From There

""But if from there you seek the LORD your God, 

you will find Him if you look for Him with all your heart and with all your soul." Deuteronomy 4:29

"As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for You, O God.  My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?" Psalm 42:1-2

     I grew up in and near Atlanta, GA, and have lived in Birmingham, AL, and New Orleans, LA but none of them proved to be as difficult to navigate as our suburb of Benton, AR.  When I-30 and other main roads cut through smaller ones, they left bits of streets sharing the same name. In addition, the service roads on each side of the Interstate are one way, so getting to the other side requires forethought, even after living here for two years.  Even the one-way streets in our charming downtown area required a GPS for our first few weeks.  Sometimes we truly felt we couldn't get from where we were to where we wanted to be. 

     Life can leave us feeling the same way.  We envision a goal but the trip there is a labyrinth of insurmountable obstacles.  It seems easier to stay where we are, even if it's in the middle of a mess we've slipped into or created.  

     The verse at the top of the page offers hope in the form of two little words: "from there."  From where?  

     From false ideas of what's right and wrong:

"Hear now, O Israel, the decrees and laws I am about to teach you. Follow them so that you may live and may go in and take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you. Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you. . ." (Deut. 4:1-2)

      From not being the example, the witness God calls us to be:

Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, "Surely this great nation is a wise and  understanding people. What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our God is near us whenever we pray to Him?" (Deut. 4:6-7)

  

   From idolizing what we can see and touch:

"Therefore watch yourselves very carefully, so that you do not become corrupt and make for yourselves an idol, an image of any shape, whether formed like a man or a woman, or like any creature or created thing." (see Deut. 4:15-20 for specifics)

     From slipping into apathy towards God:

"Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live." (Deut. 4:9) 

 These are the places from which God will open His arms to receive us back again: If  from there you seek the LORD your God,  you will find Him if you look for Him with all your heart and with all your soul."

Father, What god in heaven or on earth can do the mighty things You do? Not one because there is no other GOD: only human-made gods.Your Word is powerful and true because You are Powerful and True.  You love us even when our love for You turns lukewarm. Forgive us and bring us back "from there."  We look to a man to save our nation when You've called us to be Your witness of Truth to the world. Forgive us and bring us back "from there." We sit back and pay others to "go tell."  Forgive us and bring us back "from there."  We slip into spiritual comas, allowing our culture rather than our God to influence us most. Forgive us and bring us back "from there.' Make Your church a nation of "wise and understanding people" who prove daily how near, how great and how wise You are.  Strengthen our minds with Truth so we don't become discouraged or never start the journey back "from there."

In the Name of Jesus Christ our Supreme Example

 "For the LORD your God is a merciful God; He will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your forefathers, which He confirmed to them by oath." (Deut. 4:31)