Deuteronomy 1:1 - These
are the words Moses spoke to all Israel in the wilderness east of the
Jordan—that is, in the Arabah—opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel,
Laban, Hazeroth and Dizahab.
Before they crossed over to the land God had promised
them….Moses was moved to read the law God had given them at Mount Sinai. He
began with God’s command to begin their journey….then recounted all the
decisions they had made that lengthened the 11 day trek to a 38 year sojourn. Before
the children of the ones who said no to God so long ago move into the Promised Land…Moses
makes sure he retells the story to them…so they can give thanks to God for all
the mercies they had received.
What a great reminder that the past has a purpose. We should revisit it from time to time…just
to remind us of the mercies God has shown us throughout the life he gave
us. If we take a bit of time…to make a
timeline of our life….birth to present…I am sure that each mercy God has shown
to us would be evident as we list each choice we made to get us where we stand
today.
It is also a reminder not to let ourselves get stuck in the
past. Some of the events of our life….especially the tragedies… don’t always
seem merciful. If we let ourselves get caught up in the sadness that those
thoughts bring…we don’t move forward into the blessings God meant for us to
have after he allowed such sorrow in our heart. We never see the blessings that
surely come when God leads us completely though our wilderness.
King David put it this way in Psalm 30:5…” For
his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy
comes with the morning. Go may use some pretty hard things in our lives to
teach us what he knows we need to know…but as Lamentations 3:22-23 says… “The
steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an
end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
As usual…I personally needed this great reminder. If you follow my blog...you know that I did
not post for a few days…and since then my writing has been at best sporadic. I’ve
been stuck….remembering the sweetest gift God ever gave me 6 years ago on
father’s day….and how his time with me was so short. I am so glad God is
merciful…and did not allow me to stay stuck too long. He timed my summer visit
with my granddaughter at just the right time.
Father…thank you for the lessons in life that teach us the
hardest lessons. Forgive me for allowing
the sadness of my lesson to stick me in grief … separating me from the great indwelling
of knowledge …wisdom and strength that you give me each morning when I visit
with you. Thank you for sending a distraction to my grief...so that I could
concentrate more on the blessings and mercies that have come from enduring it. Thank
you for this new morning….help me to use it to move forward from my pain even
further…so you can use me to do your will. Amen.
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