After months of prep, MHQ 2026 is now in the rearview mirror and I am looking toward my next event, which will be for World Schools Debate in Istanbul, Turkey. I leave Wednesday afternoon. The tournament is Saturday through Monday. Some of the students are headed that way to do some touring before the tournament. We have been meeting weekly since September in preparation for not only debating, but also to be able to share our faith to anyone who might ask. I would covet your prayers.
As with many things, it can take a long time to prepare. I am reading through Leviticus now, having finished Exodus last week. God took Israel out of Egypt in power and glory, and led them to the Red Sea to display His power over Pharaoh and his army in the sight of the Children of Israel. God then led them with a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night. He was wanting them to trust in Him to lead them all the time. He gave them manna every day, and provided water along the way. This was to become a habit of life. When God says to go, we go. When He says to stay, we stay. We look to Him to provide our daily bread and water, and to protect us from our enemies, even if it we who do the fighting.
Once they got to Mt. Sinai, God spoke to them out of the cloud, gave them the law and had Moses go up on the mountain to have the tablets engraved. Moses was gone for only 40 days, but that seem like a long time to wait with nothing really to do. So, the people went to Aaron to have him make a god for them to worship. It did not take much time to fall into idolatry, and then get deeper into sin. It seems crazy to me how fast the people forgot God, who was still a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night. All they had to do was look up. God’s presence was there all of the time.
Our job is to trust in Him in everything, and acknowledge Him in all our ways and He will make our paths straight. And that is great when things are going well, but throw some challenge in the way, and we are back to leaning on our own understanding. I know that happens with me anyway. I can preach on a topic, and then when the challenge comes, I can forget even what I have spoken about and do the thing that I had said was wrong.
And God’s presence is all around, and is in fact better than they had it in the wilderness. He is in us by His Holy Spirit. He is leading us to all truth, and still we fail.
That is why I am so glad I live this side of the Cross. I am going through Leviticus now and am reading about the various sacrifices now, and that will lead to the various feasts. The sacrifices make things right with God so that we can feast with Him. So there is the burnt offering, the sin offering, trespass offering, peace offering, and the meal offering that got the people’s minds and hearts in the right position so that when the feasts came, they could celebrate God correctly.
Today, the final sacrifice has come in Christ. He died once for all time to save His people. He fulfilled the feasts as well, and we continually live in His presence, much like a never ending Feast of Tabernacles. We are in essence living in “tents” which is our body, and we look forward to the permanent “building” which will be our glorified bodies in heaven. Ones that will never sin, get sick, weep, no more pain, etc. The Old Covenant was a picture, and scale model so to speak, of what we have in store for us. Right now, we live in a continual Sabbath feast, looking forward to the marriage supper of the Lamb.
And God will still put us in situations to test us. He will give us trials for the strengthening of our faith. He is preparing us for heavenly places, and building us up for His purposes. We still need to trust in Him in all things, and delight ourselves in Him, until our work is done. The He will call us home like He did with my mom in December 1999, and my dad in October 2025. And when my work is done, He will call me home too.
This life is in essence another wilderness that we go through on our way to the true Promised Land where we will live out our lives to God without the weight of sin and our worldly bodies. And while I love this life, I love my wife, my kids, and my grandkids, I look forward to being with my Savior for the rest of time.
Amen
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