I was very encouraged by what I read today at the end of the Book of Exodus. In this climactic portion of the book we read that the people of God had finally constructed the Tabernacle and the result was amazing: God's glory descended upon that place and rested like a cloud in the midst of their community. In that moment, they knew that their God would be with them throughout their journey to the promised land; he had "tabernacled" among them. In light of this great gift, here's the response of a people desperate to get to where they wanted to go:

Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out till the day that it was taken up. For the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys. Exodus 40:36-38 (ESV)

The wonderful thing about having God rest in the midst of your community - in the midst of your life as a person of faith - is that they knew he would be leading every next step. Because he was "tabernacled" with them, they had confidence that they would move to a new place, and that they would take that next step, at the right moment in time - no sooner, no later. So often in our lives we long to take some next step on our journey of faith. It may be because we feel somewhat restless where we are at or it may be because others have suggested it's time to move on. In reflecting on the lesson we find in this passage, it behooves the people of God to wait on him before they walk. In a sense - a deeper sense - those who are in Christ have the Lord "tabernacled" with them too, only in a more intimate manner: the Holy Spirit really lives inside of us! The key, then, is to wait not on the "perfect timing" for our next step as we or our friends might appraise it, but rather to wait on the next step that the Spirit indicates, even if that seems somewhat counterintuitive (if called to move forward) or frustrating (if called to wait). In this way we can live out both Galatians 5:25 and James 4:13-16 simultaneously. Easier said than done... but true. To post a question or comment, follow this link.