At the Garden Tomb, the community
members come together for group devotions each morning before opening the gates.
The Deputy Director asked if I would give attention to Exodus 13 in a recent
gathering.
The chapter begins by reminding the
newly released slaves of the importance of the Passover. It was to be an annual
remembrance. And for the Garden Tomb community, we regularly recognize Jesus as
the perfect Passover Lamb, releasing us from slavery to sin and bringing us out
of exile into God’s promises.
The chapter then transitions to
emphasizing the unique standing of the firstborn, whether human or animal. We
are then informed of the beginning of the Hebrews' journey to Canaan and of
taking the bones of Joseph with them, as promised. It ends by telling us of God’s
leading, which is 24 hours a day, seven days a week, using the unique tools of
a cloud and a fire.
Yet in the middle of the chapter
are two verses that captured my attention and imagination.
When Pharaoh let the people go, God
did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was
near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and
return to Egypt.” But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness
toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt
equipped for battle.
(Exodus 13:17-18 ESV)
Two phases caused me to ponder: “Lest
the people change their minds when they see war” and then later “Israel
went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle.”
The zenith years of the ministry
entrusted to my stewardship occurred in Chicago, a very unique city. Chicago is
populated with 3 million people along the shorelines of Lake Michigan and is fully
contained in Cook County, a very politically progressive community. And in the
middle of the city is the east/west Eisenhower Expressway that unexpectedly serves
as a dividing line, separating the city between the north (Chicago Cubs baseball
country) and the south (Chicago White Sox’s baseball country). But the
difference between the two cultures is far more than just loyalty to two different
baseball teams; they are radically different. I spent ten years in the northern
area before spending six years in the south.
The people of Chicago also refer to the
area as Chicagoland, which extends the borders of the city’s mindset. It runs
from the Wisconsin border up north to the Indiana border down south, about 120
miles. You cannot tell when you leave one community and enter another in
Chicagoland. It is one massive sea of humanity. Eight million people live in that
stretch of land and are as culturally different as Chicago itself. Yet all the
people of Chicagoland have one thing in common; they can be very
confrontational. You never have to wonder what they think of you.
My general practice in ministry was
to stand at the exit at the end of a church service and thank the people for
coming, but I quit doing that when overseeing the congregation in Chicago Southland.
I discovered that some people were uncomfortable having to pass by me and shake
my hand. I did not want to prevent them from coming to church because of me.
They liked the church and the people of the church. So, I welcomed people as
they came to church and stayed at the altar at the end of the service, praying for
people in need while those not wishing contact with me could safely leave.
One Sunday, at the end of the
service, I saw a guy lingering by the exit. He normally avoided me, yet he
never missed a church service and the church administrator once told me that he
was a very generous giver. When I got to the exit, the man approached and said,
“That was a good sermon; I like the way you preach. I don’t like you but I like
what you have to say.” I burst out laughing and said, “Well, I have six others
pastors on staff, why don’t you go and like one of them?” With a twinkle in his
eye, he said, “I can do that!” And he did, he became good friends with the
Associate Pastor, faithfully attended and generously gave.
In those same years, I was selected
by my colleagues to be the official encourager and counselor of the 33 churches
and 150 ministers in the immediate area, which I did for five years. And then my
colleagues selected me to be a statewide executive leader, along with three
other individuals, helping give direction and guidance to over 300 churches and 1500
ministers for eight years. So, on top of leading a larger local church, I gave
a lot of attention to conflict resolution in other churches, helping sister churches
that were going through various kinds of battles; and there were lots of them. I
spent so much time dealing with intense conflict, chronic wars. It could be very
draining at times!
Because of the unique strain associated
with the ministry, most pastors need regular and ongoing affirmation, something
more unnatural in Chicagoland. I have seen too many ministers quit because of
the wars along the shoreline of Lake Michigan. The conflicts were too many and
too much, and they changed their mind about ministry and went back to their Egypt.
It was not that they were unequipped to do ministry, just not equipped for
Chicagoland. There were other places where they could have been very successful
but they changed their mind and gave up.
The passage of Scripture just read
states God would not let Israel take the shortcut to Canaan along the shoreline
of the Mediterranean because he knew the wars would overwhelm them and cause them
to give up, preventing them from attaining his promises. So, he gave them
another route while still equipped for battle. What does that suggest? There
would still be struggles and conflict but they would occur in the realm of what
they could handle.
Here is the point: You may be going
through a battle of some sort right now and thinking, “I can’t handle it.” And
you are wrong; yes, you can! God does not bring his children on a route where the
battle is too big and too frequent for them to handle.
You are equipped for your battles. And
the God who guides you 24/7 has custom designed your very route AND the battles
that come with it. Your battles are there for you to learn from and to spiritually
grow from. And you can gain victory in every one of them.
The route he has for you is a route
you can handle IF you allow him to guide you in the glory and light of his
presence. Trust him and move on to the promises that he has for you.
(In context, the shorter and gentler
topography of the more direct route near the Mediterranean would have made it
too convenient for them to consider turning back, a quick and easier terrain. The
lengthier and harsher wilderness topography would have discouraged them from trying
to return.)
