February 25th, 2008 by Tim Moore

I recently wrote about how I was enjoying reading the book of Leviticus.  Hard to believe, but it’s true.

As I read the first 9 chapters all I could do was wonder why God would impose such crazy rituals for the priests when it came to offering sacrifices.  I mean not only did they have to kill animals in a particular way, but they had to sprinkle the blood against all four sides of the altar and then arrange certain parts of the animal to be burned while other parts were washed.  Different types of sacrifices called for different rituals.  It seems crazy.

It’s hard to make sense of it all.  God gave very, very specific instructions in exactly how to offer these sacrifices.  It’s almost as if how they offered them was just as important as offering them in the first place.  But then as I read the first 3 verses of chapter 10, God spoke something to me.

In the first few verses of chapter 10 we find out that two of Aaron’s son were killed by God because they offered incense to God in the wrong way.  I find it amazing that because they didn’t do it right, they were killed.  It doesn’t say that they were doing evil, but just not doing it right.  Of course, maybe it was the heart behind how they offered it, but we aren’t given that information.

Then it reads something profound in Leviticus 10:3

Moses then said to Aaron, “This is what the LORD spoke of when he said:
“‘Among those who approach me
I will show myself holy;
in the sight of all the people
I will be honored.’ ”

As I read this I realized there was a difference between approaching God and experiencing God from a distance.  When we gather corporately to worship God, we can sense his presence and experience God from a distance.  This is what the people of Israel experienced.  When God called Moses up to the top of a mountain to be with him, God instructed him to set boundaries around the mountain so that none of the people would dare approach or else!

Read what God said to Moses in Exodus 19:10-12
And the LORD said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow. Have them wash their clothes and be ready by the third day, because on that day the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. Put limits for the people around the mountain and tell them, ‘Be careful that you do not go up the mountain or touch the foot of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death.

Then in the “sight of all the people” God descended on the mountain top in a dense cloud. God was honored among all the people when they saw His presence with Moses.  But there is a big difference between experiencing God from a distance and God show himself holy to us directly.  For those who really want to approach God, or to draw close to him, we must realize that we will experience a different side of God.  We experience the holy side of God.  It’s this aspect of God which is amazing and yet also terrifying.  It might cause us to respond the way Aaron responded when Moses said this to him.

“Aaron remained silent.”

February 24th, 2008 by Tim Moore

For the past few years I have tried to read through the Bible each year. I use a One Year Bible that breaks up the reading to a few chapters of the Old Testament, a little bit of the New Testament and a short reading of Psalms and Proverbs each day. It helps an ADD person like myself keep focused on the daily reading.

Each year, different books in the Bible seem to come alive to me. Last year it was the book of Job. Normally, it kind of gets a little dull during the diatribes of Job and his friends. But for some reason, I was intrigued by it and God spoke through it to me.

This year so far…it is the book of Leviticus. I must admit Leviticus is one of the toughest books to read straight through. Anyone who has attempted this can attest. But this year, some new things have emerged as I have been reading it. This must be what the writer of Hebrews means in Chapter 4 verse 12 which says “the word of God is living and active”.

As you attempt to read your Bible regularly and systematically, remember that even when something you read doesn’t inspire you, just keep at it. Every time we approach the Bible, we have to realize that it doesn’t change, but we have. Sometimes we come more receptive to hearing from God.

So even though it might seem drudgery at times…press through and know that next time it might be amazing.

February 22nd, 2008 by Tim Moore

Just this past Sunday, I revealed some exciting news to our church.  We have a contract on 21 acres of land and a building for our church.  We have rented for nearly 5 years and finally we are going to have a new home.  This is something that many of us have been praying for since we began.

The story of how we landed this contract is a God thing.  The old church building on this property has been empty for almost as long as we’ve been a church.  It’s almost as if God was saving this place for us.  The building on the property will allow us to grow and the 21 acres is prime for a larger church building…some day.

God helped us reach an agreement that is a good deal…now all we need is God to do a miracle for us financially.  We need to raise a lot of money in the next few months.  That might seem frightening to many, but for some reason I believe God is going to do it.  I guess you could say that I have faith that God is big enough to handle what seems too big for us to handle.  I am looking forward to seeing what God is going to do in the coming months.

Believe with me.

February 7th, 2008 by Tim Moore

Do you ever feel like life is moving at warp speed?  There are times when we feel like everything is happening at once and it can begin to feel overwhelming.  Right now is one of those times for me.  Work is really crazy right now.  I feel like I have way too much to do and not enough time to get it done right.  On top of that, we made an improptu decision to finish a big portion of our basement.  It isn’t the best time to take on a big house project but circumstances kind of dictated the decision.

In far too many areas of our life, we can allow circumstances can dictate what we do.  Every week I deal in deadlines.  Sometimes pressures can mount to where we feel like we have to do something…even if we are not prepared.  It’s at those moments that I like to stop and really look at what is driving me.  It’s then that we should ask ourselves, “Am I letting other people and their desires drive my life?”  People will take as much as you give them.  At this point, we end up losing our focus and our priorities get out of whack.

When you feel overwhelmed, take a moment to see what’s on your plate.  Then place a priority next to the things that matter most.  Is God getting his time with you each day or has other demands eaten this time?  Is your family seeing enough of you?  When life is moving at warp speed, that is when we most often need to secure our quiet time with God and rest with our family.

February 4th, 2008 by Tim Moore

Well, this is my first blog on timmooreonline.com.  I felt compelled to do this because I am beginning to realize that communication is the key to finding success in almost every area of our lives.  Good communication is necessary for a healthy marriage, for a healthy working environment and for a healthy spiritual life.  And yet a lack of communication is the one thing that most people complain about when they think of leadership.

I was reading something today that kicked all this off.  I was reading someone else’s blog and said (and I paraphrase), “The reason people question decisions made by leaders is because they don’t understand why the decisions are being made.”  And I realized that if I want to be a good leader, I must get better at communicating who I am and why I make certain decisions.  That doesn’t just come from saying, “Because I want it this way”, it comes from people understanding who I am and what I believe.

And that is the Starting Point for this blog.  We all have to start somewhere.