 A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation. <Previous Message · Archives ·  Archive/print editionWednesday, March 18, 2009  Meeting House Run Road  Listen to us share this message on your audio player."The Daily Dose" "Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it" (Isaiah 30:21). Our text today almost sounds like the description of a GPS, doesn't it, except that the voice would be in front of you and it would say, "This is the way; drive in it." I have ridden with several people who use the GPS system to navigate and I am sure many of our readers have one.  My most memorable trip with a GPS was when we traveled with our friends, Bunny and Peg O'Hare. Bunny affectionately calls their GPS GiGi. Peg was driving and was a bit frustrated at times with GiGi's questionable directions but Bunny lovingly came to GiGi's defense. He would give GiGi a gentle pat reassuring her that she would get us to where we needed to go (or, more truthfully, he was reassuring us)!But people really need to use some God-given directional sense when they use the GPS. The dirt path across from our home is still on the records as a public road called Meeting House Run Road, although it's been abandoned for many, many years and is now our favorite walking trail. Several times a lost motorist has stopped for directions and told me their GPS directed them to take Meeting House Run Road as they gave a perplexing look and pointed toward the dusty tractor trail.  Another aspect of using the GPS is that it provides the directions step by step. If you follow its directions you don't know your next turn till shortly before it's time to make the turn. Essentially it provides doses of information as you need them.There's a spiritual application here, of course. We may very well want directions from the Lord long before He gives them to us. It would be interesting if, following our birth, we received not just a birth certificate but a life map. Our individual path of life would be highlighted from our first breath to our last. But of course this isn't the way our life's journey is laid out except maybe in an old rerun of Twilight Zone. That would be a robotic existence, not a faith-based, day by day journey where we refuse, neglect, or choose to walk in the ways of the Lord. However, thankfully in a sense we do have a life map to follow since the Bible is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. As we walk this pilgrim pathway we only get daily doses of God's leading. All through our lives we need to remain sensitive to the leading of the Spirit and the providential ministry opportunities that He may spontaneously provide. James captures this sentiment. Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that" (James 4:13-15). God directs our lives each day, whether it's a day of ease or whether it's a day(s) of upheaval. But it's during those times of upheaval that we often have difficulty hearing His voice and knowing which step to take next. Uncertainty looms over us and we want to make the right choice or give the proper response. How good it is when we take our concern to the Lord and we hear His voice deep within our spirit directing us, "This is the way, walk in it." God has certainly not been silent and actually the sense of His faithfulness increases during times of uncertainty. I suppose in part that's due to the way we lean on Him, which is just what he wants us to do! I want to encourage all of my fellow believers today. Whether you are experiencing comfort and stability or upheaval and shifting, keep an ear tuned to hear His voice. His daily dosage of direction is always available and keeps you well-grounded! Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber Daily prayer: Father, we recognize from Scripture that You long to be gracious to Your children, to show them compassion and give them direction. You bless those who wait upon You. Though you give us the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, you also give us teachers, prophets, and believing friends who affirm or challenge us as we seek Your face and Your will for our lives. As we hold up the lamp of Your Word to lighten the path before us, how good it is to hear Your voice behind us saying, "This is the way, walk in it." You've promised that You will never leave us or forsake us. Darkness will not overtake us, for You are the Light of the World, and in You there is no darkness at all. Thank You for Your reassuring presence that You walk with us step by step on this day. Amen. Illustrative note: Yesterday I got a call from a long lost friend in a distant state who thought I had called her a few minutes earlier. (Actually I think it was on her voice mail from several weeks ago.) We shared for a few minutes and then she told me her elderly mother-in-law has Alzheimer's and then she began to weep, asking me to pray for her and the family. I commenced to do so right over the phone. You likely have similar opportunities where you followed the leading of the Lord in your encounters throughout the day. I just checked and Google still uses Meeting House Run Road for driving directions to our home! Bunny and Peg O'Hare are friends we met when we lived in New England. Several years ago they moved to Lancaster County where Bunny serves as the director of chaplains for Transport For Christ. Two years ago I shared a story about them in a daily encouragement. 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 "We want to encourage you daily in your walk with Christ!" Personal Ministry Update Revised 01/20/09  Each weekday morning Brooksyne and I prepare these messages and distribute them at no cost to you and many others all over the world. Would you please consider a financial offering to support us in this daily encouragement ministry? Donations are tax deductible and will be receipted directly by my chaplaincy endorsing ministry. Thanks! See here for details. (2009 YTD financial offerings through 3/17/09: $2,795.00) SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION  Were you forwarded this edition of Daily Encouragement Net? If you desire you can receive your own free! To receive these "Daily Encouragement" devotionals each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe. This newsletter is never sent unsolicited. It was sent to you because you either signed up to receive it OR a friend forwarded it to you. You can also subscribe to the rss feed.Cancel: We respect and value your time and privacy. If these messages no longer meet your needs (providing encouragement) you can remove your address by merely use the link automatically inserted by the mailing list software at the very bottom of each email message. Weekly Version: The weekly version is designed for those who may not check their email regularly. It is merely the Friday message with a link to previous messages. To receive the free weekly version, send a blank email to this address. (To change addresses cancel your old address and then join again using your new address.) Please feel free to pass these messages on! "A Daily Prayer" - A blog simply posting the daily prayer. We keep this up each day since it's merely the prayer from the Daily Encouragement Net message! "A Little Foolishness" - Humor/satire blog (a great outlet for non-serious writing but at times with a subtle message!) Last updated with the story of Mildred Swanson, who joyfully discovers her "spiritual gift" is sending forwarded emails! (Note: This material is satire!) "Clear Minded" - Longer, periodic articles on specific issues impacting the faithful believer and church. (Actually this is my intent but I haven't done much with it!) "Hymns of Hope" - Brooksyne along with two friends made a CD using classic hymns. Brooksyne tells the background story of the 11 hymns. We are distributing this CD without charge in our ministry. All of these songs are also available for download on the site. If any reader in this series would like a CD merely write us and request one.  Daily Encouragement Net is an affiliate of Christianbook.com. Any orders placed to Christian Book Distributers using this link or any specific product link to a recommended resource in a daily encouragement message will help our Daily Encouragement ministry through a small commission on the sale. Thank you for using these links when purchasing online through CBD!Personal Mission Statement "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."  How to become a child of God Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. © Copyright 2009 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 Contact us |
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