Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.  Isaiah 43:19

New adventures await

Isaiah 43:19 was the daily devotional in my inbox the day my husband was applying for a job 2500 miles away.  

Really God?  You’re funny!  It’s ok, God.  Really.  I am content with the old.

The sermon that Sunday was “When God goes too far”.  Yes Lord.   It kinda is…too far.  I have raised my kids HERE. Security is HERE. MY LIFE is HERE.   Sigh….What exactly are you doing?

And the next…. “The road map for having a successful journey”…Are you laughing yet?

Each week we started anticipating what the message was, and how it would relate to our potential move.  It seemed obvious that a new journey awaited us, and yet I was in a sweet spot.  

I was in my 3rd year of working full time, creating after school interventions, collaborating with coworkers to make a cohesive team, building new friendships, and finding a piece of my identity outside of being someone’s mom.

The grass didn’t seem greener to me.  If it was up to me alone, I wouldn’t want to go.  There wasn’t a draw for me. 

A time of preparation

He was offered the position a week before Thanksgiving.  Ironically, it was forty days from applying to receiving offer, and forty days from then till we drove across country to our new life.

God is not in a hurry.  He has a plan for everything, and it includes preparation.  

The number forty is mentioned 157 times in the Bible!  It symbolizes testing or a trial, but each time it is used to prepare hearts for what is to come.

The Israelites had been wandering in the wilderness for forty years, whenJoshua gives orders to the officers to tell the people “get ready”.

“Get your provisions ready.  Three days from now you will cross the Jordan to go in and take possession the land the Lord our God is giving you for your own.” Joshua 1:11

Sometimes we need to mentally prepare.  I know that in big situations I often prepare mentally by praying, reading God’s word, and asking trusted friends for advice.  My physical preparation includes lots of  lists, and checking off the things that need to be done. Emotionally my preparation usually involves a good cry!

No matter what the circumstances, God is preparing you.  Wether you realize it or not, the things you are doing now are preparing you for what is next.   

Amazing things ahead

In Joshua 3: 5 the Israelites are told “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you”.

All of the Israelites except Joshua and Caleb were born in the wilderness or had been young children when leaving Egypt.  Most had heard about the parting of the Red Sea, but had not experienced it first hand.  They had grown up wandering in the desert.  Their normal was gathering manna, and living in the wilderness.

Now, they were told to prepare to cross into the land God promised their parents, forty years prior.  To consecrate themselves—to dedicate themselves to a special purpose or service.  

They were about to see amazing things! I have lived enough life as a Jesus follower to see amazing things, and they typically are far beyond what my brain could have expected or imagined.

The rest of Joshua 3 gives the account of the Jordan River being held back, so the Israelites could cross on dry land.  In Joshua 6 they will see another miracle, as the walls protecting Jericho from the Israelites crumble to the ground, as God gives them the land.   

Are you ready?

His will and His way was leading them to the fulfillment of amazing promises.

The Bible is not a fictitious bedtime story.  It is examples of real people, sometimes at their best and other times at their worst, living life with or without God.  

As Christians, we can get caught up in the dailyness of living.  The sometimes mundane, tiring existence that lacks mystery, adventure, and awe.  It is easy to go through the motions and stop making time to talk to God or grow in our faith.

We need to prepare for what is ahead by being in His word.  Waiting until a situation arises, leads to us not being ready. We need to stay focused and be ready for what God has for us next.  Life is full of changes, that our meant for our good (Jeremiah 29:11).  Successful transitions depend on how ready and willing we are to walk the path God puts before us. Amazing things follow where God leads.