KEEP DOING RIGHT
The doing of right will lead you to the right destination.
The wilderness was no easy journey for the children of Israel, but it worked; their journey brought them to the Promised Land.
Deuteronomy 8:15 “Who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions, and drought, where there was no water; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint;”
Do not turn back when the road of life starts to look rough. Kadesh looked that way when twelve men went to see the land, and ten allowed their fear to discourage the people. The way was not too hard, they just did not try. Two men agreed that the Israelites should take the land.
Numbers 13:31”But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.”
vs. 32 “And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.”
vs. 33 “And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.”
Numbers 14:9 “Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not.”
Does your situation involve babies, diapers, waking up several times a night, and mixing formula? Do not give up! Keep doing right and life will settle. When we had our little ones, it was necessary to switch over to formula earlier than we would have preferred. In addition to that new obstacle, no microwave or dishwasher was available, and sterilizing bottles was simply a pain. When Josh was small, he needed to eat every two hours. Thankfully, that did not last long, but those were not easy days. We must understand that hard times do not last forever. Just keep doing right, stay in church, and walk with God; the storm of life will soon calm. New trials will come and new challenges to your faith will arise, but keep doing right and you will arrive at the place of blessing and joy as God has promised. We now have three married children; all are happy and doing great. I would be remiss if I doubted, feared, and panicked after having seen God provide for our family over and over. All the college bills were paid and all diplomas were received, and no, at the time, we did not see HOW it would happen.
When you wonder how you will ever afford another child, a house, or Christian school tuition, rest in the Lord, do right today, and believe that He is able to lead and provide. Keep doing right, and you will find a way to arrive at your desired destination.
Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”
Prices for buying a house may look scary. Folks may tell you to buy now because the prices will only get higher. Let me assure you, prices go up and down. One of our staff members was urged to buy a home when prices were high because the prices seemed to only be getting higher. They bought the home and within two years owed $100,000 more than their home was worth. Do not hurry; do what you can; do not go over your budget; wait on God to provide a way to purchase a home, and the situation will work out. One of our church families bought a home; a few years later the house market crashed. They then owed $150,000 more than their home was worth. I asked them to wait, keep paying their mortgage as they had promised to do, and trust God. Years later, they sold their home and found they had acquired an enormous amount of equity, and they were very glad for having stayed on track.
Young couples, most of us started in apartments, rented homes, or lived in a junker. Over the years, living situations really do get better. There are times when God sees His glory more clearly through our grief and we do get hurt; but even then, mercy comes, and life will fall into place.
The rule? Keep doing right and wait on God to get you where you need to be.
Pastor