Sunday, January 30, 2011

Risk

Have you been holding back from a risky, costly course to which you know in your heart God has called you? Hold back no longer. Your God is faithful to you, and adequate for you. You will never need more than He can supply, and what He supplies, both materially and spiritually, will always be enough for the present. Author: J.I. Packer

Faith and Risk seem to go hand in hand don't they? The bible is filled with stories of ordinary people who took great risks, people who stepped out in faith into the unknown. The book of Hebrews is filled with accounts of those who believed God and took great risks.

Can you imagine fleeing across the desert with Moses, hearing the pounding hoof beats of the Pharaoh's horses coming towards you, and then looking forward, only to see a vast body of water blocking your escape? The future must have appeared pretty bleak to them, but still they ran forward in hope, a hope that lived in tension with their fear. A hope and faith that the God who called them, could do the impossible.

Hebrews 11:29  By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Begining a New Season

I'm just returning from two weeks of travel and meetings. I love to fly around, visiting new places, meeting new people. It's a blast! But, It was also really great to come home and sleep in my own bed. Its comfortable being in a familiar place, you know what to expect, you can relax and rest.

The last few days I have been thinking and praying about my own spiritual journey... Remembering where the Lord has taken me, what He has taught me, how He has shaped me, disciplined me, loved and rescued me this past year. Looking back helps remind me remind myself of God's amazing faithfulness, His mercy, grace and love.

This week I will be heading out of the comfortable and familiar, and will begin taking on several new ministry roles, traveling to a new office, developing a new schedule. Right now I don't really know what that will look or feel like. Stepping out into new territory is scary and exciting! It is comforting to know that I am not alone, and that God is always faithful. Home and rest are never far away, they are found in His arms.