Route 66: Day 58-59; Deuteronomy 1-4

Previously on Israelites in the Wilderness...The book opens reminding us of what has transpired over the past forty years and adding a few new details that give our story some depth. Even though Moses is thought to be the writer of all five books at the beginning of the Bible, as we pass through each individual account of the Israelites he seems to have just giving just a little more explanation about the events.

For instance when Moses indicates he pleaded with God saying, “Sovereign LORD, you have begun to show to your servant your greatness and your strong hand. For what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do the deeds and mighty works you do? Let me go over and see the good land beyond the Jordan—that fine hill country and Lebanon.” Deuteronomy 3:24-25 And God's answer--  “That is enough,” ... “Do not speak to me anymore about this matter." [3:26] 

Maga ouch! Moses must have been truly broken over the fact that he would not see his mission, the one he had been uniquely chosen for, to completion. We know it was a penalty for disobedience and God had given his word on it - NO.

'No' is hard to get around. No means no but we sometimes we want it to mean 'maybe' or 'not yet' or better yet 'for everyone but you. You are special have extraordinary circumstances.' God's word and his will are just and for our own good. Remember..."to prosper and not to harm"?  It sometimes seems harsh but we must keep in mind that there is a bigger picture in play.

If we look on to chapter four, Moses talks to the Israelites about the importance of being obedient to God's commands. It was not only going to provide them a good life but they would also be the example to the world around them about God's greatness. Verses 6-7 tell us,  "Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.” What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our God is near us whenever we pray to him?"

Their obedience was going to promote God's cause to the entire population of the earth. This wisdom should not be lost on us. We, too, show others who God is through our actions. The question is, "What kind of God do we serve?" In verse two Moses tells the Israelites to be careful "not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you."

We cannot make up our own version to fit our personal life or circumstances. We must follow God's. That way the world gets an accurate view of who God really is. So, next time you hear 'No' take God at his word. Remember there is much more at stake than your plan. Your friends and family who may not be so acquainted with the God you serve are watching to see how life is working for you.

Route 66: Day 56-57; Numbers 33-36

My husband is a land surveyor and boundaries are something I hear about often. When I read this portion of Scripture I can see the blueprints that have been drawn up for the 'Promised Land Project' complete with boundary lines and land sectioned out ready to be distributed. And as I have heard all throughout this story of the Israelites, again I hear, "I know the plans I have for you..." ringing in my ears. If I had to assign a title to this whole Israelite experience it would be just that-God Has the Plan.

There is a verse in Psalms 16 that I have always loved. "The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance" perhaps has its roots here in Numbers 34. I know I am a 'broken record' (does anyone even know what that means these days?) when I say how happy I am to be reading through the Bible. There have been so many Ah Ha moments and this was one of them when I can draw a parallel between these two passages. The Scripture has a way of building depth as it overlays the individual stories to build a bigger picture of God's plan for mankind and then, for me personally. I can't picture a more pleasant place to be than right in the middle of His written Word. It is alive and breathing its wisdom into my life everyday. I love its plan! Its better than anything I could have ever imagined.

How can a young person live a clean life?
By carefully reading the map of your Word.
I'm single-minded in pursuit of you;
don't let me miss the road signs you've posted.
I've banked your promises in the vault of my heart
so I won't sin myself bankrupt.
Be blessed, God;
train me in your ways of wise living.
I'll transfer to my lips
all the counsel that comes from your mouth;
I delight far more in what you tell me about living
than in gathering a pile of riches.
I ponder every morsel of wisdom from you,
I attentively watch how you've done it.
I relish everything you've told me of life,
I won't forget a word of it.  Psalm 119:9-16 The Message

Route 66: Day 55; Numbers 31-32

It seems God is tying up loose ends before the people will be ready to enter into the Promised Land. Midian is sieged and spoils taken for their part in bringing down the Israelites. But it's the Reubenites and the Gadites that really caught my attention. It has always been sad to me that these tribes settled rather than followed God into the land promised to them. They were satisfied with where they were.  It seemed good enough for them.

Do you ever feel that way? You're good right where you are.  No need for any more challenges or lessons in your life? I know I do from time to time.  I just want to set up camp and stay awhile.  But 'camp' is the effective word here.  My stop will only be only temporary. I do not want to build because I'm not staying.  I want to see what more God has planned for me. I want to follow him right into the Promised Land.

Route 66: Day 54; Numbers 28-30

As I type this, I can smell the aroma of someone's dinner cooking. The smell of garlic and onions frying is making my stomach grumble a bit at the reminder it is nearly supper time.

I wonder if the Israelites could smell that aroma  of the daily offerings being made in the tabernacle. Did the the smell that was so sweet to the God linger in the air? Did it remind the people it was time to honor the Lord?

In countries that practice Islam the reminder comes to the neighborhoods over a loud speaker. The call to prayer sounds several times a day starting before dawn urging believers to pause and pray.  The most devout can be seen wherever they are stop and honor God.

So what signals you that it is time for prayers of thanksgiving? For me it's the morning sunrise bringing a new day full of possibilities, a sweet baby smile so full of wonder and life, or even teenagers bantering about the kitchen hoping for snack from my refrigerator. These moments along many with others throughout the day bring the realization of how much I appreciate that God is in my daily life and I breathe out a prayer of gratitude.

Route 66: Day 53; Numbers 26-27

More counting, talk of inheritance guidelines and the passing along the leadership baton make up the bulk of these two chapters. One of the things that keeps coming to my mind over the last few chapters the example of faith or lack thereof in the lives of God's chosen. The Israelites struggle so much in that area. We often look at this as being so very sad for these individuals. Here they had God in a form that could be seen when he was present yet even then they faltered. But even sadder I think is the message they we passing on to their children and grandchildren. What kind of God would they bequeath to future generations?

Faith and what it looks like to follow God faithfully is something that we WILL give to our children. How we respond to God will make an impact-good or bad. For the Israel's younger generation, they would have to learn faith in God on their own.  Their parents were a major failure when it came to following God's instructions.

If we really desire to give our children a secure future what better gift is there than a faith in God.? My oldest daughter often includes in her testimony of a time her father's faith impressed on her the need to obey God. When she was coming into her adolescent years, our family was forced to move away from the home she remembered the most, the school she felt secure in and the friends she had had as long as she could remember. She pleaded with her dad asking, "Why do we have to go?" It seemed so cruel to her young heart. His answer though it probably didn't soften the blow at the time time was "Because God said so." 

Even if it did not make the move any easier, our daughter says that one statement made a significant impact in her life. Over time it has caused her to see the value in following God's instructions.  Her father's willingness to obey especially  when it was hard has now become part of her own spiritual life. And the 'trust God way of life'  is being passed on to her own children and those in her circle of influence.  

So then, when we pass on faith lets make sure its the good stuff. The future generations depend on it.  Plus it's pretty exciting when you see your kids take their portion of God's promise for themselves.

Route 66: Days 50-52; Numbers 21-25

Oh, the irony of it all!  Israel, fearful and faithless, shortsighted and self-preserving, now find themselves doing the very thing the wished to avoid- Fighting for their lives. No one was happy to see this mass of people coming into their territory and the Israelites would find themselves in battle after battle moved through the wilderness. This is the very thing they imagined they would never survive if they did as God proposed yet here they were.

Disobedience rarely makes your life more peaceful and secure and boy, did the Israelites find that out. Now their misery would be extended 40 years and they would find themselves having to defend themselves over and over. The funny thing is they were always victorious. Time after time their army defeated their attackers. Again, we see that God was very generous to these people who chose rebellion rather than him. You think they would get it after awhile. God is big and strong.  He never fails at anything he does. You want to follow his plan. Period. Maybe that's just what he was going to take 40 years time to imprint it onto their souls.

Route 66: Day 47-49; Numbers 8-15

Sometimes I feel like I have whiplash when I finish reading about the Israelites. One chapter "they did everything that the Lord commanded" and then the next they are raising such a ruckus about their comfort level. "If only we had meat to eat!" is heard throughout the camp.  I love God's answer to their problem. "You want it, you got it. So much so that before this is over the sight of quail is going to make you vomit!" Can you blame God for being angry. He has been trying to build their faith and at this point it didn't matter how many miracles the people experienced, he was getting nowhere.

And then comes the eyewitness report of the Promised Land. It was an amazing place where God was leading them. There was an abundance of fruit there. It was all God had promised only one 'small' problem. They had to take possession of it. They would have to move forward with God. "What?!  There are giants there!" It would just be a enormous hardship and actually pretty terrifying. For most of the people it was just too much. They just as soon stay where they were and God gave them exactly what they wished for.

We are not much different from these people who made the choice to wander around in a wilderness rather than moving through it to a place where God promised blessing. So often we look at our difficult circumstances and we to are stopped dead in our tracks.  Fear and anguish take over and we sometimes even question God's wisdom for bringing us to the place we are at. 

In the New Testament, James has a different way to look times when we find ourselves in distress.  He says, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds". [James 1:2] Joy! How can that be? Not exactly the word most of would choose when we find ourselves in a bad place but here it is in God's Word urging us to take a different view of suffering.

There was a reason behind his argument. It is "because... the testing of your faith produces perseverance." [1:3] When I think of the verse I keep hearing in my ears, "This is a test of the National Emergency Broadcasting System.  This is only a test."  Just as the National Emergency Broadcasting System is checking if you can hear them in an emergency by testing out the signal God also checks to see if we are listening and following his direction in times of trouble. Time after time the Israelites failed this test. They saw the giant obstacles and dug in their heels rather than hearing and following the 'emergency directions' from God. They did not trust God to do what he said he would do.

We can have a different outcome than the aimless wandering of the Israelites. Listen to God, trust his directions and get moving. Each time we do this, our faith grows a little more until following him exclusively becomes the way we do life. We have a faith that perseveres and James says when this perseverance is allowed to finish its work "[we] can be mature and complete, not lacking anything." [1:4]  We don't have to continue in wishy-washy wandering about the wilderness. We can put our faith in God and his direction. When we move out under his guidance, we will find a trustworthy passage directly into the Promise Land. A pretty good outcome I would say.