Please take a moment today to read through Numbers 33 which tells about the stages of Israel’s journey under the leadership of Moses and Aaron. By the time you get through all 56 verses, you will likely be wondering “what’s the point?” Especially when you read the last verse!
Our family loves to take trips. Our planning can often be as intense as Numbers 33 with many stages in our journey. We want to take full advantage of the places we stay, eat, play and relax. But the question we usually ask is, “What will we do when we get there?” Maybe you have asked this question in your life. We ask it while going through school. We ask it while waiting for a new job. We ask it while going through treatment. We ask it while thinking about eternal life.
The problem is, we really do not always have answers to, “What we will do when we get there?” We have hopes and dreams and worries and fears. We look forward to a new home, or retirement, or vacation or a new relationship, but there is so much uncertainty about what each one of those will bring. Sometimes when we “get there” we find ourselves overjoyed and sometimes disappointed. Sometimes our expectations are met and other times we are just downright frustrated or mad about the outcomes.
I think the Israelites experienced the whole range of emotions that we experience in life. The stages in their long journey are similar to the stages in the journeys that we make in life. What we know for sure is that God was leading the people of Israel to find the Promised Land, and that God is leading us to experience the fulness of life that can only be found in knowing God for ourselves. We put our faith and trust in God because we know that He has led others in the past and will lead us now and in the future. We can be confident that God will help us Find the Way!
Prayer: Dear God, thank you for leading me through the stages of the journey of life. Help me to trust you even when I do not fully understand where I am going and give me encouragement along the way. Amen.
-Rev. Phil Greenwald, Executive Pastor of Administration
