When the Sphinx Can't Save You

As I was reading through Isaiah 31 this morning, it brought up an idea that is really, really common in the Old Testament.  Israel as a country would find itself attacked by a bigger, stronger nation, and over and over they would run to Egypt, pay them money, and have them come send the Egyptian army up to help defend the nation of Israel.  They were hired soldiers.  It seems like Israel did this over and over.

I had read that a ton of times, but I got thinking about how that must have felt to them.  They had been slaves in that country.  Egypt had owned them.  It took a ton of miracles by God to pull them out of there, and from the time they left, there were people who kept choosing to go back to Egypt instead of trusting God.  Egypt was a source of embarrassment for the country, a constant reminder that they were not a world power, that they were very little, and really struggled to even protect themselves, let alone be a threat to anyone.  I mean, if you're going to claim to be God's chosen people, you'd think you'd be the dominating force in the world.  They weren't.  They came close under David and Solomon, but that was short, and did not last.  And even then, they were only able to defend themselves.  They never went on a huge warpath and took over other countries to build an empire.  The best they could do was to just manage to be safe for a couple of decades.

As a country, that's embarrassing.

But to have to run back to the very nation you had to scrape and claw your way out of only made it worse.

Yet, most of the people and the kings would rather run back to Egypt with their tail between their legs than to depend on God to save them.  Why do we do that?

Why do we trust in habits, people, or systems that we know, 100% without a doubt, that they are broken?  We know those addictions don't set us free.  We know that relationship can't actually make us happy.  We know that habit only leaves us empty.  We know that grab for power is always temporary.  In spite of that knowledge, when we come under attack, and life becomes scary and unsure, instead of turning to God, we run to Egypt, the land of darkness.

Why?

God is trustworthy.  He always has been.  He always will be.  He is not the problem.

It's our expectations.  The nation of Israel couldn't understand that maybe God's plan didn't call for them to be a military powerhouse.  He didn't even want them to have a king.  He wanted them to follow Him, to be blessed, and to bless the people around them.  That is not what they wanted.  They wanted power and revenge, just like everyone else around them seemed to have.  So, they ignored God, and ran to the center of ancient power and revenge.  Even when Egypt was way past their glory days and were no longer a world force, Israel still ran to them for help.

What goals, hopes, values, dreams, or desires do you have that keep you from running to God?  Are they working out for you?  It's probably time to find some new ones, some dreams that come from Him, and that He will honor in your life.

Take It to the Bank

No comments on John today. Just a confession of my own. I'm worried and scared. I shouldn't be. I know that full well. We are facing some stuff that I can't control. None of it is bad. There are just some dreams I have, some hopes and wishes, and alot has to happen in the next couple of weeks. If it goes one way, doors can open to see those hopes become reality. If it goes another way, they might close for now.

The reason I'm scared is that it's out of my hands. They've been dealt some small blows recently, and they've been given some support. So I have no clue where things are going to go. That scares me. Even after all this time following Christ and seeing Him work miracles over and over, I still have a difficult time trusting Him with my dreams. I can trust Him most time with my day to day needs. I do a good job of trusting Him on the huge miraculous stuff like healing people and relationships. I know He is in charge of the ministry, and do a decent job of following Him there. But its my dreams that make me twitchy. I get nervous with them.

I think it's because I tend to be unsure where some of these hopes and wishes fall. I mean, are they good things I am hoping for, or are they merely selfish things? I have a hard time discerning. And in my mind, that affects how God will carry them out. I often believe He will see them through if they are at some level "good". But I believe He will shut them down if they aren't. That's where my fear comes in.

I don't want them shut down. I want them. That's why they are called hopes and dreams. They are things I hope for and dream about. So, I can't turn them off so easily. And therefore, I worry. But that is wrong. I know that. God says not to worry about today or tomorrow, but to trust Him. Over the past couple of days He has repeatedly been telling me "Cast all your cares upon Him for He cares for you." And I'm trying really hard to do that.

Yet I worry.

I know God is trustworthy. He ALWAYS has been in EVERY case. He has never, ever, ever dropped me. He has given me more of my dreams and hopes than I could ever imagine. He has been more than kind, more than gracious, more than generous in the BIG deals, and in the small events. I will not fear, because if the Lord is for me, nothing can come against me. I know it. I believe it. I just need to keep telling myself these things.

If I can't completely kill the fear and worry, I am going to cage it up in a cage built on faith. I'm going to choose to keep shutting the door. I will rely on God, and watch Him work. I must, I have no where else to go.

Anybody else ever been in this spot?