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They shall make an ark of acacia wood. Its length shall be two and a half cubits, its width a cubit and a half, and a cubit and a half its height. You shall overlay it with pure gold. You shall overlay it inside and outside, and you shall make a gold molding around it. Exodus 25:10-11 WEB.

The Ark of the Covenant was about the size of a small seaman's chest, built from acacia wood and overlaid with pure gold. A cubit, in scripture, is the length of your forearm, about 18 inches. So the Ark would have measured about 45 inches long, 27 inches wide, and 27 inches tall.

Stored inside the Ark were the ten commandments, written on tablets of stone, along with a few other priceless treasures, like Arron's staff that had budded almond blossoms. And a golden pot of the manna the Israelites ate in the wilderness (Hebrews 9:4). The Ark was a sacred treasure chest.

The Ark was made from natural wood cut from trees that grew from the earth. Men are often compared to trees in scripture (Psalms 1:3, 37:35, 92:12, Song 7:7, Jeremiah 17:8, Mark 8:4 ). It was then overlaid in pure gold, which in scripture typifies God's divine nature.

Gold is an element that didn't derive from anything else, unlike diamonds created from different materials under immense pressure and temperature over time. Gold, in its pure form, existed from the beginning of time. And there will be streets of pure gold in heaven (Revelation 21:21).

So when examining the Ark, we find something made of everyday materials overlaid with something rare, something eternal. The common overlaid with the divine, then filled with precious treasure. Paul wrote that "we have this treasure in earthen vessels" (2 Corinthians 4:7). Meaning the treasure is stored inside us.

We sang a song in church that was "More of Jesus. Less of Me." While this is a nice religious phrase, and I even like the music, it's not what God really wants. It would be better written as "More like Jesus." For God already had the world without you in it. Then He added you to it to make it a better place.

You were no accident, and neither was I. We are here because God chose us to be for such a time as this. If the Lord wanted less of you, He is quite capable of making that happen. Every breath you take is an assurance that you are still supposed to be here.

What we need is all of us, covered by all of Him and filled with His Holy Spirit. Just as the Ark of the Covenant was made of wood, then covered in pure gold. The natural is covered by the divine, filled with His presence. Filled with His word. The best people that I know are people who were just themselves while walking with Jesus. They never became "religious" but just loved God.

Today, you are God's treasure chest. God wants to cover you with His likeness, put His word inside of you, and fill you with His Holy Spirit. They say that some people bring out the best in you. Jesus will bring out the best in all of us.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I thank You for making a place for me. Mold me into who I should be, and help me fulfill my purpose here. Please fill me with Your word and Your Spirit. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!

Note: Today is Thankful Thursday at the Ministry Events group! This event gives us an opportunity encourage each other by posting thoughts, moments, and prayers of gratitude for Him, His creation and all that He does in our lives. All our welcome! To join, just click on the group name and then the join link on the page that will follow. As always, if you have a prayer need, we are here for you! We and the prayer team are ready to lift you up at our private prayer page: RHM Prayer Network.