Embracing Joy

Genesis 7: 16-20 and 24 -  And they that entered, male and female of all flesh, went in as God had commanded him; and the LORD shut him in.  The flood continued forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bore up the ark, and it rose high above the earth.  The waters prevailed and increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark floated on the face of the waters.  And the waters prevailed so mightily upon the earth that all the high mountains under the whole heaven were covered, the waters prevailed above the mountains, covering them fifteen cubits deep. …..  And the waters prevailed upon the earth a hundred and fifty days.

My math skills are not that good…but I can add 40 and 150 to get 190. And I can divide the average number of days in a month….30…and see that Noah was shut up in this boat for around 6 months …and this is not the end of the story. I peeked in chapter 8 and he has to stay about another 6 months while God dries up the land. It started me thinking about just how God managed to have that many animals and Noah’s family cohabitate….without any incident of death or injury. Some articles I read said there could have been up to 45,000 animals on that boat. Noah was not just a man of faith… working 120 years to build the ark…he had to have great patience to have lived on the ark for about a year…with 45,000 animals and his large family!

Think of the 24/7 care those animals had to have to survive a year … in a pen…in the stagnant air of the ark…probably no way to exercise. Think of the smell…most animals have a pungent odor…and the waste products that are created don’t smell too good either. Maybe God somehow masked the unpleasant parts of caring for them…had some of them sleep most of the trip…or maybe the experience was horrible…Noah’s family constantly complaining.  Maybe the time passed quickly for Noah’s family as they busied themselves with the care of all those creatures. Maybe the children took them from their pens and rode them around the ark…and Noah’s wife fussed at them like most mom’s do when we do things that might be dangerous or told them to stop riding the lions and wash up because dinner was ready.

For me once again…as I read God’s word …it convicted me.  It reminded me of my lack of faith...and inability to wait on him for answers to my prayers are brought to my attention. I mean…I have to be honest here…..some days it is just easy to do what I have to do…maybe God masks the bad parts of the task somehow like he must have for Noah…to help him complete the job he had been given to do. Some days …most…which is why I felt convicted….I read my bible with distraction number 1,289 playing over in my head…and wake with distraction 1,298…trying to prevent me from sitting down to process and apply what I read. I need to be a little more like I imagine Noah was…I bet he laughed and joined in the merriment of the children riding the hippos….maybe he even hopped on a turtle and shouted…lets race! I bet Noah embraced his job and saw the good in it…and the thought of his part in saving all those creatures built a bond with them that no human will ever have again.  I bet his love for God was transferred to the care of his family and animals…and he enjoyed the year….maybe even was sad as he saw it come to an end.Maybe that is the answer to how to have more faith and patience…when we stop looking at the unpleasant parts of the job….and focus on the good…we can do most anything.

Father…I thank you this morning for reminding me that I need to be more like Noah. Help me to see how you have masked the bad…cause things can always be worse than they seem.  Help me to embrace the purpose of my task and seek the joy of the task.  Forgive me father for allowing Satan to trick me into ever thinking that whining and complaining and not understanding why I have to wait is okay. Give me a new strength this morning and plant it firmly in my heart as this summer of rest comes to a close.  I thank you for my job…and the prospect of all the new children you will place in my life this fall.  Give me clear direction and show me how to squeeze so much joy from my job that no words of complaint come out of my mouth this year! Amen.