Hunger to Pause
Pause to rest, pause to know, pause to feel, pause to grow.
Rest in the pause to know.
Know in the pause to feel.
Feel in the pause to grow.
Grow in the pause with Truth.
Truth is the key to rest, to know, to pause, to grow.
Without the pause hunger remains.
Hunger to rest, hunger to know,
hunger to feel, hunger to grow.
Real Power in the Pause
Attempting to beat the rush I pulled into the Express Car Wash at 7:30 am. As I handed over the keys, I took a deep breath and searched for a spot to sit and pause for a few minutes. I needed my car clean for a funeral later that afternoon. I had two goals: wash the car and get to God’s Word. Joshua 17:7-18 was my next place in the Bible. From this text my journaled observations uncovered something vital.
God still has land promised for me. But to take possession of it I must stop and pause regularly to remember who He is, what He has done and that I too am part of His story. Stopping to pause produces divine power to believe God another day and trust Him to overcome my trials, knowing He fights for me. With His courage I can take possession of all He has promised and live in that land.
The people in these scriptures were a part of a long line of faithful fathers: Jacob, Joseph, Ephraim and Manasseh. Now, Joshua was in charge, addressing the children of Joseph and their complaint. They thought they needed more land than what was being allocated. Joshua acknowledged them with a challenge to go and clear the hill country. Their response was faithless, “We can’t, it’s not enough and the Canaanites have iron chariots!” Immediately God began reminding me who these people were and their story with God. These children called Jacob, grandfather! Their father was Joseph, a leader of faith. He was sold by his brothers into slavery and ended up saving his family and nations from famine. I thought, “Are you kidding me? They were afraid of iron chariots?” In the 15 minutes of waiting for my car to get cleaned, I was struck so deeply by the magnitude of these few verses and how these people were so afraid that they forget who they were!
Joshua had heard faithless words like this before and he knew their implications. He replied to these people in the faith he possessed. He believed for them and said, “You are numerous and very powerful, go clear the land to its furthest limits, it’s all yours.” Sadly, they failed to do it; they did not take one step forward to receive what God had promised (Judges 1:27). After seeing all God had done in their lifetime, they believed a lie. They focused more on their enemy’s iron chariots than the God they followed. Doubt and fear robbed their future.
The next moment God whispered to me, “What about you, do you trust me to fight for you? Will you go take the land?”
I became aware of how easily I do the same thing.
Every day I have to fight to pause, remember, and believe God. What has God already done? Choose to believe it and trust him for my future. I can so easily forget when I choose not to pause. Like you, I’m busy, I have a job and a family. I have a wedding and a funeral. Like you, I know these are just excuses, but at times I believe they’re so valid and then I wonder why I’m discouraged or afraid or unhappy or I feel I have no purpose – poor me. I’m believing the enemy. I am looking at the iron chariots instead of the One who promised me good land, allotted it, and is just waiting for me to take it. Plus, He promises He will fight my enemies for me. What a deal. But this really is the REAL deal. God was actually blowing my mind at the car wash!
As I finish my journal entry it’s the day of my mother-in-law’s funeral. My kids are traveling home and their fights are delayed. There are big storms on the horizon and my car is dirty. I have learned the hard way that I have to battle to pause no matter how busy life gets. I have learned there is real power ignited in me when I prioritize the pause, even if it’s only for a moment. His word is power, fuel to fly in the Spirit that overcomes natural laws of sin and death. I needed to hear from God to remember again who He is, what He has done, and who I am in His story. He has promised land for me and for you. So, I took another deep breath, got up, headed to my car and thought with a giggle, “Wow, how do you do that Lord?”
