The Eternal Way

“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.  For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18).

“I need a bigger map than this,” I complained. “I need to see my whole route.”  The image on my GPS only showed the next several hundred yards in front of me.  But I wanted to see my present location in relation to where I wanted to end up.  I needed a bigger picture. 

We live in the moment, in the hours of our days, looking at our weekly schedules and our monthly calendars, planning for college educations and retirement, and think we’re wise in our future forecasts.  But life isn’t just about our plans for the here and now.  Real life is eternal.

I’m learning to evaluate every situation and circumstance for its eternal impact.  Paul said, “Our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.  So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.  For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:17-18). Though our struggles don’t feel “light and momentary,” in the reality of eternity, they are just one tick on the clock of forever. 

I’m also learning to let the words I say pass through this eternal filter.  Several years ago, God gave me a verse to motivate me toward my calling: “If you utter worthy, not worthless words, you will be my spokesman,” (Jeremiah 15:19).  I’m making an intentional effort to speak and write “worthy words” that have an eternal purpose.   I ask myself, “How will my words impact someone’s eternity?”

This eternal perspective affects my desires too.  When I start to feel the pinch of envy, I remember that Jesus is preparing an eternal place for me that rivals any earthly mansion.  I will wear a robe of righteousness that no fashion designer could ever create.  I will have a perfect body that doesn’t require hours in a gym.

When we have an eternal perspective of life we understand better the journey we are on.  Twisting roads, sharp turns, long stretches, and detours cannot stop us from reaching our final destination – heaven and the presence of God forever.  Beloved, I encourage you to widen the view before you and trust the One who is leading you.  This life with all its pain and struggle is part of the journey to your perfect eternal destiny.  Let’s travel on together with our hearts set on forever.

In The End

I wrote yesterday about God’s pre-knowledge of the ups and downs, blessings and tragedies, and Joys and heartaches in our lives. The question then comes, “Why would He allow us to go through these very hard things?”  “Why does He set us on a path when He knows it leads to hardship?” I confess, I’m far from an expert and I certainly can’t read God’s mind, but I can read His Word and glean some things that might help us to understand.

When the Israelites escaped Egypt they rejoiced, yet “on the fifteenth day of the second month [figure about 6 weeks] after they had come out of Egypt . . . the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron” (Ex 16:1,2). They missed the plentiful food of Egypt. So God sent them food – manna. It was their daily diet for forty years (v. 35). After a long steady run of the stuff, they complained, “we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!” (Num 11:6). It became a source of contention for the Hebrew people.

But God knew all this. He knew when He sent Joseph to Egypt to save his family they would become enslaved for four hundred years. He knew that Pharaoh would oppress and abuse them. He knew Moses would be born at a time when Hebrew baby boys were killed. He knew that Mama would make a basket to float him down the river just as Pharaoh’s daughter would bathe in the same river. He knew that Moses would run after he killed an Egyptian for abusing a Hebrew slave. He knew right where to send him where a bush waited. He knew Pharaoh would forbid the Hebrews to leave. He knew they would be pinned between the river and the enemy. He knew they would rebel. He knew they would wander. He knew they would make a golden calf. He knew they would get hungry. He knew they would eventually grow sick of the manna.

He knew all this. Yet He worked in it all. And Moses declared, “He gave you manna to eat in the desert . . . to humble and to test you so that in the end it might go well with you” (Deut 8:16). All of it, from Joseph to the manna was part of God’s plan. God used the manna to humble them and test them and bring them to a place of blessing. And that’s what He’s up to in your life too. In the good, the bad, and the ugly, He’s working to make you useful and usable in His kingdom. He’s working for your good. That season you’re questioning is part of His plan. And His plans never fail. Be encouraged, Beloved, God is up to something. And in the end, it will go well with you.

Hebrews: Home

My husband, son, and I lived in Florida for almost twenty years. We had jobs, bought a house, became involved in a church, made very dear friends, and my son’s entire school life was in Florida. But – no offense to Floridians in the least – we never felt like we were home. I’m an Alabama girl. Red clay runs through my veins and cotton is my favorite flower. Home is where your heart is, and my heart is in Alabama. To quote that great bespectacled poet, John Denver, “Hey, it’s good to be back home again.”

The writer of Hebrews would understand. He said, “For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come” (Heb 13:14). We’re looking for a home that will last. We won’t find it here in this world. Not even in Alabama. But that’s by God’s design because we weren’t made for this world. “Our citizenship is in heaven” (Phil 3:20). “Gentleman” Jim Reeves sang, “This world is not my home, I’m just a passing through.” We are pilgrims here on our way to our heavenly home.

Jesus is at work today, preparing a home for all who will believe and trust in Him.  He made this promise in John 14:2-3: “In my Father’s house are many rooms…I am going there to prepare a place for you, [and] I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.”  Jesus is fixing up your room in His Father’s house.  With just the right colors and furnishings, everything will be perfect for you when you arrive.  I hope he hangs His portrait on the wall.  But then again, we won’t need pictures, we will see Him face to face, in all of His glory.  Imagine, all of the great men and women of the Bible, the martyrs, missionaries, servants, those who preached to great audiences of people, and those who lovingly wiped feverish brows in the name of Jesus all together in the great halls of God’s house.  And oh, what wonderful reunions with those who made it home before us!  My mom, dad, and big brother will be there, and dear and precious friends that I miss so much.  We will all share in the joy of God’s house, for Jesus has been working all this time to make everything ready.  No wonder He “apprenticed” as a carpenter for thirty years here on earth. Is this your forever home? Do you know the Carpenter from Nazareth? What do you imagine your place will look like in heaven? Beloved, keep moving toward heaven. When you get Home you can take your boots off and rest. Forever.

This is the Way

Hubby and I went into town yesterday to run some errands. But first breakfast at our favorite breakfast spot. When we got to the 3-way intersection by the church, I expected him to take the middle road, knowing where we were headed. He went to the road on the right. I opened my mouth to say that this was the wrong way, but then I remembered that he grew up driving on these backroads and I settled back in my seat. He loves to take alternate routes. Riding with him is an adventure but we always end up in the right place.

After 400 years of enslavement, the Israelites were allowed to leave Egypt and journey to Canaan, the Promised Land. But there would be alternate routes all along the way. If you look at a map, the easiest way would be due east, hugging the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, but God didn’t lead them that was because they would have crossed through Philistine country and faced a fight they were not strong enough to handle. He said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt” (Ex 13:17). So He detoured them to the south toward the Red Sea.

Then he turned them back the way they came. I’m sure they were thinking, “God, what are you doing here? Where are you taking us?” But He said, “Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.’” Thinking he had the upper hand Pharaoh pursued them, but God divided the sea and led the people across on dry ground. Then He closed the waters up over Pharaoh and the Israelite army. And they glorified Him. (Ex 14:1-31).

Of course we know about the detour through the wilderness when the Israelites disobeyed Him, but in the end, they crossed over the Jordan (again in a miraculous way) and into the Promised Land. Even in their sin, God was working to take them where He wanted them to be. Traveling with God is always an adventure. He never directs me the way I expect. But He has never gotten me lost. Every time I think He’s given me a wrong turn it turns out to be a different path to the right place. And when I fail to listen and think I know the way, He guides me back to the place I need to be. He knows every backroad and every detour because He blazed the path long before.  Beloved, you can trust God to lead you well. Whatever path he guides you to, He will always get you Home.

Protecting the Promise

I promised this yesterday, and yesterday went sideways on me so here ‘tis. 

Abraham – originally Abram – was a regular guy living a regular life in the ancient near east when God stepped in. Promises were made for “a great nation” (Gen 12:2) and land. Promises that would change the course of world history. But first God would have to guard those promises from the man’s foolishness.

Over and over Abraham put those promises in jeopardy. He went to Egypt and claimed that his wife, Sarah was his sister (a partial truth – but still a lie). He went to Gerar and made the same statement. In both instances, his wife was taken into the harem of the Pharoah and the king (Gen 12:10-20; 20:1-18). Both times God interrupted the setup and protected Sarah – and the promise of a child – by not allowing her to be taken into the royal bed.  Abraham wasn’t the only one who acted faithlessly. Sarah, believing it was up to her to fulfill God’s promise (doesn’t that sound familiar), gave her slave-girl to Abraham to produce an heir – but not the heir of the Divine promise. Once again, God had to step in and send Hagar and Ishmael away to protect the promise.

Abraham eventually figured it out. After Sarah died he realized that it was time for his son, Isaac, to marry. But he must not marry a woman from the surrounding people – the Canaanites – a wicked nation who did not worship God. They would surely lead Isaac away from God. He sent his servant back to his own people to get a wife for his son. The servant asked, “What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land? Shall I then take your son back to the country you came from?” (Gen 24:5).  Abraham declared, “Make sure that you do not take my son back there” (v. 6). Why? The Lord had said, “To your offspring I will give this land . . .” (v. 7). The promise was tied to the land. Abraham knew if his son went back to his family the promise would be in jeopardy. This time, Abraham was protecting the promise. His son could not leave “The Promised Land.” There was too much at stake.

What does this mean for you and me today? God still makes promises and He still works to protect those promises. And so must we. Guard your steps. Guard your life. Make God’s promises the beat of your heart, Beloved. All the way to The Promised Land.

How Can I Know . . .

When God called Abram He promised him descendants and land. “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you” (Gen 12:2). When Abram settled in the land of Canaan the Lord said “Lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east and west. All the land you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. Go walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you” (Gen 13:14-17). Later the Lord spoke to him in a vision and reassured him of the promise. He told him that his offspring would be impossible to count – like the stars in the sky. And “Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness” (Gen 15:6).

Then God told him “I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it” (Gen 15: 5, 7). And what was Abram’s response?  “Oh Sovereign Lord, how can I know . . . ?” (Gen 15:8). From faith to doubt. Sound familiar? It does for me. I will believe God in the morning and be anxious by the afternoon. I can watch God work wonders on my behalf and wonder if He will come through for me in the next crisis. I have read His promises, even written them down, and forgotten them in the firey moment.

But let’s answer Abram’s question, “How can I know . . . ?” First, he was standing on the very land God had promised to give him – “this land” (v. 7). It was the same promise he had made at the beginning of Abram’s journey, “To your offspring I will give this land” (Gen 12:7-italics added). The land on which your sandals are resting, Abram. The land I had you walk through, Abram.

Secondly, because of who made the promise. The Lord, God Most High. The Creator of heaven and earth (Gen 14:22). The Sovereign Lord (Gen 15:2, 8). The One who had called him. The one he had followed all over Arabia. The same God that you can trust to keep His promises to you too. But you have one advantage that Abram didn’t. You have the cross of Jesus Christ. Because God’s ultimate promise of salvation was fulfilled there. God keeps His promises, Beloved. Every. Single. One.

Hebrews: Extraordinary Faith

God has moved and worked in my life for many years now and I don’t think He’s ever done anything “normal.” He doesn’t follow conventional wisdom, doesn’t act according to my expectations, resists my good advice, and doesn’t even obey His own laws of nature. But I’m not the first person to witness His extraordinary ways – and I doubt I will be the last. The writer of Hebrews highlighted two instances in the Scriptures.

“By faith, the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned” (Heb 11:29). The Israelites were trapped. The sea blocked their way forward and Pharaoh and his army pinned them in from behind. They faced either drowning or defeat. The Lord had But the Lord knew right where they were and exactly what was happening. And He had a plan. A strong wind blew across the sea and the waters parted. Picture old men tapping their walking sticks on the sea bed expecting mud and marveling at the dry ground beneath their feet.  Watch curious children poking their fingers into the side walls of water, as bewildered fish watch the strange creatures passing by. See Mothers and grandmothers pulling youngsters back from those walls and scooping up little ones to get quickly across. As the people stepped onto the shore and watched the sea swallow up their enemies, I’m sure they shook their heads in amazement (Exodus 14).

“By faith, the walls of Jericho fell, after the people had marched around them for seven days” (v. 30). Joshua led the people toward Jericho when the “Commander of the army of the Lord” came to him with the strangest battle plan in history. But he followed it to a T. For six days the entire nation walked silently outside the walls of the city as the priests blew the trumpets. On the seventh day, they marched again and then the command was given to SHOUT – and the walls came tumbling down (Joshua 6).

It had to take some extraordinary faith to step out onto the riverbed where the water once flowed or to walk silently around the city walls, trusting that they will fall. The same kind of faith it takes to trust God in the everyday trials and struggles of life you face today. You can have that same faith because you have the same God. Walk through Beloved. March on. Their God proved faithful. And so will yours.

Hebrews: Perseverance

I didn’t come from wealthy folks so there wasn’t any inheritance for me or my brothers. But I do have some treasures that were passed along to me like some of my dad’s military memorabilia and my most precious possession – my mom’s Bible with notes in her handwriting. I also “inherited” bags and bags of fabric, much of it leftover scraps from clothes my Mom made us when we were kids. One thing she and I have in common is our refusal to give up on half-done craft projects. Notice I didn’t say we finished them, we just tucked them away to “come back to later.” I have boxes now of hers and my own.

The Bible has a lot to say about not giving up but I don’t think that is what Scripture means. The writer of Hebrews said that Moses “persevered” in his calling to rescue the Hebrew people out of slavery (Heb 11:17).  Remember that this letter is written to Hebrew Christians who are facing extreme persecution for their faith. Every one of them knew the story of Moses and the exodus out of Egypt. They knew that Moses had repeatedly gone before Pharaoh to demand the release of the Jews and he had refused. He made ten visits to Pharaoh – each more contentious than the last. But Moses persisted. Why? Because He had God’s name and promise. God had revealed Himself to Moses as “The Lord” and promised on that very name to deliver the people out of their misery. (Ex 3:15-17). Through all of the trouble that Pharaoh caused, God’s name and promise continued to give Moses strength.

That’s what the word “persevere” means – a strong, steadfast assurance that fuels endurance. It also means a word we often steer clear of. Patience. You’ve probably been told you should never pray for patience because the way to get it is through hardships, but Moses proved that the way to patience and perseverance is “by faith” in the name and the promise of the Lord.

When God calls you to a task, that calling comes with His promise to finish the work. Paul said, “The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it” (1Thess 1:24). His calling and His promise rest on His Name. So can you, Beloved.

Hebrews: Life Lessons with Moses

I loved growing up a military brat but I secretly wished my family had been southern socialites. The schoolmates I most admired had that genteel southern way about them I longed for. I always thought my life would have been so different if I had grown up like them.

The writer of Hebrews noted that Moses had grown up in the royal palace in Egypt having been adopted by Pharaoh’s daughter (you know baby Moses in the basket floating down the Nile). He enjoyed all the benefits it offered. Wealth. Opulence. Education. Power. But he turned it all down to be obedient to the Lord and return to his Hebrew roots. The writer said, “By faith, Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time” (Heb 11:24-25).

The people of God – the Hebrews – were slaves in Egypt. Despite his Egyptian upbringing, Moses knew he was a Hebrew. His physical appearance gave him away. And no doubt, when Pharaoh’s daughter divinely chose Moses’ biological mother Jochebed to nurture him, he heard the story of his rescue out of the river. His first forty years were spent serving in the Egyptian bureaucracy. But he never forgot who he was. He made a life-altering decision to side with his people against their Egyptian taskmasters.

Some would say that Moses threw it all away but the truth is it was all preparation for God’s call. He learned skills in his Egyptian household – like leadership and diplomacy – that he could not have learned as a Hebrew slave that would benefit him as he led God’s people to freedom. I understand now that my childhood – as ugly as it was – prepared me for ministry. Abuse taught me to be compassionate and caring to hurting people. Loneliness pushed me toward books and a love for words that is reflected in what you’re reading right now. Even moving around every few years taught me how to adapt to change – a constant in my life.

Most of all, my life’s struggles make me long for the perfection of heaven. Moses understood. “He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward” (v. 26). I am too. Beloved, God never wastes the experiences of your life, even – especially – the hard things.

Hebrews: Telling Our Faith Stories

I love being a Bible student and teacher and writer. But one of my most important roles is being Joy’s Nana and teaching her stuff. We’ve spent many Saturday mornings learning how to make pankins (pancakes). Last night she learned how to spin her pink bracelet on her finger by watching me do it.  But above all, I want to teach her my story with God – and how she is part of it. I didn’t grow up around my grandmothers, so I don’t know their faith stories. But I will make sure that Joy knows mine.

Sharing faith stories was how the Hebrew people taught their children and grandchildren about God. Joseph is a good example.  The writer of Hebrews said, “By faith, Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions about his bones” (11:22). There’s a lot packed into that verse. Joseph was Abraham’s great-grandson. Abraham was already deceased when Joseph was born, but he knew his great-grandpa’s faith story and he made it part of his own.

God promised Abraham, while he was childless and a nomad, that he would have countless offspring and that they would have possession of the very land on which he stood (Genesis 15). But He also told Abraham that his descendants would be enslaved for four hundred years in a foreign land. Then He said, He would rescue them and “In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here” (Gen 15: 13-16). Abraham told Isaac who told Jacob who told Joseph. On his deathbed, Joseph told his brothers, “God will surely come to your aid and take you up out of this land to the land he promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob . . . and you must carry my bones up from this place” (Gen 50:24-25). Joseph believed in the promise that had been passed down to each generation. More to the point, Joseph believed the Promise-Maker. Four hundred and thirty years later, “Moses took the bones of Joseph with him . . .” as he exited Egypt (Exodus 13:19). Promise made. Promise believed. Promise kept.

I don’t know the God-history of my ancestors, I don’t even know much about the faith stories of my parents. But Joy will know mine. She will know that God has been faithful, good, gracious, generous, and mighty in my life. Beloved, who needs to know yours?