The High Places

The High Places

By Clayton Adams Recently, my wife and I along with two friends took a trip to Green Bay, Wisconsin to see the Packers play (lose) against the New Orleans Saints. Our friends are Saints fans' and I'm guessing there'll be all kinds in heaven, except, maybe Cowboys fans, right?

The older I become the more thankful I am for the simple things of life. For instance, I enjoy traveling with friends, helping my students learn basic medical skills and sharing with them life lessons. I enjoy teaching and understand that to teach, one must always be learning, and to learn, one must always be teaching.

I was reading in the Bible from the Jewish Scriptures, what we Christians call the Old Testament in the letter of Habakkuk, pronounced H_-bak-kuk. Habakkuk was a man used by God to speak to the nation of Israel and to us.

Habakkuk begins his letter calling out to God and asking questions. “How long, O Lord, will I call for help, and You will not hear?” (1:2) Habakkuk spoke about the injustice he saw; “Strife exists and contention arises. Therefore the law is ignored and justice is never upheld. For the wicked surround the righteous; Therefore justice comes out perverted.” (1:34) God answers Habakkuk and challenges his wisdom and gives insight into the human condition. God said; “What profit is the idol when its maker has carved it, or an image, a teacher of falsehood? For it's maker trusts in his own handiwork when he fashions speechless idols. Woe to him who says to a piece of wood, 'Arise!' And that is your teacher? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no life at all inside it. “But the Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before Him.” (2:18-20) At the beginning of 2017 I memorized Jeremiah 17:910 “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; Who can understand it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give to each man according to his way. According to the results of his deeds.”

I don't understand my heart (motivation and desires) and that I am a sinner. I am really very good at deceiving myself and you are very good at deceiving yourself. Jeremiah helps us understand that we cannot trust our own heart. Habakkuk helps us understand that we cannot trust the man made things of this life. Both prophets help us understand we need God. We need God to intercede on our behalf, forgive us of our sin and heal our wounds.

Through the process of God healing our wounds, forgiving our sin and interceding on our behalf, we can come to the conclusion that Habakkuk came to and say; “I will rejoice in the God of my salvation; The Lord God is my strength….and makes me walk on my high places.” (Habakkuk 3:18-19) Clayton Adams is pastor at Earle First Assembly of God. You can e- mail him at cpalaa@ yahoo. com, or find Earle First Assembly on Facebook.

‘AWord from the Pastor’