Maybe you’re like me and you find yourself sometimes standing in the middle of a room walking in small circles, scratching your head as you try to remember why in the world you even walked into that room to begin with.
When this happens to me, I usually retrace my steps heading haltingly back to where I came from and hope that simple 12 or maybe 13 step journey from the kitchen through the hallway back to my bedroom will somehow jog the napping brain cells responsible for telling me what on earth I’m doing.
Sometimes it works.
Sometimes it doesn’t.
If I can’t remember why I came, maybe it wasn’t important to begin with, right?
And while it might not matter too much for simple life moments like looking for where you put your keys or getting the dog’s leash ready for a walk, it’s not true for the bigger picture…
Where am I going in life? What does this all mean? Why am I heading there to begin with?
These questions cannot be left unanswered at the threshold of a room.
You can’t retrace steps to find the answer and if you don’t you just move on hoping it will work out in another room. That’s what an empty and chaotic life looks like.
Understanding our purpose. Knowing why we’re here and having hope for where we’re going is essential for our life. The answer, of course, is found in God’s love and plan for our lives. That plan can be found in His word and through His Son.
The book of Numbers begins, “in the wilderness” and ends “at the border.” It is at this threshold – in a sense, a new room – where Moses reviews exactly where they have been and what has brought them all to that place.
Similar to the reason I retrace my steps – to jog my memory and help me recall the purpose I had for entering the room, Moses sits and writes. On the command of YHWH, he retraces the steps of 40 years of wandering – not from hallway to kitchen but from slavery to freedom, Egypt to Edom, a land flowing with muddy bricks to land flowing milk and honey and the promise of God.
He marks the stages for the people from the moment of their salvation to the journey of being set apart. For what purpose?…to remind them of their past and assure them of their future.
The key to that future rests not in wondering if God will be faithful – He’s proven His faithfulness over and over again – the key will rest in their obedience and…
That’s where we’ll find ourselves also – will we set out mindful of where we’ve been and hopeful of where we’re going or will we, wander with distracted forgetfulness bumping through life from room to room wondering how we got there. We will journey unsure of our purpose?
May we not be people who “soon forgot His works and did not wait for counsel” who “had no faith in His promise.” Instead, let us never forget “God, our Savior who has done great things… wondrous works and awesome deeds.” May we always be people who remember and sing, “blessed are they who observe justice and do righteousness…and let all the people say, “Amen!”
And may we together help each other to find our way (and our keys) and our faithfulness to our LORD.
I originally shared this story in the “Saved & Set Apart” Dwelling Richly Bible study. I invite you to join me through that or any of the Bible studies I have available. Be a part of the Dwelling Richly community of women like you who long for more and are finding it in Jesus together as we dwell in His Word. Dwelling Richly Community Bible Study
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