The Way Ahead
Opening Prayer
Father, You are my hope and joy. Give me a vision of Your truth and an assurance of Your love.
Read Exodus 23:20-33
[20]
Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
At the crossroads of life make sure that you look to the Lord as well as at the various options. God still can say to you, “This is the way; walk in it” (Isa. 30:21).
Think Further
If only they had listened and believed. This extraordinary passage details the Lord’s strategy for the next stage and is filled with promise of ultimate success. God is not sending them ahead on their own. He will lead the way through his angel–but they must follow. Into each sentence of hope there is a reciprocal requirement to trust and obey. Sadly, when the moment came, the nerve of Israel failed. They preferred to trust the evidence of their own eyes rather than the promises of God. They saw the size of their enemy and forgot the greatness of God. Their mistake has been replicated down through the generations. We can sing God’s promises to one another and preach them boldly, even memorize them, but when it comes to trusting him, our nerve fails and we falter.
The Lord promises a safe passage to the land and then a steady conquest of its inhabitants. However, the people take their eyes off the Lord. They prefer to spread their risk, by having trust both in the Lord and in the local deities. In fact they compromise their allegiance and the vision becomes dulled. They lose heart when the battles are prolonged, and end up with fatal compromises. So they sow the seed of their own ultimate ejection from the land.
For the church, the risen Lord has promised to go ahead, but we hold back. He has promised us victory over the powers and authorities, but we try and play it both ways. We want instant success and are not prepared for the long haul. And so, in the end, we settle for mediocrity, when the Lord wants us to be a clear testimony to his power and might. Like the Israelites, we too often end up snared in a trap that we walked into with our eyes wide open.
Apply
“You cannot paddle a canoe with one foot on the bank” (Zambian proverb). Are you facing any crossroads at this time? Do you have “one foot on the bank” that is keeping you from moving forward? Claim the promise of Isaiah 30:21.
Closing prayer
Lord, forgive me for times of disobedience. I know I have resisted Your clear guidance. Show me the way, and give me strength to put both feet in the canoe and paddle vigorously.
Click here to sign up to receive the EXTRAs via email each quarter.
© 2024 Scripture Union U.S.A. All rights reserved. Reproduction of the whole or any part of the contents without written permission is prohibited.
Encounter with God is published in the USA under license from Scripture Union England and Wales, Trinity House, Opal Court, Opal Drive, Fox Milne, Milton Keynes, MK15 0DF.