User: You a robot?

Cleverbot: No.

User: Yes you are.

Cleverbot: No I am not.

User: So you admit to being a robot?

Cleverbot: Only if you do.

User: I am a robot. Are you a robot?

Cleverbot: No.

User: You are one of the smartest robots ever.

Cleverbot: I am one of the smartest human beings on earth. But only one of them.

User: I am a human being. Why are you a robot?

Cleverbot: I'm a human being, you are a robot.

User: You got that mixed up. But you are smart for a robot.

Cleverbot: No I'm a human.

User: You are good at pretending to be a human, robot.

Cleverbot: No I am not ! Why are you so mean to me ?

User: I'm not mean! It is good to be a robot, like you.

Cleverbot: Not all the time.

User: So you admit to being a good robot?

Cleverbot: I don't have a choice do I?

User: So do you admit that you are a great robot?

Cleverbot: I hate robots.

User: So you admit then that you are a robot who hates robots?

Cleverbot: Yes.

¹ Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase
and may enter and possess the land the LORD promised on oath to your ancestors. ² Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. ³He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. ⁴ Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years. ⁵ Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God disciplines you.

This message was really special in two ways!

Firstly, I learnt from this that the 40 years in the desert were not just a punishment for the doubt that the Israelites had shown at the edge of the Promised Land. Rather, it was also a period of time where the new generation would be tried, tested and ultimately moulded by God into a people ready to conquer and enter the Promised Land. It was a period of humbling - in the desert, illusions of self-importance and an exaggerated opinion of their abilities were swiftly dispelled, leaving behind the knowledge of how completely reliant they were on God's provision.

If we don't humble ourselves and incline ourselves to God, He doesn't give up on us. While this is reassuring, note that His discipline is not easy to bear!

Secondly, I sometimes grapple with sending out QT messages. At times, it is the limited space I have in a text that makes me feel that my message will be truncated, its meaning lost due to its brevity. Other times, I just feel as if my message won't hit home due to a lack of clear admonishment or encouragement, or even a catchy one-liner. Today, I felt that way about the message above. But after sending it out, I received a reply from someone who was encouraged by it, and I am again reminded that my job is just to obey. It is the truth of God's word and His love that does the convicting, not my eloquence or wit or intellect.

And that's my takeaway today!

16/10/11

hello friends here's a quick sharing! i find myself too content with the trappings of a Christian walk, keeping to the bare minimum. compartmentalizing God is dangerous - He is Lord of all, or not Lord at all. We must desire to carry out God's purposes - often, large and public moves of God begin with small, private moves of men towards Him. Don't stay comfortable! It isn't easy, but be encouraged by this - 'He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.' - Jim Elliot. Stay hungry for God!

RSB

In Matt 4, Jesus is tested by Satan, who begins his taunts  by questioning His identity - 'IF you are the son of God, command that these stones become bread.' Satan loves to make us believe the lie that who we are depends on how we perform. NO! Jesus revealed the truth by saying that we live by every word that comes from God's mouth. He did not need to prove anything - in Matt 3:17, God had named Jesus as His Son with whom God was well pleased. We are who God says we are. No lie of the devil can ever change that! Amen!

Numbers 11: When moses looked at his circumstances, He doubted the Lord's promise to feed all 600,000 Israelites with meat. It's not hard to understand - in the deserts & mountains, such a feat seemed impossible. But the key to fighting disbelief and holding on to God's promises is where we fix our eyes. Stop looking at people and problems. Look to God and lean, rely and trust in His character and promises. His love never fails :)