No Shortcuts

The traffic was thick causing the air to be heavy-laden with billows of exhaust. The four lane road had been condensed to one pitiful artery as construction crews were tearing up the pavement, and I sat amongst the crowd idling in attempt to make my way to a meeting. I knew there existed another route that would take me in a different direction and lead me up the back roadway to my destination. I became contented with my new plan and slightly smug that I had the brilliance to remember this alternate road.

And apparently a whole host of other people felt the same smugness for I was the second last in a lengthy line to make the turn at the intersection. The light continued to cycle from green to red over and over again. I continued to wait four long cycle changes at that intersection before I was able to squeak my way through the light.

Romans 8:24, We were saved, and we have this hope. If we see what we are waiting for, that is not really hope. People do not hope for something they already have.

When the whispers of God’s breath can be heard across your heart, one cannot help but be drawn to the vibration of His movement. And when God moves, our greatest desire is not to be left behind, but move with Him. Our hearts cry is to see the Holy Spirit at work within us so that the plan for our life may unfold before our very eyes.

But attempting to take shortcuts and weave our way around the path just isn’t a part of the plan. It only leads us to more waiting and sometimes missing our God-given opportunities all together. Our time of waiting is of upmost importance for it can birth within us a most solid seed of hope. It is the delicious anticipation of what is yet to come that often fuels us to keep going.

When we are tempted to take a shortcut, let us remember that Moses waited forty long years in hopes of setting foot into the promised land. Unfortunately Moses was never able to see the hope that was hidden within His heart unfold in his lifetime because he attempted to take a shortcut that cost him far too much.

God had commanded Moses and his brother Aaron to gather together the Israelites and lead them to a rock in order to provide His people with much needed water. Moses was to speak to the rock and God would provide the miracle of water pouring forth out of the stone itself before their very eyes.

So Moses and Aaron did just this… but they didn’t. Yes, they gathered God’s people and led them to the rock, but Moses took a shortcut weaving his way around God’s direct command. Instead of speaking to the rock, Moses shouted, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” and impatiently struck it not once but twice, releasing the water. And his outburst seemed like a slightly smug proclamation that he performed the miracle, not God.

The bottom line is we simply can’t look for shortcuts when it comes to the commands God gives us in our journey. We mustn’t compromise our hope. We need to do hard things in order to give God the ability to perform miracles in our lives. And we need to give God the glory when the miracle happens. Our smugness will only lead us down the path to sorrow, living with the aftermath that our disobedience cost us far too much.

Father, though the shortcuts are tempting, help me to stay on the path that is lit by your Holy Spirit. May the commands of your voice be heard in my heart so I can hold on to the hope that is unseen. In Jesus name, amen.

 

Don’t forget to subscribe to my blog to receive news posts right in your email the instant they are posted on the site. CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TODAY!