He Stood In The Midst

     Now I know I can't possibly be the only one who is like this, but there are a couple people in Heaven I basically must meet. Jesus will be a big one (obviously). Paul is definitely on the list, along with John the Baptist, and Jonah (I mean, how many guys do you know that have caught a fish from the inside!). But I have to tell you, the guy I was reading about today is a must-see. First of all, he's listed as one of David's mighty men. The guy gets huge man-points just for that. But look what he does.
     2 Sam. 23:11. And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together in a troop, where was a piece of ground full of lentils: and the people fled from the Philistines.
     12. But he stood in the midst of the ground, and defended it, and slew the Philistines: and the LORD wrought a great victory.
     Let's paint a picture here. So Shammah is with this group of people, maybe foragers, when a force of Philistines come over the hill. The people with Shammah pull on their New Balances and go tearing off in to the sunset, leaving Shammah all alone. Now put yourself in Shammah's shoes: you're all alone, facing an enemy army, and you're left with the decision to run for it or defend a pea patch. There are definitely some things I would die for. Bible? Yes. Family? Yes. Pizza? Obviously. Peas? Nope. Not happening. Sorry, but there is no way I would die for peas, and unless Shammah was some radical sort of devout vegetarian, I have a feeling he wasn't super inclined to make a great last stand on a vegetable garden. But he stays. Why? That was where God had put him. He was sent for a reason, whether it be to protect the foragers in the garden or to lead a scouting mission against the Philistines. Ultimately, it doesn't matter why. Shammah defended what was given to him even at risk of his life.
     My question for you is: what would you die for? The neighbor you're witnessing to, your unsaved coworker, or your children? Each of us has given a pea patch: a mission to accomplish or ground to hold at all costs. Even if it means giving up your life, but not in the sense you are thinking. All throughout the Bible, we are called to give up our lives on a daily basis; putting aside our old, sinful tendencies and loving people as Christ Himself. So I encourage you to read the story of Shammah, remember where God has called you, and daily lay down your lives for what God has called you to do.

Holy Ground

     He could have chosen the house of the Levite. Or the palace. Or the tent of the Midian high priest. Or He could have chosen Pizza Hut for that matter. However, as we see God doing so many different times in Scripture, God chose somewhere unusual, plain, unsuspected, and just plain ugly. The backside of the desert.
     Exodus 3:1 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.
     2 And the Angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
     Moses was destined to be the future leader of Israel and to lead them out of Egypt and into the Promised Land in the name of the Lord. He was spared from Pharaoh's extermination of Hebrew children and was brought up in safety under Pharaoh's own roof. However, he was not ready to handle the task to which God had called him. Moses' action in killing the Egyptian in Exodus 2:11-12 proved that not only was he unprepared, but we also see in 2:14 that the Hebrews were not ready for him to be their leader. So Moses was led to a place where he would meet God; a place where Moses' past, pedigree, and former position were null and void. He became a shepherd in the backside of the desert. Not exactly a flashy position, but in leading sheep around the wilderness of Horeb, Moses was being prepared to lead a nation into the Promised Land.
     So what is the application here? Moses had a job to do; a big job. He had a massive calling on his life that he could not deny or fail to undertake. But God's strategy was not to put an ill-prepared soldier in the breach; there was a preparation period in which God hand-crafted His servant. All of us have hit those sections of life that could most definitely be classified as "backside of desert" equivalents. Whether those seem to be hard times in ministry, sickness, financial difficulties, or having to live in the heat, we will all spend a tour of duty being prepared for what God has for us. We look at situations or locations and call them God-forsaken, but Christian, if you lift up your eyes, you may realize that, like Moses, the place you are standing is holy ground.
    

The Believer's Creed