A Long Faithfulness
"By perseverance the snail reached the ark." Charles Haddon Spurgeon
"These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God.” Genesis 6:9 ESV
What a great statement, "Noah walked with God.” Is there a greater statement to be made about an individual? How awesome would it be for someone to stand up at the end of your life and say, “He (or she) walked with God for some 70 or 80 years”?
You know, there is a rhythm in that statement, "Noah walked with God." You get the idea that it was a daily thing for Noah, not just a Sunday experience. We sure are good at doing church. I often say I can out- Christian you on any given Sunday. But there are actually 6 more days in a week. How is your walk or rhythm going with the Lord? Not asking how many boxes were checked this week, but how is the rhythm? Is there a steadiness to your spiritual disciplines? You see, doing and walking are two very different disciplines. The difference is "I have to" versus "I get to." We must move from a ritual to a rhythm. This happens over time. This rhythm of walking or "I get to" comes from a long faithfulness.
Spiritual rhythms are so crucial in the moments when the Lord calls you to step out in faith. You see, faith does not just show up. Faith is built up. The residue of faith is built up over periods of long walks with the Lord. Just think how this played out in the life of Noah. First, God asked him to build a boat. Not a boat for the lakes or the sea, but for this thing called rain. Noah thought, “Rain? What is that?” So much water from the sky that the whole earth is going to be covered in water. The Lord called it a flood. This kind of faithfulness requires a tall glass of faith on Noah’s part. Noah did not consult his local Bass Pro Shop, review the almanac, or even check in with the wife on this whole boat-building career change. He just began to build. And he continued to build for the next 120 years!
Are you ready to build? Again, big faith takes long walks. Listen to Genesis 7:6: “Noah was 600 years old when the flood of waters came upon the earth.” Imagine all the Advil Noah must have taken. So here is the Noah timeline: For 480 years he walks with God. Big faith question comes from God. Then for another 120 he walks with God as he builds this boat. Yep, 600 years of faithfully walking with God. That is a long faithfulness.
We celebrate 600 minutes or 600 days of walking with the Lord. But 600 years? How do you start that trend? Take the Noah challenge this week. Take God at His word for the next 7 days. Then do it for a month. String 12 months together and you've got your first year. But remember, it all starts with the first day. The next move is yours.
