Nowhere To Be Found.

I have been involved with several different projects over my years of being with churches, projects and christian groups. And, within the context of my faith/life, in all these ventures I only ever tried to be of some use to God and His people along the way. Learning about Him and His church was all I ever wanted. It was never done for money, or gain, or privilege. And the only thing I ever hoped to gain from it all was a sense that I was being useful to God.

A lot of the projects went well for their time. And I really enjoyed them. But there came a time when I began to wonder what my purpose was in being there anymore. The initial buzz just didn’t seem to be as strong as it was and things started feeling as if I was getting in people’s way. So, I moved along and found another little project to get involved in. And, again, it ran its course and my time in that project came to an end and I moved on again.

So, the projects all ended. And, if I was being honest with myself, I felt agrieved in their endings for I had always taken it personally and felt that I had done something wrong.

Thankfully, I have now learned that the reality was, and is, very different from that. But sadly too, it took me far too long to learn that this isn’t the way that God works with us.

You see….

When the Children of Israel were moving through the wilderness there was a large scale operation involved in dismantling the Tabernacle, carrying it on to the next place and rebuilding it again. The only direction and guidance that the priests had was from the movements of God dwelling in the fiery pillar and cloud.

The cloud would lift itself, the maneouvers would begin and they all moved along to a different location. Then the Holy Cloud would settle in a location and the tabernacle would be rebuilt again. This would carry on this way for the whole forty years.

Deuteronomy Ch8 (2) You shall remember all the way which the Lord your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, that He might humble you, testing you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.

However, once the tabernacle had been rebuilt again the Holy Cloud would descent down back into the inner tent – The Holy of Holies – and no one would be allowed to enter into it until the time came for everything to be moved along again. The only exception was a specific ceremony in which the High Priest, and him only, was allowed to enter into the Holy of Holies once a year.

Hebrews Ch9 (6) Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God. (7) But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people:

My mistake was in thinking that I would find God in the things I got involved in. The truth is that God was always a few steps ahead of me, leading me into things that I needed to be taken to. And that is the way God works with us.

Just as the Children of Israel were led through the desert.

And just as David the Psalmist said in Psalm 23…

(2) He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. (3) He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

And then, one day, I read an article which said that it was never God's intention to meet me there at that point. What, in fact, God was doing was leading me. When I had reached a point it seemed to me that God was preparing away for my next part of the journey. He was leading the way so that I would follow Him.

And now that I have come to realise this, things seem a lot more clearer. Hindsight is always 20/20.

I'm glad (and I’m hoping) that I don’t have any more "Egyptian captivities" in my life to look back on. And I'm glad (and I hope also  too) that my "Sinai Wilderness" experience is over. I'm glad too, that there are no more "Babylonian exiles" in my life to hanker over. All that I have remaining is the desire to help and comfort others as they go through their own “Egypts” and “Sinai’s”, and “Babylons”. And to let them know that through it all God is still in control – Every step of the way.

Meanwhile, we all have the rebuilding of our own "New Tabernacles" to look forward to. Day by day, step by step, project by project. God will lead us in the way of this journey.

And that, dear friends, will bring us more blessings than we ever dreamed of….

1st Corinthians Ch2 (9) But as it is written: "eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which god has prepared for those who love him."

I Want To Walk With Jesus Christ,
All The Days I Live Of This Life On Earth;
To Give To Him Complete Control
Of Body And Of Soul.

Follow Him, Follow Him,
Yield Your Life To Him –
He Has Conquered Death,
He Is King Of Kings;
Accept The Joy Which He Gives To Those
Who Yield Their Lives To Him.

Email - TheseLivelyOracles@hotmail.com
Internet - www.theselivelyoracles.co.uk
Facebook - These Lively Oracles
Twitter(X) - @LivelyOracles58

 

Location: 1 A1, Belfast BT1 5YE, UK

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