Now
to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think,
according to the power that works within us…Ephesians 3:20
Our Problems are God’s Opportunities
As I mentioned earlier in the week; the children of Israel
were facing a big problem. The river was over 1 mile wide and there were 2 million
people who had to cross, and yet the Lord wanted them to go over. They couldn't
build a bridge; there wasn't enough time or materials. They couldn't transport
everyone over in boats; there were no boats and they would have been sitting
ducks for their enemies. There was only one way around their problem and that
was through it!
Expect a Miracle
Have you ever sized up your problem and thought about how big
it was? Maybe you looked at it and concluded, "There is no way around, through, over or past this problem."
I suppose we have all been like the 10 spies that returned from spying out the
land of Canaan with Caleb and Joshua. We have sized up our problem and think
that it is more than we can ever face, Numbers 13:31-33.
Our problem was the same one we often have when we face a difficult situation:
we forget about God! Where we see only problems, God sees only solutions. Where
we look at things and say, "There's no way!" God looks at the problem
and says, "Follow me, I have a plan!"
Obedience Activates God’s Provision
The plan was this, God said, "When
the feet of the priests enter Jordan, I am going to part the waters and lead
you through on the dry ground!"
There was a catch in this plan and it was that the waters would not part
until the priests who were carrying the Ark stepped into the water. In other
words, it took a step of faith, whereby the people obediently followed the Lord
for them to see the miracle come to pass.
What a lesson for you and me. Too often, we want the Lord
just to fix everything in our lives for us. We don't want to have to make any
decisions nor do we want to have to exercise our faith in Him. We just want Him
to do it and that will be the end of it. However, most of the time, God will
require us to take steps of faith in order that we might see our Jordan parted.
God had a plan, but for this plan to work, it required faith on the part of His
people!
The same is true for you and me! As long as we are trying to
solve our own problems we are not walking in faith. It is when we turn loose of
the reigns of the problem, step away from it and let the Lord have it that we
will see it taken care of for His glory. It never is about what we can do, it
is always about what the Lord is able to do. When the priests stepped into that
raging river, it parted and God opened a path of dry ground through the waters
for His people. Their obedience activated God’s provision.
We need to remember
that faith honors God and God honors faith! When He does it, it won't just be patched up and
ready to fall apart again, it will be done right and it will be done forever.
This God who did this great thing for Israel is still the same God we are
serving! What He did then, He can do now. He was ABLE all the way through the
Bible, and He is still ABLE today! Regardless of the circumstances, He is still
God and He still can!
Just look back over your own life. How many times has the
Lord opened your Jordan already? He is all we need! He is still the same
miracle working God that He always had been. Learn to expect miracles when you
are dealing with God!
Scripture to Claim
You are
the God who works wonders; You have made known Your strength among the peoples…
Psalms 77:14
