Lighthouse Keeper

Then Daniel praised the God of heaven ²⁰ and said:

“Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever;
    wisdom and power are his.

²¹ He changes times and seasons;
    he deposes kings and raises up others.
He gives wisdom to the wise
    and knowledge to the discerning.

²² He reveals deep and hidden things;
    he knows what lies in darkness,
    and light dwells with him. (Daniel 2:19-22)

There’s a little kid, about six years old I would say, who comes over from next door to play with my new puppy Rita. 

He used to just walk into my house. I’ve figured to lock the front door when I hear the school bus coming at 3pm to teach him it’s better to knock and not just wander into strange lady’s houses. 

So he comes up the steps with his backpack on -which is about the same size as him- and- says he wants to play with Rita. 

Ask, seek, knock. (Matthew 7:7)

Childlike faith (Matthew 18:3)

So far so good. 

But here’s the thing. 

When I’ve had enough and I can see that Rita has had enough, I’ll call “time” on the play session. I’m Rita’s Master. I’m the Master of the front lawn of my house and when I say playtime is over, well it’s over. 

Christians struggle with this concept. Things end. Good things and holy things and God things end. They do. And we all stand around looking back at the answered prayer and the faith journey and the miracle provision and can’t quite figure out how and why the sands are shifting. 

When the Master of your life, Jesus Christ, calls “time” on something in your life then it’s time to pack up your stuff and head onto the next thing or for some, begin the journey into Eternity. 

Your body will decay (Acts 13:35).  Jobs and ministries will end. People will move away or die or stop liking you or just fade out. As my friend Edith says “there are no pockets in shrouds”- you can’t take anything with you into Eternity.

Facing the end of things and surrendering to God’s timing is frightening when you maybe can’t see the path forward or don’t like what you see on the road ahead. If you’re like my six-year old neighbour you will quickly recover from the disappointment but as we age, this process gets harder. 

So think about your life and the things you have your heart set on that maybe God has a different and better plan for. Things will not go how you think “for who can know the mind of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 2:16).  They won’t. 

It’s important that when the Master Jesus calls “time” and  is moving forward, you are moving forward with Him.