Journeying

July 4, 2005

I can be so self-centered. I’m a frequent asker of the question, What’s in it for me? Sometimes I’m so focused on the “prize” or the “goal” that I overlook the journey. And I forget the importance of the journey.

I was just reading again the story of Moses. Imagine it. You’ve just spent your life leading a bunch of people who were by and large, a royal pain in your butt. But for all those years, you keep keepin’ on because you know you’re making your way to the promised land. If I were Moses, I’d be thinking, “Ahhhh, retirement!”

But in the last chapter of Joshua, God takes Moses to the top of a hill. He shows Moses the promised land. Then God says, “Nice, isn’t it? By the way Moses, you won’t be entering that land.” (This was, of course, a consequence of some not-so-becoming behavior on Moses’ part, but my point is still the same.)

I wonder how Moses felt. If it were me, I’d feel like I was getting ripped off.

But I don’t think God was just being cruel to Moses. I think the reason he showed Moses the land was to assure him that his blood, sweat, tears and self-sacrifice were not in vain. I think it was God’s way of telling Moses that he had run a good race.

The last three verses of the Book of Joshua tell us there was never a prophet like Moses–one that knew God face to face. And it was Moses that God sent to stand up against a HUGE foe. And it was through Moses God demonstrated amazing power.

No, Moses’ life wasn’t about achieving the goal or getting what he could get. It was about what he (and countless others) learned along the way.

Category: Deep Thoughts

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