Major Marker: Alone with God

After six days Jesus took

Peter, James and John

with him and led them up a high mountain,

where they were all alone.

There he was transfigured before them.

Mark 9:2 NIV

Then Jesus went with them

to a garden called Gethsemane

and told his disciples,

"Stay here while I go over there and pray."

Taking along Peter and the two sons of Zebedee...

Matthew 26:36 MSG

If for one second you have ever been tempted to think that living life with Christ would be boring...well, I'm here to tell you that you are flat out WRONG.

OK, so I went to Coastal Georgia. Saw the ocean. Cast my sins to the ocean floor and haven't the slightest desire to jump in after them. Not to say there aren't times the thought crosses my mind. But that's where it ends. I've seen the power of the ocean and a few of the creatures in the sea and have decided I like staying on the beach!!

But then God said to pack my bags...and suggested I'd need a world atlas for this next jaunt. That's right. I lived the next year out of a suitcase. It took me north to Atlanta, and further still north to Michigan. If that were not enough, we then traveled west to get to the Far East.

From famine of biological family and feasting with spiritual siblings, He took me further still for some one-on-one time with the Father and the Word.

The Word became flesh

and made his dwelling among us.

We have seen his glory,

the glory of the One and Only,

who came from the Father,

full of grace and truth.

John 1:14 NIV

Guidepost: God's Word and His family

Noun
1. A rule or principle that provides guidance to appropriate behavior.
2. A post bearing a sign that gives directions or shows the way.Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

When you have lived forty years in the same general vicinity you don't have to know much about reading maps...no need for a GPS...never have to stop and ask for directions. You just know how to get there. Don't even pay much attention to the road names besides the signs they are written on. Maybe that is why God said "We're moving to Savannah. It's high time you learned how to read My map."

Now I knew that Savannah was in Georgia. I'd read Gone with the Wind five times and watched the movie at least that many times. But I had to get out a map to pin point its exact location. Coastal Georgia (can't say I knew Georgia actually reached the coast.) Awesome!

It wasn't just corn fields I was leaving behind in the Hoosier state. I was leaving family...biological family. I was leaving my mom! Most of our immediate and extended family lived in Indiana. In the same county even. It was huge for me.

But the guidepost God erected for me in Georgia was the importance of my spiritual family. He allowed a famine of biological family so that I could feast at the table with my spiritual family.

It took us awhile to find a church home. We'd go camp out at one. Pitch our tent. Feel obligated to stay--didn't want to hurt their feelings ya know. Then we gravitated to another. Repeat scenario. Finally, God got us where He wanted us and just in the nick of time. I'm not sure I would have made it through that leg of the journey if it weren't for my family of Grace.

My new family introduced me to in-depth Bible study and Beth Moore. I learned to love God's Word and Truth there. Learned that God had a purpose for my life. I learned what it meant to have someone walk along side of me...a spiritual momma who had walked a similar road. I learned that it was okay to be authentic and flawed and still be loved.

So I started reading the road map that God gave us for the journey. Gave Gone with the Wind a break and started reading the Bible.

The "Go" of God

Set up road signs;

put up guideposts.

Take note of the highway,

the road that you take.

Jeremiah 31:21

Signs along the road. They were put there to be ignored, right? I mean, we all know that the speed limit isn't really 65 (except maybe in Virginia!) Stop seems to mean yield to most drivers. Oh, and only in Savannah does the pedestrian crossing sign seem to matter. On Long Island they told me I was crazy to think that the walk sign was really for pedestrians--only if you were willing to take your life in your own hands did you dare believe it really meant it was safe to walk now. Seems like a big waste of tax payers dollars to keep putting up all of those signs. They clutter the landscape. Ruin the view.

Now the one sign that I have noticed that most drivers give credence to is the traffic light. We seem to like electronic devices better than mere print material. Ever tried to ignore a green light? The driver behind you often takes a personal interest in that decision and reciprocates with a decision of his own to lay on his horn. I've also seen the horn used to chastise someone who thought the red light surely wasn't meant for him.

So let's take this discussion from the highway to the Most High's way. The sign I am most enamored with at this point is the "go" of God. What does it mean when He says "go"? We often hear the "no" of God preached from the preacher's pulpit and the parent's lips. But what about His "go"?

I remember telling Him at one point that I would go wherever He wanted me to go. I must say in my brain I was thinking short term mission trips to exotic countries. I must admit that when I look back on that, I was thinking in terms more like a vacation than a vocation. He, however, took me at my word and asked me to go to Georgia...not the country, the state. Now moving to Georgia from Indiana has a lot of perks. Savannah is a beautiful city that offers history, art, and an ocean view. Not too shabby, I'm thinking.

But then He asked me to move from an ocean view to a mountain view. Never was a big fan of the red clay of north Georgia or the big city of Atlanta, but, hey, I was near the foothills. I soon found out that was a mere pit stop on the journey. Just a quick rest stop on my trip further north to Iowa. In case you don't know, there are no ocean views or mountain vistas in Iowa. But I had promised God I would go when He told me to go; so I went. Even if it was cold.

I've taken note of the road I've been taking. I'll share a few of the guideposts I've put up along the way if you care to check back.