Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.
1 Chronicles 16:34 NLT
A good dream and vision have been realized. It has not been without mistakes, setbacks, and challenges. It took a long time. The experiences of getting to this moment draw up a wide range of thoughts and emotions:
- The longing for the dream and vision has come to pass.
- The hastiness of pursuit jeopardized everything.
- The dream and vision were put on hold, questioning the wisdom of it after all.
- Even God and His ways were called into question.
- God continued to lead in pursuit of the dream and vision.
- Obedience to see the dream and vision continued.
- Absolute worship and praise was experienced as “God comes home”.
The dream and vision were simple and profound: King David wants to bring the Ark of the Covenant home again. This represented God and His dwelling with the people.
Bringing this dream and vision to reality was another matter. There was a rush of enthusiasm to get this done. Initial efforts did not consult God or the law. It cost a man his life. Everything came to a sudden stop. How could pursuing something so right have gone so terribly wrong?
Yet, God wanted King David to see this through. God wanted the Ark of the Covenant to be returned to the people of Israel. After a while, King David listened to God, consulted the law of God, and was able to adjust the implementation of strategy according to God’s leading.
The moment has arrived. People have gathered to worship. The Ark of the Covenant is home. God is with the people of Israel. It is a time of rejoicing. King David calls all of creation and all the nations of the world to rejoice at the reality of the one true God.
It is in this moment King David declares: Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.
Reflection
The challenge for anyone pursuing a dream and vision from God is to consult and obey God every step of the way. The consequences of not following God in the pursuit of His will is always hard. Doing the diligent work of aligning with God and His will results in accomplishing things far greater than we could know or understand.
Encouragement
Bring God home. Bring Him home to your life, family, community, and nation. Yes, open your mind, heart, and life to His presence. Do the diligent work of obeying and responding to God. Pursue His initiatives for your life. Realize a dream and vision that God leads you in. It is incredibly satisfying.
Prayer
Holy God,
The thought of “bringing You home” to my life, family, community, and nation is a powerful dream and vision. I accept the challenge. It will take all of my life to pursue it. May there be those special moments where we gather in holy celebration thanking You for coming home.
In Jesus’ name, I pray,
Amen