I am not sure why, but 40 days feels significant. It is in fact mentioned a ton in the Bible. A quick search yielded the following:
In the Old Testament, when God destroyed the earth with water, He caused it to rain 40 days and 40 nights (Genesis 7:12). After Moses killed the Egyptian, he fled to Midian, where he spent 40 years in the desert tending flocks (Acts 7:30). Moses was on Mount Sinai for 40 days and 40 nights (Exodus 24:18). Moses interceded on Israel’s behalf for 40 days and 40 nights (Deuteronomy 9:18,25). The Law specified a maximum number of lashes a man could receive for a crime, setting the limit at 40 (Deuteronomy 25:3). The Israelite spies took 40 days to spy out Canaan (Numbers 13:25). The Israelites wandered for 40 years (Deuteronomy 8:2-5). Before Samson’s deliverance, Israel served the Philistines for 40 years (Judges 13:1). Goliath taunted Saul’s army for 40 days before David arrived to slay him (1 Samuel 17:16). When Elijah fled from Jezebel, he traveled 40 days and 40 nights to Mt. Horeb (1 Kings 19:8).
The number 40 also appears in the prophecies of Ezekiel (4:6; 29:11-13) and Jonah (3:4).
In the New Testament, Jesus was tempted for 40 days and 40 nights (Matthew 4:2). There were 40 days between Jesus’ resurrection and ascension (Acts 1:3).
It seems like many of these periods of 40 days are times of testing. This being my fourth mission trip in as many years, I know that the last month or so before the trip has never been without it's fair share of bumps, hiccups, and legitimate attacks from the devil... So for the next few weeks, I am going to be studying, pressing into the Word, trying to increase my prayer time, and just seeking God's covering for myself and my team as we embark on this journey together. I will also be sharing something on this blog every single day. It could be a devotional. It could be some awesome pics from our previous trips or a video.
I am definitely going to focus on the Armor of God and Spiritual Warfare a lot, as I am currently reading a book a friend gave me called Spiritual Weapons To Defeat the Enemy by Rick Renner that talks a ton about putting on the full armor of God and withstanding anything the enemy can throw at us! I know the devil wants nothing more than to see this group fail or tear it apart in ways that weaken us before the trip and leave us open to attack- but with God's help- we will fight! We will press forward and not be shaken!
God has been preparing for this trip a lot longer than we have, but the fight is not just in Mexico, it is right here too! People need Jesus just as much here and we need to be that light. We need to storm the camp of the enemy and take back those that we love! I like to consider a Mission Trip as Boot Camp for the army of God. My hope and prayer is that each person is strengthened in their faith by this trip and can come back and continue to be a light to the World and let God take control, making them more powerful than they have ever been!
Ephesians 6:11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the tactics of the Devil.
No comments:
Post a Comment