. It is easy to praise God and be obedient when circumstances are in our favor. But what about when we find ourselves in the desert, and are about to start grumbling? Then open your “Miracles Journal”.