How to Get Unstuck and Go to a Place Called "Forward"
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| @Bryan Hudson | http://inspirationimages.zenfolio.com/p964225681 |
Have you ever felt like you did not know where to go or what to do? A better question might be: “When was the last time you felt that way?”
Beware of feelings. Feelings are not final reality. I have been on flights that were so smooth that it did not feel like we were moving. However, 18 inches from my window seat there was pandemonium going on outside at 35,000 feet, traveling at 550 miles per hour, with sub zero temperature air and very low oxygen. So, my feeling could not define the reality.
I have been on merry-go-rounds where everything was moving and I was only going in a circle. One day, a guy saw me with my Apple earphones and remarked that I must have enjoyed my music. That was how he felt. In fact, I was listening to the text of a scholarly article.
Feelings and emotionalism are such a problem until people today can’t embrace reality because feeling a certain way. I am so glad that the most important people in my life operate on reality more than feelings: My family, my attorney, my pilot, my doctors, my pastor, my close friends, and more.
Some folk should just admit it: "I don’t walk by faith. I walk by sight, feelings and emotions." Admit it, then repent of it and let the message of this article help you!
Forward defined: To cause to proceed or progress toward a goal. To cause to go or be taken from one place or condition to another.
For you, there is a place called “Forward." For Israel, their “Forward” was something called the “Promised Land.” The people of Israel did not possess a map of the Promised Land. This was more of a promise of something greater than their present condition in Egypt.
We are people full of ideas and dreams. Our thoughts create a sense of hope. We have the amazing ability to place an image in our mind's eye and construct a good or bad reality around it.
Feeling “stuck” is not uncommon. We all have that feeling from time to time. Israel certainly felt that way as they were staring at an impassable body of water in from of them, with an Egyptian army bearing down on them from behind.
You can be sure that the Egyptians were not coming to help them, they were coming on orders from Pharaoh to slaughter God's people. We can hardly imagine how the people must have felt in that moment. But God knew how move Moses and the people out of that feeling and change their reality.
The good news is this: We serve a God who is never stuck and never has to wonder what He will do next! We serve a God who knows the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10).
In that moment of extreme crisis God did two things for His chosen People:
1. He placed a "pillar of fire" between His people and the pursuing Egyptian army. By this, the people knew they were not alone.
2. God told Moses to tell the people to “Go forward.” This didn't make any sense because of the Red Sea in front of them, but it was an opportunity to trust the Lord in a very special way.
You don’t have to be concerned about things that don’t make sense to you. You only need to embrace what God is saying today (not only what He said in the past). You only need to focus on His word, His promises, and the spiritual principles that govern you and your circumstances.
Look for a pillar of fire in your life and circumstances.
Your "pillar of fire" is not a miraculous sign (we don't look for signs Matthew 16:4). It is something you know God has done for you. Your pillar of fire something already present in your life that may have been overshadowed by your present challenges.
You might be enjoying extended years of life because of God’s healing power. That’s a pillar of fire for you. You might have the blessing of people who love you and continue to support you every day of your life. That’s a pillar of fire for you. It is something that removes any doubt that God is with you and continues to keep the enemy from overtaking you.
Today, God is still saying, “Go forward.”
Forward is the only direction in which God is moving.
You can go forward even when you are forced to stand still. Forward is a place to which God leads people of purpose and destiny. Forward is a place that stretches your faith and exercises your prayer life. Forward is the place and the direction the vision takes you.
How is this? We can always go forward because “forward” is not a direction, it is a mindset, a sense of purpose, and promise from God.
