This famous quote by the apostle Paul, in Hebrews, has taken on a new meaning when I heard the recent prophecy by the prophet Timothy Snodgrass. Timothy prophesied at our church that we should take one day at a time and not try to plan the future, or set up expectations for tomorrow because it might look like an impending disaster. You can’t let tomorrow’s expectations influence today’s obedience.
In Apostle Paul’s instructions he uses the term, “hardening of the heart.” This hardening of the heart is a dangerous activity that you can go into when trying to save yourself. Many times I have had people come to me and say, “Pastor, there is nothing else I can do! I can’t wait on God. I must have it now. So I can only do the thing that makes sense ~ I have got to fix it myself!”
Statements like these might sound reasonable to an intellectual person, but to someone who is trusting in God completely, it means the hardening of the heart against the will of God. Oh what a dangerous place that is to be in. For Israel, it meant they would have to spend 40 years in the wilderness ~ burying a whole generation of people who did not have faith.
At the beginning of this year the Lord told me that the crisis our church was going through was like Moses walking with the people of Israel through the parting of the Red Sea. I never thought how awesome it must have been for this man to lead literally thousands of slaves through the most fearful passage any human has ever made. According to some historians and archaeologists, they walked through a wall of water that was 450 feet tall!
Just yesterday Sister Yvonne, who works at our Christian school, told me the Lord had given her a dream. “Pastor Richard,” she said, “I was walking with Israel through the two walls of water on either side, and the people of Israel were perfectly silent with their hands in worship. Not one word was spoken, not even an animal made a sound. It was like the awe and splendor of what God was doing, in the miraculous event of holding back the water, was too great for them to even utter a comment about.”
God is miraculously preserving our church at 1970 Ocean Avenue, San Francisco, CA. Many of you may hear confusing messages about the condition of the church and school, but you must know that all is secure. Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord!
Richard Gazowsky
A Place To Meet Jesus 