Hello and welcome to my first ever Blog posting. My intention is to write something here as frequently as I feel inclined, some of it may make sense, some of it may not, but I do hope that all will be of some interest so here are my first meandering thoughts I am presently reading a book called God is closer than you think by John Ortberg, during the most recent chapter Ortberg expresses a saying which I have taken as my personal slogan: Would you like frogs with that?
It looks back to the book of Exodus when Moses is talking to the Pharaoh of the time and working on behalf of the Israelites to secure their freedom from slavery in Egypt. Now as part of this great dealing, God gives Moses some bargaining chips in the shape of 10 plagues, the second of which just happened to be a plague of frogs. Frogs, it is written, covered the place, teeming from the Nile they were all over the country, and all over the Pharaohs house. In the kitchen, they were in the bathroom, and they were even in the Bedroom for goodness sake! What a nightmare.
The story then continues that Pharaoh eventually comes round to seeing Moses way of thinking, and asks him to seek God in order to remove the frogs. Now, Moses then asks the Pharaoh When would you like me to pray? and the Pharaoh answers with a single word. Tomorrow.
And it is here where I am struck by the stupidity of the Pharaoh, who for some reason, despite having the answer to all his frog squashing problems in the palm of his hands, he decides to live another day with the green blighters bouncing around his house.
It is such a dangerous word for us. Ill do this or that tomorrow, and I have been struck by its impact in my own life and walk with God.
In so many ways I see myself as on my way to somewhere tomorrow. Ill pray more tomorrow. Ill start spending less money tomorrow. Ill dedicate myself to doing something important in the future, being more secure, more spiritual, fitter, stronger, more cultured. Wanting to be something Im not and believing Ill get there tomorrow.
So Im making a decision and Id love for you do it with me God has made you and I who we are right now. And through Jesus has made a way for us to be right with him today. No more guilt, no more shame, no more fear of where we are but freedom, joy and peace and a journey, which he takes us on, of self discovery and exploration of how we were made to live.
Why didnt someone shout at Pharaoh Why wait until tomorrow?! Well Im shouting now to you Why wait until tomorrow?!
So when I catch myself thinking Ill do that tomorrow or I can be that in the future I bark back at myself Would you like frogs with that?
Lets live the way we were created to be today!