In Exodus 14 we have a wonderful picture of the Israelites being frustrated with Moses for leading them out of slavery. That's right, they were upset about being led out of slavery. They are about to go on a long journey of wandering through the desert until they reach their destination of the Promised Land. I am still amazed at how this group of people had God as their leader in very real ways and yet they still seem to question God and rebel.
In this chapter they have God leading them as a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. Not something you see everyday and yet the Israelites still complain about God's guidance. When we keep reading this story (which we will do over the next few Sundays) we see many tangible ways God is present with these people and yet they still wander.
In our office this past week we have been wandering through the world of technology. We have a new computer for our administrative assistant because her old one was slow and just would not work some days. The new one is equipped with Windows Vista and all the current software that we are learning to understand. Meanwhile, my monitor literally burned out. We have had some troubles networking the computers together along with the copy machine, so it has been a fun time. Thankfully Jason has been helping us get this done and everything seems to be up are running now. But we were laughing about wandering through this stuff as we figured out where everything needs to go.
When it comes to life I am glad to know I am not the only one who misses God's guiding light. If the Israelites can wander with God right there then I don't feel as bad about asking God questions and wondering where exactly he is leading me. If the Israelites were perfect in their following God then I would be much more frustrated with myself. Thankfully the Bible shows us pictures of real people as they lived in the real world where struggles and wandering happens.
But we also can see what God can do when we are willing to follow his guidance as best we can. We see the blessings of people like Moses who have faith God will lead them even through the Red Sea. So we strive for that kind of faith as we wander.
MISSION: Where are you wandering? Focus your prayer life this week on a specific area of your life that you feel you are wandering through. Ask God for clear guidance.
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My attempt to connect each day with God and his people.
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About Me
- Pastor James
- I am married to the beautiful and talented Helen. We have two wonderful children that keep us on our toes. Together we pastor St. Paul's UMC in Williamsburg, Iowa, a congregation that is growing and following God's great adventure.
2 comments:
Great analogy with the technology maze. It can certainly feel as if you are wandering in a strange land trying to get reconnected. Also, John and I were talking about Abraham and I reminded him that there was a National Geographic article on that several years ago. Believe it or not, I found it in our maze of castoff literature in our basement and we are both going to reread it. If you want to read it too, let me know.
It definitely has been tough the last week or two. Our email being down more than up has been frustrating to say the least. We are blessed though to have Jason to help us get everything in order.
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