Thursday, January 25, 2007

The Answer Is Blowing in the Wind

Last week at our church, we had special services each evening. The guest speaker, Greg Hubbard, said something that has stuck with me since, and has likewise impacted my prayers. He referenced the text in Acts 2:2, which says "Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. " He then told of how he had witnessed first-hand the formidable effects of a violent wind -- a tornado. This is the statement he made that has stuck with me... "When the wind of God blows, things move!"

I was reading Exodus 14 this morning in my Bible. Verse 21 says, "all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land." When the wind of God blows, things move.

In both of those situations, the people who would benefit diretly from the effects of God's wind were waiting on Him. In the Acts passage, the disciples were sitting...and had been there for nine days. Jesus had told them to 'wait for the gift my Father promised' (v.4). In the Exodus account, the Hebrews were situated between the pillar of cloud and the sea, with nothing to do but wait. In fact, God had told them, "The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still."

I've also been reading the book of Ruth. There's no wind involved in this one, but there is the waiting. Naomi told her daughter-in-law to "Sit still, my daughter, until you learn how the matter turns out; for the man will not rest until he finishes the matter today." Ruth had to trust that her kinsman redeemer would quickly seal the deal for his bride. He did.

So, I see a pattern emerging concerning how God may be speaking to me. Often, He directs and answers me through Scripture. While I've been praying that the wind of God would blow, and move things in the situations I've been praying about, I'm to sit still, to watch and see what He's doing. It's not profound, I know, but when I perceive God speaking to me, my expectations rise. I almost sense Him taking me by the shoulders, sitting me down, and saying... "Watch this!"

And hey, it's very windy here today!

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