What Am I Doing Here?
March 7, 2012
I was learning how to install vinyl siding while wondering why I wasted the time and money to work my way through college and grad school. Don’t get me wrong; I was thankful for a job! I had been without a paycheck for a year and a half. I had gone from being unemployed to being under-employed! When I cried out to God in frustration, I felt Him asking me, “Are your wife and kids hungry? Have you lost your home? Have your cars been repossessed?” No, I had to admit that God had somehow kept us warm, fed and sheltered.
That memory reminds me of the Israelites. Rather than taking them from Egypt directly to the Promised Land, God intentionally kept them in the wilderness for a time. You can just hear them grumbling over and over, “What are we doing here?!?” They kept worrying about where they were going to get food and water in the desert. But the Bible tells us that God miraculously provided for their whole nation’s needs in a place where even small communities could not survive. And all the while they worried and complained, God was preparing them for and leading them toward the Promised Land.
Have you ever asked yourself, “What am I doing here?!?” You’re not alone. But I can promise you two things: 1. If you will follow God’s direction, He will lead you to your “promised land” – God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them (Romans 8:28). 2. If you put your trust in God, He will somehow keep you warm, fed and sheltered. – I have never seen the godly abandoned or their children begging for bread (Psalm 37:25).
See you in church Sunday!
Grace & blessings,
Pastor Bob
