This week in our reading of The Story we read about the wanderings of the Israelites in the desert. If you remember, they wandered for 40 years as a punishment for their wickedness and sin against God. The past several weeks of The Story have been very uplifting thematically. God creates, God saves, God guides, God provides, God is faithful, God delivers, God is present.
The story of the wandering is a little harder for me to swallow. I will admit that reading these passages through the first time made me want to close up the book and hide under my desk in the fetal position. The stories don't resolve like we might want them do. A lot of them end in death and destruction, and looking ahead we know that there will be even more of that. It's a hard to grasp the meaning of it all and I want God to follow my rules.
And that is when it hit me.
My distrust in God is the same type of distrust the Israelites had. I don't understand it, and I probably never will. However, God has always been faithful. What else can I do but be faithful and devoted to Him?
You Are Worthy of My Praise
In the stories of the Israelites coming out of Egypt, we find them constantly looking to other sources of faith besides God. This song is a proclamation that we will have "No other gods before God." We will worship Him with all of heart, soul, strength, and mind.
Heavenly Sunlight
There is a line in this song that says "Jesus has said 'I'll never forsake thee.' Promise divine that never can fail." Even in our wanderings, God has proved faithful. In those moments we may not understand how, but even in our doubt God continues to do His good work.
Step by Step
Rich Mullins is one of my all-time favorite singer/songwriters. He is so genuine and heartfelt in his music. This song has a great message of God's faithfulness, even in the mist of our hardships, and even in our grumblings. The long version of this song says "
And on this road to righteousness
Sometimes the climb can be so steep
I may falter in my steps
But never beyond Your reach
You can hear the full version below:
Living By Faith
This is one of those songs I always catch myself singing. My favorite line in the song is "trusting, confiding in His great love." Some days trusting God is such a hard thing to do (especially when it's something hard to swallow), but we are called to live by faith.
In Moments Like These
I wanted us to have a few songs here that just pour out our praise to God. This simple song is one of those tunes that just gets in your head and you sing it all day long. This week I have tried to focus my mind on how different things would be if instead of questioning God I just lifted up my heart in praise and trust.
Hosanna, You're My King
This is one of my favorite songs to sing. Again, this is a very simplistic proclamation of Jesus as King. You may not know that the word "Hosanna" is a cry to save or rescue. I think that we need constant reminders, like the Israelites, who it is that delivered us from the depths.
The Lamb of God
I really like songs that paint a picture in your head. This song tells the story of Jesus' crucifixion in a beautiful, eloquent way. The last verse of this song turns the analogy around to us and says "I was so lost, I should have died, but You have brought me to your side to be lead by Your staff and rod and to be called a Lamb of God." God is guiding us. He is faithful and He is good.
Guide Me Thou O Great Jehovah
This song is a cry for God to lead us, just as He has lead His people for thousands upon thousands of years. It directly reflects the stories that we are reading, so I hope that we will hear the words anew this week as we sing it together.
Father Hear the Prayer We Offer
I have heard this song sung probably a thousand times, but it wasn't until this past year that I really heard what the lyrics are saying. This song is so backwards!! It is not the type of things you would normally pray. Where we would normally pray for comfort in our lives, this prayer asks for discomfort. It is a plea for God to lead us to places we may not even want to go! A few weeks ago, Tim asked the question "What is our next step of faith?" Maybe a tweak to that this week is "What is our next step of faith, and are you willing to go there even if it means it won't be comfortable?" The Israelites were crying out to God in Egypt and He faithfully delivered them. However, just when they get out of the clutches of Pharaoh, they want to go back! Will we follow God where He leads us, even if those places are deserts?
Lord, Have Mercy
Each week there is song that normally just sticks out to me as one that really captures the mood and theme of the worship. This is that song this week. This is a song of confession that we have forgotten the words of Jesus, we have gone astray and trusted earthly things. The refrain is a cry for God to have mercy on us for not being faithful and trusting. That is what I have been reflecting on this week.
Father, forgive my unbelief. Even when I doubt, Lord, may I follow closely after You. May I trust fully in Your mighty plans and may I always seek You first. Amen.
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