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The Guiding Pillar

by Jerry Ousley  
3/15/2012 / Christian Living


There used to be a Soap Opera on TV, and maybe it still is; how would I know? I never did like watching those things. If I had a week day in which I had nothing to do I believe that I'd rather inventory the trash as to spend the day watching Soap Operas. Now I know that some of you really like those programs and you are entitled to like what you want. I'm just stating my opinion here. Anyway, this particular show was called "The Guiding Light." I'm not certain where they came up with the name of that show but I'd say that some of the characters in it would be a whole lot better off if they had chosen to follow the true guiding light.

In the Bible I can readily think of two instances of guiding lights. One was the star that appeared to the wise men leading them to Bethlehem to see the Christ Child nearly two years after His birth.

The second is found in the Old Testament and particularly in Numbers 9:15-23 which gives some explanation of the purpose of God's guiding pillar. It first appeared when they had left Egypt. Following their departure Pharaoh realized that these Hebrew slaves had finally gotten what they wanted. They left the land in devastation because of the great plagues God had brought upon the Egyptians as Pharaoh had refused to release them. After he had somewhat recovered from the death of his firstborn son he grew angry and organized the army to go after these slaves.

God had led His people to the brink of the Red Sea. So here they were, cornered with the Red Sea on one side and the Egyptian army closing in fast. God created a pillar that stood between the Egyptian army and the Hebrew people. During the day it appeared as a cloud and at night it was a burning pillar of fire. From there we know that God instructed Moses to stretch his rod out over the sea and it parted allowing them to cross on dry land. Pharaoh's army followed but once the last Hebrew had stepped up out of the sea the waters were released and the Egyptian army drowned.

That guiding pillar stayed with the people of Israel until they finally arrived to take possession of the Promised Land. It became the signal from God that indicated when it was time to camp and when it was time to move. We read in Numbers 9:20-23, "So it was, when the cloud was above the tabernacle a few days: according to the command of the LORD they would remain encamped, and according to the command of the LORD they would journey. So it was, when the cloud remained only from evening until morning: when the cloud was taken up in the morning, then they would journey; whether by day or by night, whenever the cloud was taken up, they would journey. Whether it was two days, a month, or a year that the cloud remained above the tabernacle, the children of Israel would remain encamped and not journey; but when it was taken up, they would journey. At the command of the LORD they remained encamped, and at the command of the LORD they journeyed; they kept the charge of the LORD, at the command of the LORD by the hand of Moses." It was an easy way to decide whether to travel or not don't you think?

We all need a guiding pillar in our lives. While we may not physically see a pillar of cloud or fire, for each believer in Christ Jesus that type of guidance system is installed in each of us by way of the Holy Spirit. We can't see Him but He is constantly active in our lives letting us know in our hearts which direction we should go, when we should step out and when we are better off keeping quiet and being still.

Though it would be nice to be able to physically see Him still He is there and He is leading us. Our problem is that often we are so busy or in such a hurry that we fail to listen to His prodding. That can only mean one thing; we need to slow down, take some time and when we feel that little prickle or get the feeling that something isn't right, then we need to realize that this is none other than the Holy Spirit trying to give us direction.

When we teach our children the right way to cross a street we tell them to "stop, look, and listen." That's good advice. And it's also good advice when it comes to hearing the Holy Spirit speaking to our hearts. We must stop our busy schedule for just a moment, look at the red flag He's throwing up in front of us, and listen to His instruction and warning. Oh how much better off we'd be if we would just take time to follow our Guiding Pillar!

Jerry D. Ousley is the author of ?Soul Challenge?, ?Soul Journey?, ?Ordeal?, ?The Spirit Bread Daily Devotional and his first novel ?The Shoe Tree.? Visit our website at spiritbread.com to download these and more completely free of charge.

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