Objects In The Rearview Mirror

 

Would it not be better

for us to go back to Egypt?

          Numbers 14. 3

Not trusting God 

distorts what was,

what is,

     and what is ahead.

We can go forth differently,

   secure and confident

when we follow HIm 

into His ways for us.

Even in the hard stuff,

   His steadfast love prevails.

Even when we don't understand,

  God whispers,

           Trust Me in this.

The LORD is with us.

We need not fear.

We need not waste time, energy

            and resources

  looking elsewhere.

Objects in the rearview mirror

are never as they appear.

Look to Me.

O LORD,

Forgive us for second-guessing

Your plans and directions

      and purposes.

Grant to us the courage

    to follow You,

every step, every turn,

           every day,

right into Your goodness

  and steadfast love.

Both the Foolish and the Beautiful

 

She has done 

a beautiful thing

                to Me.

       Mark 14. 8

Following God,

trusting in Him,

obeying, and serving Him

seem like the most

   foolish things

in the eyes of the world.

They comment

         what a waste of one's

  time, talent, treasure,

                  and life.

And yet, 

nothing is more honoring 

            to God Himself.

And no greater witness

  to those around us.

O LORD,

Grant to us the opportunities

   to be really foolish in our faith,

consecrating our lives

and all we do

   for Your Kingdom and glory.

May we create today

  what is beautiful to You

in whatever we do,

wherever we are,

among whomever,

  and how we do it

--out of our deep love for You.

In The Battles We Face

And when you go to war in your land

against the adversary 

            who oppresses you,

then you shall sound an alarm

         with the trumpets,

that you may be remembered

    before the LORD your God,

and you shall be saved

                   from your enemies.

                Numbers 10. 9

The adversary always promises

   shiny trophies and high scores.

But all along, aiming to take us down.

The resounding alarm is not

  to get God's attention,

                     but ours,

not to remind Him,

  but for us to remember:

God is not just with us,

but it is He who brings the victory,

most often in unexpected ways.

We all struggle with something,

  no matter how perfect

  someone's life appears.

In the battles we all face,

may we know that

  the adversary is not our friend.

Sound the alarm.

Only God saves us

  from our foes and fears,

    both real and imagined.

O LORD,

Make us aware of You

  and attentive to Your Presence.

May we hear the trumpets

  while we walk

  in the mine fields

     and enemy territory.

Help us to not just 

       remember You,

but respond to You.

Take us to another place

   even where we are,

not despite circumstances,

     but in their midst.

You do not just show up.

        You show us.

Bring Your victory

    in amazing ways.

 

Walking Us Through

 

At the command of the LORD

the people of Israel set out,

and at the command of the LORD

          they camped.

             Numbers 9. 18

We may not understand

where the LORD is directing us,

or why He has us 

           in this particular situation,

to go right now to another location,

or to stay right where we are.

But we can be attentive,

responsive and faithful

                   to Him.

When we are in His Word

   and seeking Him in prayer,

God does not just guide us.

    He walks us through.

O LORD,

Help us to trust You

wherever You lead us,

whether You desire us

    to stay and hold down the fort,

or to pull up stakes

  and follow You into

  what is unknown to us.

Above all,

we know that You are with us.

Grant to us the courage

   to pack it up

or to send down roots.

Guide us every step

   into this day.

May we be willing to walk with You

    into Your wonders.

Pour over us Your strength

   for the journey.

As If We Live In Another Kingdom

 

...to bear witness

           before them.

           Mark 13. 9

There are no random situations,

no places where God is not,

   nor that He cannot use

            for His glory there.

And when we find ourselves

in difficult circumstances,

awkward, exhausting, hurtful,

strange or alarming,

and we don't know what to do,

  above all,

  bear witness there.

Bring the name of Jesus

      every which way we can:

in actions, attitudes, words

and how we respond

   in unexpected ways,

as if we live in another kingdom

                which we do.

Nothing accidental in these details,

   but incredibly eternal.

O LORD,

You intricately engineer

      our circumstances,

even the confusing ones,

  as opportunities for Your glory.

Help us to be aware of Your presence,

to be mindful of Your walking with us,

   and be intentional in honoring You

and loving others,

        even the impossible ones.

We have no control 

                over the situation,

but we can bear witness to You

       no matter what.

And that's what matters,

                 even today,

           even in this.

On The Holy Ground Wherever We Are

 

...everyone who could come

to do the service of ministry

and the service of bearing burdens

in the tent of meeting...

           Numbers 4. 47

God never intended for us

     to just go to church,

but to be the church,

inside and outside its walls.

Everyone is assigned a ministry,

           sometimes daily,

  all that is done in serving God,

no one thing

   more sacred than another.

We are all anointed and appointed

         to serve and to worship,

on the holy ground,

               wherever we are,

It gives a whole new meaning

     to the term worship service.

O LORD,

Please make us aware of

  all the opportunities to serve You.

Help us to know that each act

     done in Your name

  is just another way of worshiping You.

Use all we do

           to bring glory to Your name.

And that is not a burden at all,

    but pure joy in loving You..

Moving That Mountain

 

Truly, I say to you,

whoever says to this mountain,

"Be taken up

   and thrown into the sea,"

and does not doubt

                   in his heart

but believes that what he says

       will come to pass,

it will be done for him.

Therefore I tell you, 

whatever you ask in prayer,

believe that you are receiving it,

          and it will be yours.

                 Mark 12. 23-24

In Hebrew literature and scripture,

moving a mountain

  was a metaphor for doing

  what was obviously impossible.

No little molehills,

   nor sand dunes,

but the big stuff in our lives

     that we all encounter.

Impossible for us is

  always right down God's alley

  and in realms of His power.

But the mountain we want to disappear

   may be exactly what God is using

   for His eternal purposes.

Sometimes God moves that

      overwhelming burden,

sometimes He removes it.

But He also may show us

   a way through, around it, 

how to dig a tunnel with a spoon,

   or scale the heights with Him.

God supplies our every need

  to handle those mountains,

     even carrying it with us.

Confidence in God's power

  always works hand in hand

  with submission to His will.

God may have planted it here

    for deeper purposes

    than we can fathom.

What is God forming in me

      through this?

What does this mountain

               make possible?

O LORD,

When we are faced with the impossible,

   You reveal Yourself

    in incredible ways.

Help us to trust You 

  with what we cannot comprehend

  and know that You are good.

Fulfill Your purposes

  even in the mysterious

 and the majestic.

Help us to ask in prayer.

Help us to trust You in prayer.

Surprise us by Your power,

   even in this.