By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way
and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light,
so that they could travel by day or night (Exodus, 13:21, NIV).
Praise God, we made it through another school year! Praise the Lord, we’re heading toward summer and some vacation. Are you ready for summer time?
No more waking up at 6:00 am to drive the kids/grandkids to school! I can have my beauty nap in the afternoon as this papa bear needs his afternoon hibernation. But wait, my wife has other plans for me.
Wouldn’t it be nice if the Lord guided us as to where we are to go and tells us what we are to do? We’re so inclined to set our schedules for the day, the week, perhaps for the entire summer. We don’t want to think about the fall at least for now. We’re just finalizing the plans for the summer, and praying it will go as planned by us.
Believe it or not, we don’t have a tangible pillar of cloud and a pillar of fire that leads us. In fact, we have something even better! We have our Good Shepherd who promises to never leave or forsake us. However, it is much more than Jesus just walking beside us. He goes before us! If we would just be still, we can hear the Spirit of God calling us to go this way or do this for God. God has a wonderful plan for us this summer, but we need to pause our plans and ask Him: What is Your plan for us this summer?
I have intentions to go to San Francisco and/or Branson this year. The Lord brought a reunion for us in one of our former churches. We’re going to a church retreat over Memorial Day weekend. I will be teaching a seminar and on a panel. I could have saved those mileage points to fly to San Francisco, but what matters is not where I want to go but where the Lord wants me to go.
Don’t leave Jesus out of your on-going plans and don’t leave Him out of your summer plans. Take Jesus with you, if I may say that, in being more conscientious of His presence with you and going ahead of you. Let’s have a great summer with Jesus. It will be a thrill for us all.
Kingston Tong
May 5th, 2024