Pilgrim Footsteps

So…not long after I got Hezekiah out of my head, God said to read Joshua. Ok. At least I know who this guy was! So I looked up where Joshua was mentioned and read it all, taking notes on passages in Exodus, Numbers and Deuteronomy before getting to Joshua’s actual book. It was definitely more notes that Hezekiah! Some things that crossed my mind as I read/later reviewed my notes (and I could probably still add more: Joshua was an amazing guy!) are as follows: 1) Joshua is a story of inheritance and fulfilled promises (experienced by an obedient and courageous servant of God) 2) He led the people into every battle while following all of God’s battle instructions to the tee even though some of them sounded pretty crazy 3) He didn’t mind “living in Moses’ shadow” so to speak but continued in his stead with great faith, fulfilling and carrying out the instructions God had given Moses 4) He was often in God’s presence and he knew and obeyed God’s word; he kept it 5) H...

Yeah, if you’re saying “who?” I won’t hold it against you, since when God first put his name into my head, all I knew was that he was one of the many kings in the Old Testament, and that’s about it. But so you know, Hezekiah’s story is told in 2 Kings 18-21, 2 Chronicles 29-32, and Isaiah 36-39. He was a king in Judah for 29 years, beginning at the age of 25. The Bible says that no other kings of Judah were like him. He’s the guy that destroyed all shrines including the brazen serpent that had become an idol to the people. However, his end wasn’t as great as his beginning, as he became proud and selfish and his son Manasseh was a wicked king. So clearly, when God put that name into my head (day after day after day, might I add!) I read all about him and took notes and everything. I thought that would be enough. Nope. Hezekiah was still floating around in my brain. So as I prayed about what God wanted me to learn from this king, I finally got some answers and I’d like to shar...

The road under my feet was thoughtlessly familiar, past farm houses, barns, fields, a creek, and sporadic bicyclists that I gave a smile and a nod or wave to as they went by. The occasional car bumped down the pitted road full of potholes that were perpetual puddles if not in drought. As I walked, I had a chat with God about my future and what was ahead and all that stuff that a 19-year-old had to say the summer before her last college semester. The truth that He spoke into my on that walk lightened my steps over the gravelly country back road. I can leave my books because Your Word is the only book I need. I can leave my old writings because my words are Yours and You are the books I will write. I can leave my memories and mementos because You are my past, present, and wonderful future. I can leave my familiar culture, the familiar ground because You are the air I breathe and the ground on which I stand. You are my familiar; I am at home in You. I can leave ...

This is a tough one to write about or even try to describe, because it has such deep meaning and revelation attached to it for me. It all comes back to this very reassuring verse: 2 Corinthians 3:18 . "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." The gist of what I can explain is this: God takes us from one place of glory to a greater place.  Being in those places of glory is an amazing time...but in order to get there, we have to be in the "to" place.  As I've heard it described, if the places of glory are rooms, then "God opens and closes doors, but it's hell in the hallway."  That is so true! Whoohoo, I'm in the "to" part of that phrase.  Sigh.   And then I went to a Bethel Worship Nights "concert" (for lack of a better term) in Harrisburg with a friend.  When William Matthews was on stage, on ...

So far I’ve posted the introduction as well as the verses of water.  Now it is time for the deeper and higher aspects.   Habakkuk 3:10 mentions all three aspects that I was searching for, so it’ll make a good connection point.  “The mountains saw thee, and they trembled: the overflowing of the water passed by: the deep uttered his voice, and lifted up his hands on high.” God is to be worshiped everywhere, from the deepest to the highest! So where shall we begin?  How about in the deep. “In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also,” says Psalm 94:5.  In the deepest place, God is still in control and we are still in his hands.   God is in the very depths that we cannot descend to.  He is everywhere!  The deep also seems to be where God’s wisdom and depths of knowledge are, where we can only try and get to know Him better.  Daniel 2:22 says that “he revealeth the deep and secret things...

There seems to be two different kinds of water mentions in the Bible: water that represents troubles, and water that represents cleansing, life and blessings.  I didn’t bother to write down the verses where it is representative of trouble, since that is no the context in which I am finding the water theme, and if I wrote them down too, I’d be recording every single verse with that word in it. There is a sense of water being a cleanser, for instance in Leviticus 11:32 (as well as Numbers 8:7 and other mentions in the Old Testament), “And upon whatsoever any of them, when they are dead, doth fall, it shall be unclean; whether it be any vessel of wood, or raiment, or skin, or sack, whatsoever vessel it be, wherein any work is done, it must be put into water, and it shall be unclean until the even; so it shall be cleansed.”  Also in Ezekiel 36:25, "Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I clea...

I will be writing at least two parts that go with this topic: first of all, there needs to be background explained (not too much, don't worry!), then the most recent development, and then (which I am still working on) I will be sharing some Biblical studies I did on the topic.   So to begin, at the New Year's worship that our youth group had, Ryan played a bunch of songs that had been special to us throughout 2014.  As I listened (songs such as "Oceans," "Sinking Deep," "You Make me Brave," etc.), I realized a common theme to the songs and then I realized it was also present just in what God was doing: water, waves, etc.  I mentioned it to Miranda and she agreed.   Next came what happened at the youth retreat, which I mentioned in the post "Refreshing Joy."  But in case you didn't read that, or you need a refresher on it, here it is again. During a pause in worship, Kyle told Miranda and I that he got a picture of a ke...

I realized something that, really, we should all realize a lot earlier than I did (which was just the other weekend): True laughter is not from something being funny, it is from feeling joy.  It seems like a pretty simple concept, but I really think that many people miss the point.  I mean, think of it this way - everyone who goes to a third-world country sees destitute and starving children who laugh and giggle often and wonder why they are laughing.  Because they have joy!  They do not need "funny" or things to make them happy, they have joy!  And yet in America and other world powers have everything they need to make them "happy" and hanging out and joking makes things "funny," but what about true joy?  Happiness and joy are most definitely not the same thing. True joy makes you laugh.  True joy is a tangible taste on your tongue.  True joy makes you want to dance and sing.  True joy comes from God.   So, I started right i...

For Bible study about a week ago, our youth pastor did a lesson in Ecclesiastes 3, and had each of us answer this question: What time are you in? While each of us only gave one example, it really set me to thinking.  Which time was I in when if I took all of verses 2-8 into account?  So I decided that starting this year, it would become a yearly tradition of looking within myself and praying until I know where I am in the present season.  So, it took me about a week, since some of the choices were harder and required a lot of prayer, but it is finally finished. I am in a time to be born, since I am currently living and I know lots of people who have been having children. I am in a time to pluck up that which is planted, because as I prepare to graduate from high school, I need to try and find out where it is that God wants me to plant.  I may also be uprooting from some other aspects in life, but I haven't quite gathered my thoughts on that yet, nor has God...

I'm afraid I might smack the next person who asks me what I'm doing after high school. Don't worry, I won't actually do that, but it makes me feel better to envision it briefly.  The main problem is, I don't have a good enough answer.  I could say "whatever God leads me to do," but that's a cop out and doesn't answer anyone's question.  I could say "I don't know" but that's too simple and not entirely accurate.  Or, I could launch into the whole shebang - how I don't really want to go to college, my parents and lots of other people think I should, I want to do stuff like missions, attend Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry and eventually start a ministry with some kids from youth group - but somehow, people don't like that, either, and I kind of lose them after "missions." Sigh.  Everyone wants to know, but no one likes my answers.  What's a girl to do? The only thing left - pray!  That...