2009 – Day 85.Mar. 27 – The Wilderness Cycle

2009 – Day 85.Mar. 27 – The Wilderness Cycle

Passage of the Day: Exodus 17: 1 – 16 … Exodus 17, linked for your study …

My Journal for Today: As I read the first portion of today’s highlight passage (Versus 1 – 7 of Exod. 17) I couldn’t help but reflect on the modern definition of “insanity;” and that is, “Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” And Moses must of felt “insane” with frustration at times at times (see today's passage, v. 2) with the Hebrews wandering in the wilderness desert , … headed toward the land of Canaan, promised to Abraham; but with these people grumbling about God’s provision at every turn.

Swindoll points out that the lesson here is that our conversion and commitment to the Lord is either a dramatic thing, like the crossing of the Red Sea for the Hebrew people; … or it may be so far in our past that we have a tendency to forget its impact. Either way, in the here and now, especially when those circumstances are testing or trials and tribulations, we humans, even those who declare our allegiance to God, will have a tendency to question God or to remember only our immediate desires in the face of privation. Swindoll is right; … for some, the wilderness may be our children; … for others it may be our marriage or job relationships; … for yet others, it may be financial difficulties; … or in the case of many whom God has led me toward in ministry, it may be sexual brokenness.

But whatever our wilderness experience as God leads us through our deserts of life, we need to learn the lesson of Chuck Swindoll’s high school history teacher, Mrs. Allen, who used to say to her students, “There are two things you can do with history; you can ignore it, or you can learn from it.” That’s wise counsel, Mrs. Allen.

God’s children in the desert were not very good learners; and I’m afraid neither are most of us. We don’t remember the lessons from our past; and we live in the here and now, rather than trusting God for what He’s led us to or through from our past. Swindoll advises, “You have never lived the seven days in front of you, and you will never live them again.” We need to live the next seven days remembering the God ordained lessons from the past; but we need to live those days, trusting God that He has already gone ahead of us to set out our future [see Deut. 31: 8]. In my devotionals over the past years, I’ve repeatedly been asked, or I’ve asked in my journals, “Do we really believe the truth that God has given us in Romans 8: 28, or do we choose to ignore it as truth?”

If you’ve been a Christian for any period of time, you should know by now the truths of Romans 8: 28 or Hebrews 13: 5 or from the OT in Isaiah 41: 10 (I hope you have those verses memorized!). We either know them or we don’t. We believe them or we don’t; and we will live them, … or we won’t!

What about it fellow warrior; are we learning from our past; and are we leaving our future entrusted COMPLETELY to God? Do we stand on the truth of 1st Cor. 10: 13? I’m going to leave you to dig that passage out if you don’t know it in your heart. Meditate on it as absolute truth from God; and then join me in a covenant to learn from our past and to move forward as we’re exhorted in Phil. 3: 13 – 14 [link provided ], looking ahead for the prize God has in front of us.

My Prayer for Today: Lord, help me to remember the past but to live my future following Your path which leads to Your prize. Amen