A new heart is from you, Lord.
A new spirit is from you, Lord.
To obey your statutes is from you, Lord.
My heart of stone wrestles to change others.
My heart of flesh changes me.
My heart of stone struggles to change my circumstance.
My heart of flesh humbly accepts my lot.
My heart of stone doesn’t need you.
My heart of flesh cries out for you.
Daily life is a re-enactment of the Israelites crossing the Jordan River.
Our “Jordan River” is always at flood stage. Non-stop flow of earthly concerns that want to drown us and strangle our spirits. It’s either we are getting out of it, in the middle of it or just entering it. Reality.
“…‘Get your provisions ready…you will cross the Jordan here to go in and take possession of the land the Lord your God is giving you for your own.’” Joshua 1:11
Flooded or not, we have to cross it before we get to our Promised Land. There are no short-cuts.
But listen to this: “And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.” Joshua 3:13
With the abiding presence of the Lord before us and as we step in faith and obedience, He will stop the flow upstream. He will cross us over where his glory stands firm on dry ground.
Then the Lord instructs them to take 12 stones from the middle of the river to serve as memorial stones.
“In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.”
Joshua 4:6-7
The Lord has brought me through flood after flood after flood.
My life is marked by these stones and I am looking forward to the coming days when my children and grandchildren will ask:
“What do these stones mean?”
“Since my youth, God, you have taught me, and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds. Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your mighty acts to all who are to come.” Psalm 71:17-18
photo credits:
http://Benjamin_West_-_Joshua_passing_the_River_Jordan_with_the_Ark_of_the_Covenant
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