I like to take back roads when I
travel. There are some old roads that
are well-worn from years of travel. The
old roads frequently have deep ruts from years of wear without much repair. It is difficult and frustrating to try to
move a vehicle out of the ruts.
It does give pause to what it means to
live in a rut.
How
often do we find our life in a rut? We repeat behaviors on a daily basis that
lead to challenges and problems. If
nothing else, life becomes mundane and tedious when we find ourselves in a rut.
Study
Joshua. The people
had been wandering in the desert for forty years. It is a remarkable visual of living in a
rut. The thing is . . . there are so
many individuals that give into living in a rut . . . lacking courage to risk
their comfort for something more.
Joshua took the courageous route . . .
he took the risk . . . and prepared the people to leave their desert-wandering
ways: Then Joshua said to the people, "Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow
the LORD will do wonders among you." Joshua 3:5
There are two points to this scripture
to look at:
1.
Consecrate yourself
2.
Anticipate what God will do.
So
what is consecration?
Consecrate is a Hebrew verb meaning to
sanctify and to be holy.
Why
did Joshua ask the people to consecrate themselves?
In the ancient days, consecration of
oneself was part of the preparation necessary for a priestly and royal service.
The people were going to go where God
had called them to go. And, in this
situation Joshua asked the people to consecrate themselves to be prepared for a
unique encounter with God.
At the end of the day . . . to be
consecrated . . . is to put the stuff of life aside for God. It is an activity that gets us ready to
receive what more God has for us.
Refuse to do nothing but live in a
rut.
Get ready for a unique encounter with
God.
Anticipate that God will be doing
something more.
Learning
with you to KICK START the day by getting ready for a unique encounter with
God.
Pastor Kerrie
(written
by Kerrie Palmer © 2010 All Rights Reserved)
interactstudies/ ~ kpalmer@hillchurch.com ~Church on the Hill~700 N. Hill Rd.~McMinnville, OR 97128~503.472.8476 ~www.hillchurch.com~Archives & Daily Subscription: go to http://kickstarttoday.blogspot.com/
interactstudies/ ~ kpalmer@hillchurch.com ~Church on the Hill~700 N. Hill Rd.~McMinnville, OR 97128~503.472.8476 ~www.hillchurch.com~Archives & Daily Subscription: go to http://kickstarttoday.blogspot.com/