Today’s Scripture Reading (October 7,
2012): Joshua 3
I had a bad
experience at McDonald’s last week. I was in a hurry because I was on my way to
a meeting and I just needed to get something quickly to eat. McDonald’s just
happened to be on the way, so I stopped in. It was busy – well, not really, but
there were about five people in the restaurant and apparently none of them had received
their food – so we were all waiting. I was at the back of the line. So I placed
my order and watched it join the other four orders that waited to be filled.
And then the problems started. Slowly the orders were filled, but not mine. New
people came up to the counter and ordered and received their orders while I was
still waiting. Finally my order came up, but it was not my order – at least, it
was not what I had asked and paid for. So the order went back and I continued
my waiting. A second time my order came up, but the food was still wrong (in
fact, it had not changed from the first time they had tried to present me with
food.) The same thing happened a third time. Finally, the manger presented me
with my food. He told me that what was inside was the food that I ordered,
verbalizing each item. I grabbed the bag and ran for the meeting. But when I
arrived and quickly started to eat the food, the food that was in the bag was
the same food that I had turned down three times at the counter – not the food
that I had ordered. And I felt ripped off. I had paid for something that I had
not received. But I also had no time to correct the situation. So I ate some of
the meal and headed into my meeting.
Sometimes we
go to church the same way that I go to McDonald’s. Our church attendance is
slotted in between other things that we have to do (okay, usually it is sleep
and football.) Church becomes something that we just need to get through quickly.
But I do not believe that God is honored by that.
Israel is
finally getting to cross the Jordan River into Canaan. It has been a long trip.
But the crossing of the Jordan was not something that simply needed to be
accomplished – it was not like ordering a burger at McDonald’s. It was going to
be a worship experience that needed to be prepared for. Joshua told the nation,
you are going to want to prepare for tomorrow, because tomorrow, God is going
to move.
Too many
Christians have never seen God move and sometimes I wonder if it is because we
have never prepared ourselves to see him move. We just fit him into the spots
in our schedule that is convenient for us. And if that is all that we will do,
God will never move in our lives. It is time once again for the church to
gather. Can we prepare to see him move?
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Joshua
4
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