My new favorite song (yes, it's on the playlist!)

Many years ago I gave my heart to You,/I humbly asked You, Lord, to lead in all I'd do;/But now the burdens seem so heavy You've given me to bear,/Before I press on any farther, I need to know that You're still there.

ch Lord, if Your presence go not with me, I don't want to go;/And if Your Spirit is not leading me, Lord, I need to know./You have placed me here, I'll do Your will, Your love I'll try to show;/But if Your presence go not with me I don't want to go.

2. You've been so good to me I don't mean to complain:/You've healed my heartaches, dried my tears, and soothed my pain./And I'm still willing, Lord, to follow, no matter where You lead;/I'm only asking for assurance that You'll still be near to me.

ch Lord, if Your presence go not with me, I don't want to go;/And if Your Spirit is not leading me, Lord, I need to know./You have placed me here, I'll do Your will, Your love I'll try to show;/But if Your presence go not with me I don't want to go.

3. He said, "My child, I have a place for you, and here you can abide;/I'll be your Friend, your Cleft, I'll cover you, I'm still your Faithful Guide,/I'll keep you safe through all your storms and doubts, in Me you can confide.../I have a special place for you, my child, it's here close by My side.

I'll keep you safe through all your storms and doubts, in Me you can confide.../I have a special place for you, my child, it's here close by My side.

Finishing Well

What do you think of when you hear the name Miriam? She was intelligent, resourceful, and a leader. I have known women to say of someone like this, "When she walks into a room, strength walks in". Miriam faithfully watched her little brother by the river's brink. She bravely offered help and wisely suggested her own mother to nurse baby Moses. In Exodus 15, we find her leading the other women in praise to the Lord. She was a prophetess according to verse 20, yet shortly thereafter, she oversteps her boundaries, speaks against her brother Moses, and God swiftly puts her in her place.

In Numbers 12 we read of a terrible humbling she endured. She spoke against Moses for marrying an Ethiopian woman, and then asks this question, "Hath the LORD indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us?". Was she jealous of the attention Moses was getting? Did she desire a higher place of leadership? Was the complaint against his wife just an excuse used to tear him down in order to make herself look better? For whatever reason, the Bible makes a note of recording, "And the LORD heard it."

The Lord was not pleased with her attack on his servant, Moses. He made it very clear to her in verses 6-8: "...If there be a prophet among you, I the LORD will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house. With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches..."

While the prophets saw visions and dreams, Moses spoke to God face to face! God's judgement fell on her, and Miriam became a leper. Even though Moses prayed and God removed her leprosy, she was shamed for seven days as a leper: "...the LORD said unto Moses, If her father had but spit in her face, should she not be ashamed seven days? let her be shut out from the camp seven days, and after that let her be received in again."

Miriam had held an honored place next to her brothers Aaron and Moses. She was a prophetess of God! The women obviously looked up to her, and followed her lead as she praised God. But after she faltered here, you never read of Miriam in the Bible again. Was she restored? Did she learn her lesson and go on to serve the Lord? It is important that we are careful not to think more of ourselves than we ought. Jesus was meek. Moses was meek. "God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble".

As we serve Him, we need to be careful not to let pride, arrogance, jealousy, and bitterness ruin our testimony, shame us before others, and falter in the race God has left us to run. Rather, humbly and meekly we should serve the Lord, in our place, building up one another, and submitting to those in authority over us, so that we can one day say, "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith".

..."the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong..."

We just returned from a trip around the US and were able to catch up with many old friends we had not seen in about twenty years, since graduating from Bible college in 1991. It was interesting to see that those who may have been written off humanly speaking, are often the ones who are at the forefront of the spiritual battle we are all fighting: pastoring churches, leading ministries, working in missions, etc.

Some of the people I thought were once on fire for the Lord, who had everything going for them, natural born leaders, wit, brains...people I could see leading a sweeping revival across America...are not even in the ministry anymore. Erasing every Christian identification from themselves, they work in a worldly field...promoting a cigarette company, selling casinos trinkets, or some other small task that they have settled to complete. They no longer serve the mighty King of kings, and their focus is no longer on working for their old Master until He returns.

The pilgrim way is rough..full of blessings, accomplishable in Christ, free from regrets...but it is still a hard way. There are pilgrims who leave the way, Christians who make shipwreck, and children who go astray and roam far from the will of God. Only God knows the heart. God knew who would follow Him, and who would serve Him all the days of their lives. He takes the weak things of the world and makes them strong building blocks that He works with here on earth to accomplish eternal works in heaven. It was sad to see some people I was so impressed by, who I thought could make great strides for God, wasted by the world into an ineffectual nothing for the Lord..but also encouraging to think that in Him we can do all things. He can take nothing, and mold it into something useable...someone who will allow Him to work through themselves and create a lasting work of God.