Step into It!

The first three situations, the coat of freshly fallen snow, an empty beach at sunrise still cool from the darkness of night, and a trail through the woods in fall are all journey’s that beckon me. The raging waters of a river during flood stage…not so much!

The Jordan River flows through Israel from the slopes of Mount Hermon into and through the Sea of Galilee on to its final destination, the Dead Sea. Interestingly, this distance covers less than 124 miles though the Jordan’s meandering path is over 223 miles in length. What’s more? The actual distance between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea is only 65 miles but that section of the Jordan is over 135 miles due to the twists and turns it takes through the floodplains of Zūr.

At the point where Joshua was believed to have crossed from Shittim (Joshua 3:1) over to head into Jericho, the Jordan River measured a daunting 100 feet in width and greater than 10 feet in depth, on a normal day! However, Joshua and the Israelites crossed in the spring when the Jordan was swollen beyond its banks (vs.15b). The width, depth, and ferocity of the current would have made it impossible to cross…apart from God.

What I find the most fascinating about this story in the 3rd chapter of the book of Joshua is that God required the Levitical priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord to step into the flowing river and stand still (vs. 8, 11-16). They had to be obedient to this one step in faith, believing that God would indeed perform wonders before their eyes and hold back the raging flood waters.

Oftentimes God calls us out and requires us to take the risk of stepping into something before he reveals the next phase of his plans. I know this has been true of my life and faith walk. Many times, God has refrained from giving me any ideas of how in the world he will get me from point A to point B until I am willing to partner with him and obediently commit, take that next step, and then stand still to wait on him.

If you are a Christian who has believed in Jesus, you are indwelt with the Holy Spirit. In essence, his very temple and place of dwelling (1 Corinthians 3:16, 6:19; 2 Corinthians 6:16; 2 Timothy 1:14). The Ark of the Covenant was such a place before Christ’s death and resurrection. By taking that next step, we are “carrying God” out into the middle of the flooded, swollen, raging rivers of our lives, just as those priests carried the Ark, the place of God’s presence (Exodus 25:22; 1 Samuel 4:4; 2 Samuel 6:2), into the Jordan. He is surely with us!

Recently, God has been impressing upon my heart the responsibility and gift it is to get to choose. There is power packed into our choices. We get to choose to align ourselves with the God of the universe! God places us in situation after situation where we are faced with choices; left or right, up or down, yes or no, stay or go…? Large and small decisions before us throughout any given day.

Sometimes, when presented with a choice, I do not always desire to walk in the direction I believe he is calling me to walk. Fear, doubt, unbelief, all manner of pride rises to tempt me to say, “No, I cannot do that.” Or “Not me. I am not strong enough for that, God.” Sometimes, I am simply just unsure. In these times I wonder if God is allowing me to meander along with the raging river, bumping and struggling with the rapids through those extra miles, rather than taking his hand and trusting him to simply lead me straight across! To step into it and stand still! What a gracious and patient God!

The truth is, we do not have to be anything more than exactly who we are in that very moment when he calls on us. He is with us, and it is God who is about to do amazing work in and through our lives. We have only to believe. When we choose to place our trust in his infinite ability, we are then free to step into it, stand still, and watch him work!

With Love and Prayers,
Margie

Questions for Reflection:
Are you sensing God calling you to “step into it,” take that next step in your faith walk? What is it?

Have you been overly cautious to take that next step because the flood waters seem too rapid to journey across or you feel too insufficiently equipped for the circumstances you might face? What is one step you can take this week towards trusting Christ’s sufficiency rather than fearing your own insufficiency or lack?

When asked “What must we do to be doing the works of God?” Jesus said we are to “believe in him whom he has sent” (John 6:28-29). What attribute(s) of Christ are you failing to put your trust in as you take the long way round riding massive miles of raging river water?

Take some time to strengthen yourself in the Lord by recalling a time of God’s faithfulness in your life, or in the life of someone you know. Thank and praise God for the wonder of getting to witness him work miracles firsthand!