New Years REVOLUTIONS #3 - Following God's Lead...

God delivered the people of Israel from 430 years of slavery in Egypt. 430 years. (To put that in perspective on how long & significant a period of time 430 years is, the US Declaration of Independence was signed 238 years ago.)  Israel’s history, culture, beliefs, practices, & ways of relating to God & each other were largely shaped by their Egyptian captivity – they didn’t know how to live free, nor how to rely upon & follow God’s lead.
 
So, God established a visible sign of where He was for Israel to follow – during the day, God’s presence was signified by a cloud; at night, the cloud was transformed into a pillar of fire. Through Moses, God told Israel that they were to follow the cloud & the fire wherever it lead, & not to go forward until He said. Sometimes the cloud/fire would remain in an area for a couple of days & then move on. Other times, the cloud/fire would linger in a place for weeks, months, & even longer. Bottom line, God was teaching Israel that life worked best when they followed His leading (literally) & not merely their own directions. (Check out Exodus 13:17-22 & Numbers 9:15-23 for a bit more about the cloud & fire.)
 
In Romans 8,  Paul talks about living according to our flesh (the part of us that resists/works against God’s work in our lives) & living according to the direction of the Spirit of Christ. I couldn’t help but notice a parallel between God leading His people Israel with the cloud & fire, & His leading us with the Spirit of Christ. Living according to the Spirit is “following God’s leading” in our lives - & though there’s not a visible sign to follow, there is a very real instruction that the Holy Spirit gives us that enables us to obey God, live our lives to bring Him glory, & to be His representatives in every arena of life that we live in – at home, work, school, socially, within the community…. Everywhere. All the time.
 
In this message from our New Year’s REVOLUTIONS series, we’ll be exploring “Following God’s Lead” in more depth, as well as looking at how we can actively cooperate with what the Holy Spirit is doing in us as He gives us REAL life, & develops Christ-likeness in us.
 

Grace, peace, & God’s blessings to you today -
 
Louie