| |
Thoughts for a Woman's Heart |
|
| |
encouragement in things that matter |
|
| |
Get Moving
|
|
| |
The Israelites were being pursued by the Egyptians. Fear and panic rose as Pharaoh’s approaching army pressed in closer, and the threatening waters of the Red Sea hedged the Israelites in from behind. They complained bitterly to Moses, and yet somehow found a voice to cry out to God for help. Then the Lord said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to me? Tell the people to get moving!" When the people moved in response to God’s command and instruction, the seabed was turned into dry ground and the mighty waters were drawn back into huge walls. The confused attempts of the Egyptian army to continue their pursuit were drowned as the raging waters crashed over their chariots.
Prayer is often for us, as it was for the Israelites, the cry of our hearts when life gets tough – or, fearful, confused, demanding, stressful, or low on resources. We can find ourselves in desperate, pleading prayer, again, and again, and again, and yet sometimes, God says, "Stop praying and start moving." Many years ago I listened to the stories of a visiting missionary to our church as he told of vast tribes of Africans in need of the message of the gospel. His primary purpose in being among them was to tell them of the sacrificial death of Christ, and his prayers cried out to God for their salvation. The people he wanted to reach though were faced with another need as well – relentless famines had diminished their food supply and they were hungry. What the visiting missionary realized was captured in words I will never forget, "Empty bellies have no ears." And what he did was to start moving, and began to find ways to bring food to the empty bellies. What are you praying about? Is there something very practical God wants you to do? It may be in the area of outreach, but it may be in the area of resolving a personal or family need, or in the area of moving forward following a loss. God wants us to pray. Prayer keeps us connected with and dependent on God, and allows us to express our need and our feelings, but it should also open our eyes and understanding to the direction God wants us to move in. It should help us see the resources He has already made available to us that He wants us to use in meeting the needs we are praying about. Listen carefully. God may be telling you to "get moving." |
|
| |
|
— Bev |
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
