Are you tired of waiting for God to show up?

Right after Abram believed God, God took him into one of the darker moments of scripture (IMHO). The scene is set with butchered animals laid out in the hot sun – Abram is waiting for God and in the meantime, he has to beat off the birds of prey that come to feast on the raw meat.

Then, as it grew dark, “Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him.” It gets spookier. After God spoke to Abram we read: “When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces.” (Gen 15:17). Can you see a disembodied firepot and blazing torch moving through cut-up animals? The message God gives Abram isn’t pleasant. Earlier, God had promised that Abram that he would take possession of the land he had moved to. Abram asks a common question for which I never like the answer. He asked how he would know that this would happen.

Enter spooky scene above, and in the midst of it, God’s “evidence” stinks. He tells Abram, “Your descendants will go into slavery for 400 years, but they will come out of it prosperous and then they will come back here.” Really? That’s the evidence?

Years later, when God calls Moses to lead the descendants of Abram out of slavery, He gives similar “evidence”: “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain” (Exodus 3:12).

This tendency of God’s has always bothered me. I don’t blame Moses for asking God to find someone else. God called him to an impossible-sounding quest and then said that Moses would know he got it right AFTER everything was said and done. I think I’d prefer a step-by-step plan. Yet, God doesn’t give us a map.

When we look at goal setting, one of the things we need to define is “what does “done” look like?” This is the essence of what God is doing. He is defining the win. The journey, though is where the challenge is. It is also where our relationship is deepened.

I’m going to jump to the New Testament for a minute. Imagine with me Peter in a boat and Jesus just showed up across the water. (See Matthew 14). Peter wanted to join Jesus on the water, and, after Jesus invites him to join him for a stroll, Peter starts to climb out of the boat. He gets one foot out of the boat and he is standing on water, so he gingerly pulls the other foot out. He is still holding onto the boat, and his compatriots are leaning away from him to keep themselves from capsizing. With a big breath, he lets go of the side of the boat and stands up, facing Jesus. Look at this! He’s walking on water! Peter takes a few steps and then a wave crashes in front of him, drawing his attention from Jesus. As he loses his focus, he is quickly overwhelmed by the storm and starts sinking.

That’s me.
Right there.
Distracted by the storm.

However, there is nothing like sucking in water to refocus you on your Source. Peter adjusts his focus, cries out to Jesus and Jesus pulls him up.

Maybe that is why we are called to these faith journeys. As we walk and face obstacles, we learn that life is next to impossible when you try to do it all on your own. We learn that we can trust God’s character and our relationship with Him becomes stronger. Slowly, over time, we begin to rely on Him more and ourselves less.

We often feel like we are waiting for God to show up – which one would think would bring instant relief. Instead, God calls us to the journey. Whether our goal is the fulfillment of a promise (Abram), a specific calling (Moses), or just survival in the storms of life (Peter), it’s the journey that molds and shapes us into the people we were created to be – fully present, in a trust-relationship with God.