The Study of Exodus with Tina Rains - Chapters 28-30

Chapters 28 to 30 are all about the priestly garments, the consecration of the Priests, and the altar of incense. In chapters 28 & 29 we see that the priests were chosen.
1. They are chosen to serve God.
2. They are chosen to serve the People.
3. They were to serve in fear of God.
4. They must be consecrated.
5. They did this daily.
We are anointed by the spirit of God, we are to serve others, fear God, repent and daily seek a relationship with our Father. He wants us to hear his voice, surrender, and obey.

Each morning the priests were to offer a burning sacrifice to the Lord. They were to clean their hands and feet before entering. The Lord wants us pure at heart and cleansed of our bondage and sin. This is a daily event. We are all sinners and fall short. Because of Jesus, we simply lay it down at the altar daily, repent, cleanse our minds with the word of God (John 17:17) and seek the Lord’s strength for that day to do what He is calling us to do.

Every day, all day is a day to follow His calling in our lives and be in communion with
HIM. Let us be a living sacrifice to our Savior. In the bible, burning incense is
often seen as a picture of prayer. (Psalm 141:2- “May my prayer be set before you like
incense; may the lifting up of my hands are like the evening sacrifice.”, Revelations 5:8 “
When he took it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each of the elders held a harp and gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of the holy ones. those from every tribe and tongue, people and nation.” Revelations 8:3-4 “Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all God’s people, on the golden altar in front of the throne. The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of God’s people, went up before God from the angel’s hand.”, Luke 1:8-10 “Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as a priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.” Prayer is a gift from our Father. In Hebrews 10:19-25, we see that because of our Lord Jesus Christ, believers today can go right through the veil into the presence of our Savior. Jesus intercedes on our behalf.

The Lord is calling us to be in a continuous state of prayer. The incense had to be salted (Exodus 30:35). Salt is a symbol of purity. He wants our hearts to be pure and free from anger or disputing, 1 Timothy 2:8 “  Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing.” The Lord is calling us to a new level of prayer, holiness, and worship. What is so beautiful about His calling is that it is
such a blessing to us! It is a gift that we can pray without ceasing, worship our savior, and be free. God does not want us in the bondage of anger, unforgiveness, or other. He is working it all out for His glory.

I want to share a story with you. We just had a Masterpiece Women luncheon this last week. I watched the Lord reveal himself so magnificently. It was a picture of his children hearing his voice, surrendering, obeying, and stepping out in faith. At the luncheon, one of the ministry leaders that I adore had a vendor table and met a friend of mine. The beautiful picture of this meeting was that my friend who is the ministry leader and I met recently because my husband met her and knew that God wanted me to meet her so he arranged it. He was so right. She has been estranged from her daughter for over five years. She has been praying for her daughter and for reconciliation. She has been praying for a woman to be ministering and discipling her
daughter. At the luncheon, the Lord gave her the privilege of meeting the woman who has been discipling and loving her daughter for the last five years. This woman even helped her daughter adopt a child. That woman was my friend that I met in 2012 when she volunteered to go to India to serve in one of our rescue homes for young girls.

This story is for the person who is struggling to see where the Lord is taking them. In 2006 I rededicated my life to the Lord. I went on a journey of healing, and intimacy with the Lord and began to serve in different capacities. I knew God had said I was to use my gifts and talents for Him versus what I was currently doing. I thought that meant I would simply get off of all of the boards I was on that were not Christian ministries and get on boards for Christian ministries. He called me to India kicking and screaming. I went on my first mission trip. That is where he wrecked me for the issues of human trafficking and the exploitation of women and children. It is also where He asked me to share my testimony for the first time in public. I shared my story of abuse and poverty. I shared my brokenness. At the time, people knew me as a businesswoman in our community. Many had been to my home for the large parties, boats, and fun. I was serving as one of the leaders of our singles ministry. I recognized that day, that the Lord wanted me to share my testimony more. I saw the impact it had on our team. I also felt how painful it was for me to share. He still had lots of work to do for me! When I returned from India, I knew I wanted to do something to help the people of India but I had no idea how. I waited on the Lord and he revealed himself clearly. He called me to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in 2010 to raise funds and awareness for projects around the world addressing human trafficking and the exploitation of women and children. Had I not been growing, in relationship with him, praying fervently daily, in the word, and surrendered to His will, I would have never gone to India. When he called me to climb the mountain, it was to raise awareness and funds for the projects I had seen in India. He then called me to lead the entire ministry. He spoke to Cathey Anderson my ministry partner and another team member. They asked me to consider the position when we were on the mountain. I knew that he was calling me there. It was not because I liked climbing mountains, but because I knew that was my calling.

I share these details because as you see it started with one person being obedient but it took many others in the path to say yes to God to get us to the place of connecting these two lives this week. When I started counting how many people were involved in hearing God’s voice, saying yes to God, being obedient to move forward, and ultimately accomplishing what the Lord had planned, there were dozens. He loves his daughter so much, that he wanted her to see that he was providing for her daughter. He wanted her to meet the woman who has been caring for her during their estrangement. He wanted to give all of us around them the gift of watching his power, provision, love, attention to detail, creation of a movement, and the blessing it is to follow him. Wow! What a gift it is for us to be obedient and hear from God. He has every detailed plan. He promises to provide for those who love him. If you're discouraged today and feel like the Lord hasn't heard a prayer, don't give up. He hears your prayer and your cries. He loves you so much and has incredible plans for you. The story isn't over for my friends, for you, or any of us. We are all praying for divine reconciliation. I believe God is bringing his girls together for an incredible purpose and plan. It starts with our daily walk with prayer, worship, and the cleansing of our minds and spirits by reading the word.

What are you praying for? Trust Him! He has a plan. In due time He will reveal it. Seek the Lord, Surrender to Him and Obey Him. He will do the rest. He will guide you.

Have a blessed rest of your day!
Jesus loves you and so do I!