Waking Up Alone

One of the great things about our church's family camp is that all the parents watch out for each other's kids. That knowledge provides a great deal of flexibility for the kids and comfort for the parents. One day this week a group of parents were sitting on the cabin porch talking and playing games. One of the mom's from the cabin across the path from ours came over and asked if we'd keep our ears and eyes open for her daughter, Katy, to wake up. Katy was napping, her mother was scheduled to go to a ceramics class during the upcoming period, and her dad was working as the camp nurse. So we told her we would of course watch out for Katy. About an hour later, Katy woke up and wandered out onto her porch. We heard her crying across the way, so we called out to her and went over to get her. As we were taking Katy down to where her mother was, we saw her mother on the horizon walking up the hill. When she saw her mother, Katy's demeanor quickly changed.

Seeing Katy on the porch crying because she woke up alone made me think about how many times in our lives we do that too. There are days when we wake up and feel very alone. Sometimes we even feel alone when we're with others. Being alone can be discouraging, even frightening. The Israelites felt that way more than once in their experience, but Moses had been through it all. He had seen God's deliverance enough times to trust that God would never turn his back on His faithful. So when it was time for Joshua to take over, the 120-year-old Moses gave him these words of encouragement, words born from many years of experience walking with God:

"The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." Deuteronomy 31:8 (NIV)

Next time you wake up feeling very alone, remember Moses' words to Joshua. They apply today too. The God of the Israelites is no less faithful to us.