Devotional Thought of the day:

38 During all their wanderings they could see the cloud of the LORD’s presence over the Tent during the day and a fire burning above it during the night. Exodus 40:38 Good News Translation

¹³  Then Isaiah said, “Listen well, you royal family of David! Isn’t it enough to exhaust human patience? Must you exhaust the patience of my God as well? ¹⁴  All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).
Isaiah 7:13-14 (NLT2)

The humanity of Moses, David and Elijah, of Paul, Peter and Jesus Christ himself and of other riotously human women and men in the Bible and throughout church history teaches us a vital lesson: our humanity will not by itself prevent us from knowing and interacting with God just as they did.

I have encountered several people thismonth, who are best consdiered to be “spiritually wnadering”. They are struggling with God, or better to say, they are struggling within themselves, with their own brokeness, with the damage caused by the sin, theirs or the worlds.

They are wandering, bouncing from here to there, unable to come to rest, unable to be be still and realize they are in the presence of God. ANd for the moment, unable to hear the voice that calls to them, that draws them to Him.

In that time, we often wonder where is God. We may get very angry, trying to determine why God would abandon us, why He would let us fall to the side of the road, and wander off of the path.

It is then that we need to realize what Israel had going for them, while they wandered through the desert for 40 years because of their own brokenness, their own self-determinatio,n, their own sin.

Scripture tells us that even in the midst of their wandering, God was present, and made that presence known theough the smoke and the fire. As evil as some of the things they did were, He didn’t abandon them. He cared for these spiritual descendants of Abraham,

God will do the same for us, He has promised to, in places like Matthew 28:20 (and in v.16 it said some of them doubted – even having seen the risen Lord with wounds still fresh) to the very promises of the Messiah in the Old Testament. He is still there, He is still able to be found, and seen in those signs He has ordained for us. His word and sacraments, through those He has placed in our lives, that speak of His love and mercy, He is there for you!

He is there..even as we wander…

And will bring to us His peace.

If you are wandering at this time, look around, listen to the music of the season, Hear about this one who came to set us free.  And rejoice, for the Lord is with you!

Willard, D., & Johnson, J. (2015). Hearing god through the year: a 365-day devotional. Westmont, IL: IVP Books.