In A Man Called Peter, the biography of Senate Chaplain Peter Marshall, his wife, Catherine Marshall recounts a strange incident that happened to Peter early in his life. He was working in the English village of Bamburgh , sixteen miles from the Scottish border. One dark and starless night, walking from a nearby village, Marshall was making his way through moorlands. He was having great trouble seeing the path, for the blackness was inky and eerie. Suddenly he heard his name: “Peter!” There was urgency in the voice. “Yes,” Marshall replied, stopping and listening. There was no reply, and he resumed his walking.
Suddenly the voice came again, even more urgently: “Peter!” He stopped dead still, trying to peer into the impenetrable darkness, and he stumbled and fell to his knees. Putting out his hand to catch himself, he found nothing there. As he cautiously investigated, feeling around in a semicircle, he found himself to be on the very brink of an abandoned stone quarry. Just one step more would have sent him plummeting into space and to certain death.
The incident made an unforgettable impression on Peter. There was never any doubt in his mind about the source of the voice. He felt that God must have some great purpose in his life to have intervened so specifically.
Whether you have had such a dramatic incident of God’s providence and care in your life…you must know that God has a purpose for your life. That purpose may change as our circumstances change: as we find ourselves in school or in the workplace or in the home. That purpose may change with our age: in childhood or in adolescence, in young adulthood, middle age or our retirement years. But make no mistake about it…wherever we are in this life, God is reaching out for us and urging us on to our purpose in life. It’s my prayer for you that you will remain open to God’s gentle “nudging”…as He has urges us to pick up our crosses and follow where he leads the way!
“For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hand. He knows your trudging through this great wilderness. These forty years the Lord your God has been with you; you have lacked nothing.” Deuteronomy 2:7closeDeuteronomy 2:7 7 For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He knows your going through this great wilderness. These forty years the Lord your God has been with you. You have lacked nothing.”’ (ESV) closeDeuteronomy 2:7closeDeuteronomy 2:7 7 For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He knows your going through this great wilderness. These forty years the Lord your God has been with you. You have lacked nothing.”’ (ESV) 7 For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He knows your going through this great wilderness. These forty years the Lord your God has been with you. You have lacked nothing.”’ (ESV)
Peace, Power and Love,
Pastor John
