Lost in the desert

Almost two years ago I decided I wanted to try to read through the Bible in a year. I've made it to Judges. :) So I might be a little behind.... But it has been an interesting journey reading the story of Israel. What a powerful history! And to think that Abraham and Jacob and Joseph and Moses and Joshua were all normal people just like you and me who followed God's calling. They weren't without their faults and mistakes, but they always remained faithful. Imagine what God has planned for our lives! Did you ever think you would be where you are now? I've often had to wonder what God had in mind for the Israelites though. Amongst all the stories of war and battles and times when Israel was doing everything but following God, it can be difficult to see how God was present.

This reminds me of a story I heard a few years ago about a little boy named Timmy. He was only about 6 years old and was taking piano lessons. His mother wanted to give him a little inspiration, so she decided to take him to New York City to see the great pianist Ignacy Jan Paderewski in concert. While Timmy and his mother were waiting for the concert to begin his mother chatted with the people sitting next to them. Now, of course this was a formal event and Timmy had to wear a suit and tie. As he waited patiently his collar began to itch. And his new shoes felt a little tight. Timmy began to squirm. He swung his feet. He tapped on the seat. Then he noticed that his mom hadn't noticed his impatience. So he scooted farther off his seat and tapped the seat in front of him. His mom still had not noticed. Timmy stood up and paced between the seats, still unnoticed by his mother. Timmy even squeezed past the other concert-goers in his row and made his way out into the isle, then began running and skipping through the auditorium. Of course everyone else noticed his misbehavior, except for his mother. Until the whispering became more demanding. "Who is that boy?!" "Where's his mother?!" "Where's security?!" Timmy's mother frantically searched for her son, only to see him running down the isle towards the stage. In all the commotion Timmy had gotten scared and couldn't find his seat again. He saw a security guard coming towards him and ran for the first familiar thing he saw- the piano. He hopped up on the bench and began pounding out Chop Sticks as loud and as fast as he knew how. The whispering had become very insistent shouting now and security guards were trying to make their way through the isles to corral Timmy back to his mother. Just as one of the guards made it to the stage, Paderewski stepped out. He motioned the guard off stage and walked out to the piano. The audience went completely quiet, you could have heard a pin drop. Except for Timmy's Chop Sticks. Paderewski knelt down behind Timmy and slowly put his arms around him, whispering "You're doing great. Keep playing". As Timmy continued playing, Paderewski began creating a concerto based on the tune of Chop Sticks. And all the while he whispered to Timmy "You're doing great. Keep playing".

Life gets hard sometimes. We don't always know what we're doing or where we're going. Or even where we are now. Sometimes all we can do is run frantically to the piano and pound out the only song we know as loud and as fast as we can. But God is always there, kneeling behind us, wrapping his arms around us. Whispering in our ear "You're doing great. Keep playing". While he creates a masterpiece with our lives.

Keep playing. You're doing great. :)