A Fork in the Road...

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

I grew up six miles from the sandy banks of the Red River in North Texas. Nocona was a wonderful place - a small town where everyone knew everyone, where it was safe to walk or bike the streets even after dark, a safe place that definitely felt like home. However, small towns do have some drawbacks - everyone knew everyone or at least, everyone's parents! And like most small towns, there was not a lot of things for teenagers to do - no movie theatre or bowling alley and 50 miles from the nearest shopping mall. So our main pasttime outside of school activities was driving the drag. For us, the drag went down Hwy. 82 from the Nocona Boot Factory to the city park on the west side of town with the Dairy Queen right dab in the middle.

On some occasions, my friends and I would load up and go outside the city limits to explore the river valley. We would drive those back roads hoping not to get stuck in the thick, red sand (been there, done that, wasn't fun!). The thing about those roads was that they twisted and turned, and it was easy to get turned around or even "lost." Another thing about those roads was that they were notorious for the "fork in the road." We would get to one of those forks and try to decide which tine of the fork would most likely take us to our intended target. Invariably, we would choose wrong - and because of all those darn twists and turns we might end up back in town rather than the sandy beach by the burned out bridge. If only we had had Google maps back then! But back then, we couldn't see past the fork, so we had to make a choice as to which way we would go.

Isn't that just like life? Ever so often in life, we come to a fork in the road - a time and place where we must make a choice. Some forks are more important than other ones, but all of them have a cause-and-effect relationship on the path our lives take. Make the wrong choice, there are consequences to live with; make the right choice, life is blessed.

Joshua 2 and 6:22-27 tells the story of Rahab, a prostitute in the city of Jericho. In chapter 2, Rahab came to a fork in the road of her life when Joshua sent two men to spy out the city as they were making their plans for conquest. The men encountered Rahab, whose house was literally built into the wall surrounding the city. She took them into her family's home and hid them from the king's soldiers who came looking for them. She lied and told the soldiers they were no longer there but had gone out into the hills, which led the soldiers on a two or three day wild goose chase. In the meantime, Rahab solicited a promise from them that they would return the favor of protection when the Israelites conquered the city and protect Rahab and her family.They agreed, and gave her a scarlet cord to hang in her window. That would be the sign their army would look for and when found, they would not distroy her family.

And that's exactly what happened. After Joshua's army had marched around the walls of Jericho seven times on that seventh day, Joshua gave the shout, the trumpets blew, and the walls of the city fell down flat (Joshua 6:15-21). In the midst of the chaos of the the Israelite army destroying everything but the silver and gold within the city, he sent the two men to the window with the red cord to rescue Rahab and her family.

Because of her choice to help the spies, Joshua decreed that Rahab and her family would live among the Chilldren of Israel for ever. And they did. In fact, Rahab is listed in Matthew 1 as the father of Boaz - the Jewish husband of Ruth; she was the great great-grandmother of King David! She is in the lineage of Jesus Christ - because of the choice she made at that fork in her road of life.

When Rahab came to that fork - a time when she had a most important, but difficult choice to make - what caused her to decide to side with the spies? I mean, she was a prostitute living and profitting from a pagan society worshiping false idols. She tells us plainly:

• ...she said to the men, "I know that God has given you the land. We're all afraid. Eveyone in the country feels hopeless. We heard how God dried up the waters of the Red Sea before you when you left Egypt, and what he did to the two Amorite kings east of the Jordan...We heard it and our hearts sank. We all had the wind knocked out of us. And all because of you, you and God, your God, God of the heavens above and God of the earth below...Josh 2:9-11 The Message

Rahab the harlot, a worshiper of many gods, had heard about the one, true God, the Lord God, and she believed in that God and His power. She knew that none of her gods could stop the Lord God from fulfilling His plan, thus, acknowledging the supremacy of God.

She chose to believe.

Rahab, the harlot, a worshiper of many gods, also put her faith in her new-found Lord God. She trusted Him that through her protection of the two spies, He would protect her and her family from the complete devastation that was about to befall Jericho. Her symbol of that faith was the scarlet cord she hung in her window.

She chose to have faith.

When Rahab came to that fork in the road, her choices to believe and to have faith in the Lord God and His provision transformed her life. What happened to her, inside of her, is best explained in these words from Paul:

• This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 2 Cor. 5:17 NLT

Rahab's profession of belief and faith in the Lord God, changed her. She was transformed from a harlot in the streets of Jericho to a blessed mother in the family tree of Jesus Christ!

My friend, don't ever think that what you have done or how you are defined is so bad that you have no hope. When you think God is so disgusted with you that He won't have anything to do with you, remember Rahab. He looked past how Rahab had lived and into her heart - and what He saw was faith - in His existence, His sovereignty, His power, and His provision.  And His transformational power changed her and saved her.

Rahab went against all odds and was the only person in Jericho to choose belief and faith.

When you come to those forks in your road of life, think on the words of Joshua:

• Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Josh 1:9

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

But I want it NOW!!!!

The other day my four year old grandson was at our house for a few hours. Now, I love the "Nana" role - it's much less restrictive than the "Mom" role. Without being overly indulgent, Nana can allow things that Mom cannot - an extra snack here and there, reading a favorite book anytime of the day, etc. And believe me, even at four, Benson has learned how to snag his Nana with his big, beautiful eyes...

Well, that particular afternoon, he had had a snack or two already when he asked for an ice cream cone he "conveniently" found in the freezer. I knew his mom would be picking him up shortly and it was close to supper time. So I said, "Not now, Benson. It's too close to supper time."

"But I want it now!" he said, looking at me with those beautiful eyes. Only this time, I saw a tiny speck of defiance. Immediately, I knew he was testing me!

Now, the Nana-part of me wanted to squeeze him tight and fill him up with ice cream cones! However, the Mother-part of me knew better. Even though I wanted to give him what he wanted and make him happy, I knew that was not what was best for him in the long run.

So, I answered, "Not now, Benson. You'll have to wait." And his countenance fell, and for just a moment, my heart ached.

Does that sound like a conversation you've had with the Father?

• God, we need rain before it's too late...
• Father, please heal my loved one - quickly...
• Lord, I don't understand why this is happening to me...
• But Father, Your word says, "Ask," and I've been asking...
• How long is my "wilderness" going to last?...
• I've been praying for my husband's salvation for years, Lord...

We've all been in situations in which we desperately wanted God to work, work in our desired way, and work quickly. If we are honest with ourselves, frustration has probably set in because we weren't getting our way! We may have even been tempted to quit praying or even get angry with God.

Satan delights in our spiritual frustration!

Sometimes and for reasons we don't always understand, the Father will say, "Not now. You have to wait."

Psalm 37 gives us insight in how to handle adverse circumstances, especially when things aren't moving as quickly as we want. It gives us one "don't" and five "do's."

• DO NOT fret (NAS) be upset (NCV) be bothered (The Message) worried (GNT) - Anger and worry are two very destructive emotions, which erode faith. The Psalmist says, "Don't go down that path!" In fact, he says it three times - verses 1, 7, and 8, so it is an important exhortation.
• Can all those worries add a single moment to your life? - Luke 12:25 (NLT)
• Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Phil. 4:6 (NLT)
• DO Trust in the Lord and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness 37:3 (NAS) - To trust means to rely upon or place confidence in someone. We can have absolute confidence that the God of this universe has our backs!
• "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope." Jer. 29:11 (NAS)
• For the Lord will be your confidence... Prov. 3:26 (NAS)
• When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You... Psalm 56:3 (NAS)
• DO Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. 37:4 (NAS) -  To delight in someone means to experience great pleasure and joy in his or her presence. This only happens when we know that person well. Thus, to delight in the Lord, we must know Him and know Him well.
• ...I know Jesus, the One in whom I have believed. And I am sure He is able to protect what He has trusted me with until that day. 2 Tim. 1:12 (NCV)
• Many, O Lord my God, are the wonders which You have done; And Your thoughts toward us; There is none to compare with You. Psalm 40:5 (NAS)
• DO Commit your way to the Lord... 37:5 (NAS) - To commit ourselves to the Lord means to entrust everything - our lives, families, jobs, possessions, future - to His control and guidance.
• I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me, and the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith...Gal. 2:20 (NAS)
• Cast your burden upon the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken. Psalm 55:22 (NAS)
• DO Rest in the Lord...37:7 - Rest means to relieve weariness by cessation of exertion. Therefore, to rest in the Lord, we must trust Him, know Him well (delight), turn the situation over to Him (commit), and then cease from trying to fix it ourselves! Don't do anything about it unless He directs you to.
• Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Matt. 11:28
• For I have given rest to the weary and joy to the sorrowing. Jer. 31:25 (NLT)
• DO Wait patiently for Him...and you will inherit the land...37:7, 9, 34 - Of all these actions, waiting is the most difficult, at least for me! We must learn to trust God's timing.
• There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven...Eccl. 3:1
• For your thoughts are not My thoughts, nor are your ways My ways. Is. 55:8-9

Turning these commands into personal actions will not be easy, but we must not forget what is promised at the end of the commands - You will inherit the land. That land is the Promised Land, which in the future is Glory - spending eternity with the Father. But for the here and now, the Promised Land is the abundant life that Jesus came to give on this earth. And part of that abundant life is peace.

• Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Phil. 4:6-7

My sweet Benson did not understand why he had to wait until after supper to have his ice cream cone. "But Nana, I want it now!"

But let's remember that our Father knows all and certainly knows what is best in all our circumstances. We just have to learn to:

• Not worry or be upset
• Trust Him and place our confidence in Him
• Delight in the pleasure of His presence
• Commit everything to His care
• Rest in Him and not try to manipulate
• Wait patiently for His will to work in His timing

Yet those who wait patiently upon the Lord will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles. They will run and not get tired; they will walk and not become weary. Is 40:31