Numbers 9:15-23
As soon as the sacred tent was set up, a thick cloud appeared and covered it. The cloud was there each day, and during the night, a fire could be seen in it. The Lord used this cloud to tell the Israelites when to move their camp and where to set it up again. As long as the cloud covered the tent, the Israelites did not break camp. But when the cloud moved, they followed it, and wherever it stopped, they camped and stayed there, whether it was only one night, a few days, a month, or even a year. As long as the cloud remained over the tent, the Israelites stayed where they were. But when the cloud moved, so did the Israelites. They obeyed the Lord’s commands and went wherever he directed Moses.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
I once knew a woman who traveled a lot for work. When she was gone, she left her porch light on, so that her neighbors would know she was away and her house was unattended. When she returned, she turned off the light. This was their “neighborhood watch” system… until the time she came home and didn’t turn out the porch light. The neighbors assumed she was still away. When other friends noted that she was not answering phone calls, or returning messages, her home was searched. She was discovered in her garage, sitting in her car…a victim of suicide. She had circumvented the neighborhood signaling system… and created a truly “epic – and tragic - fail.”
It sounds so good on the surface to think that God would have this “foolproof” system of communicating with us. Storm clouds hanging overhead? Don’t budge! Clouds on the move? Go with them! But here’s the problem with this system… we are not that obedient. We would ultimately decide that we knew better than God’s cloud, and we would set out on our own at some point. I know us! We are a stubborn people! Additionally, we grow impatient and complacent. We would get to the point where we didn’t even really notice that cloud. We would forget to even check to see if it was there or not. And the next thing you know, God would appear – or move – and we would be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Just as you could argue that the devil used my friend’s “porch-light system” with her neighbors to create a diversion and allow her to take her own life, you could conclude with fairly high accuracy that he would at least try to find a way to distract us from God and His signals.
There are a couple of lessons in this passage. We are not obedient enough to operate under such a black and white system… even if we should be. We need the grace and mercy God offers us through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. We have a far better chance of serving God obediently if we are dependent on a constant dialog and active interaction with Him. We are far more apt to stay awake and alert… and to follow His lead… if we are required to pay attention – to listen and respond. We need the forgiveness of a loving God that results from an abiding relationship with Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit… because we probably will get busy at some point and lose focus… and the “cloud” will come and go without us.
Does this mean that we have a license to do as we please and ignore God’s “signals”? Absolutely not! Paying attention to God and staying focused on Him is more important than ever. This brings me to the second lesson of this passage. Because God no longer operates in such a “black-and-white” system, we have a choice to make. We can choose to follow Him and do the necessary work to stay in communion with Him… or we can choose to wander off down another path – to be swayed by the persuasions of the devil - and to allow him to distract and dissuade us.
I know that there were a lot of people who felt they missed the signs of distress that my friend displayed. I know that there are dozens of distractions for each of us in any given hour. And I know that it sounds like a simple “cloud/no cloud” system from God would simplify everything. But truly, it would not. There is no short-cut. We must all choose whether to pay attention and listen to God’s signals… or whether to “wing it”, do our own thing, and let outside forces determine our destiny. For me, the latter is simply not an option… what about you?
©2013 Debbie Robus
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