Sunday, August 2, 2015

Power Of The Journey


Key Scripture:  Go in and possess the land." Joshua 1:9
Power Point:
     As a child, I always loved it when we went on a trip somewhere.  My family took very few vacations so when we had the privilege of traveling it was a very big deal. Mom would pack the bags and dad would pack the car and off we would go.  It was fun at the start because everything was new and decidedly different from our normal routine.   Usually though, by the time we had experienced all the "different' we were glad to go home again-back to our own beds and our own comfortable routines where nothing seemed out of the ordinary and you knew what to expect.
      In our spiritual lives we are also on a journey to "somewhere".  God has it all planned out for us and at the beginning we are usually excited.  We've packed up all our promises and good intentions and off we go.  Then things begin to happen that aren't "normal”, or "comfortable".  You’re required to walk where you can't see the next step clearly.  The terrain may be difficult to negotiate. You may stumble and fall. You may find yourself in totally unexpected and frightening places without any way out but God. You gulp and say, "Oh my! I've made a wrong turn.  I must have missed God!"  That is when you have to sit down and remind yourself that you are on a journey with Him and He's in this thing WITH you. You have to stay close to Him so that you know where to put your foot next. You have to know that even though this doesn't look, taste, touch, smell like, or sound like a good place to be, God is definitely working it out to be a good thing for you.
     Beloved, it is the Journey that is key to Him.  He is so intent on setting us free from the barriers of our faith, of teaching us how to respond to what is happening in our lives that
sometimes it seems He has forgotten His promises.  And yet, He is on a journey to make us like Jesus.  He is on a journey to free us of the lies of lack so that we can live in abundance in every area of our lives; abundance of peace, abundance of Joy and the abundance of knowing and understanding His faithfulness to us.  That's why Jesus came, and that's what God intends to do. 
     Unfortunately the journey may look too difficult from our point of view.  Our feet get tired. Our hearts get tired.  Our spirits begin to flag; in fact we often want to wave the flag of surrender!  Instead of responding with joy, we respond with fear. Instead of responding with faith we respond with doubt and anxiety-and hopelessness.
     If you find yourself on that part of your journey with Him today it's time to take a rest stop and unpack those promises. They are His gifts to us wrapped in the goodness of His nature.  It's time to remember that He is deliberately moving you into position to enjoy the rest of your journey. This is the time when you make sure that your thoughts are captivated by the unlimited potential of His presence with you.  This is the time when praise and thanksgiving are the first and last things out of your mouth.  This is the time when you persevere even though the giants seem very large and numerous. 
     This is where you get to choose to trust Him to bring you through and bring you out.  He's promised to finish your journey with a flourish.  He's promised to complete every single thing that concerns you and is concerning you right now. 
  The faith life is like a giant heavenly chess game. God has already made the first move and now it’s your turn. The moment you take your first move and step out in faith, He makes HIS move. And then it’s YOUR turn. And then it’s HIS turn.  And then...
     So Beloved, is it your move?

Power Thought:
When we move in faith, in response to Who God is, God moves in response to that leap of faith to bless us. 
If we don't make the next move, He has nothing to respond to.       















Copyright © 2015, Suzanne Roberts, Unpublished Work

No comments:

Post a Comment