“Whether it was two days, or a month, or a longer time, that the cloud continued over the tabernacle, abiding there, the people of Israel remained in camp and did not set out, but when it lifted they set out. At the command of the Lord they camped, and at the command of the Lord they set out. They kept the charge of the Lord, at the command of the Lord by Moses” (Numbers 9:22-23).
Do you feel stuck in a dead end job? Is your spouse not the person you envisioned spending your life with? Is school too frustrating and hard? Over these and many other situations we sometimes look for a change in life. Get a new job. Leave your spouse for another. Abandon your education. Yet, what we discover, often too late, is that God does not lead by frustration. Sometimes, God places us in frustrating positions so that we can be a witness through them.
Today’s passage tells us that we should only move, or make major changes in our lives when the Lord moves us. Wandering in the wilderness was not fun for Israel. But it was necessary. And so the people did not move until the Lord did. So it should be with us. We should not make major changes out of frustration, but out of conviction. The Lord does not lead out of frustration, but out of conviction. Our temptation is to always look for the easier thing. But just as Jesus close hard things, sometimes it is the hard things that we are called to do. Remember Jesus’ word to the disciples after his resurrection. “While staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father” (Acts 1:4).
Memory Verse
“While staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father” (Acts 1:4).
Application
Whatever your frustration, bring it to God in prayer, and unless it involves sin, seek to remain until the Lord specifically convicts you about what to do next. Check everything with scripture. Seek to be a positive witness for Christ no matter what you face.