…how long will you waver…if the Lord is God follow Him.
1 Kings 18:21 NIV
I was just about to settle into a corner of the trailer to read when my husband asked if I was going to get dressed. I looked up from my comfortable chair just as he was putting on his riding boots. We had arrived at Stoddard Valley a couple of hours earlier to get in one last weekend of camping before the heat of the desert summer hit. It was a cloudy day and the wind rocked the trailer as a few raindrops pattered against the window; reading and perhaps a nap were more what I had in mind. But looking into my husband’s eyes I saw hope of an afternoon spent riding so I got up and went to put on my riding gear. Twenty minutes later my dirt bike rumbled to life and with my husband leading the way I let out the clutch and turned the throttle and followed him; leaving my comfort zone behind.
The trail we were on was pretty wide and smooth and I began to relax and shifted my bike into second gear. But as I assumed a place of comfort my husband left the trail and headed off into the open desert. “Where is he going?” I thought to myself as I turned my bike and followed after him. A large jackrabbit darted out from some creosote bushes and right behind him ran my sense of security as I rode not knowing where my husband would lead me next.
I rode through the desert following him as he turned onto another trail. There were twists and turns and obstacles but I kept my eyes firmly fixed on my husband and mirrored his actions as we rode. I followed him up hill and once at the top we parked the bikes and took a walk up an embankment where we stopped to take in the view. The valley stretched below us, the surrounding hills were blanketed with wildflowers and blooming cactus. It was breathtaking. My husband slipped his arms around me and kissing my forehead said, “You are doing really well.” His encouragement fueled my confidence and I suddenly felt very brave as we got back on our dirt bikes.
The bikes roared down the hill and I stood up, my feet firmly planted on the pegs as we rode through a series of dips at the bottom of the hill and I found myself laughing with delight. As I followed where my husband lead it seemed to me we were in unison; standing, leaning, turning and riding in perfect harmony. We had a wonderful afternoon exploring trails together; when our campsite came into view I was sad to see our adventure come to an end and as I got off my bike I was already looking forward to continuing the adventure the next day.
My husband and I stood holding hands in the cool desert morning, heads bowed, eyes closed. The wind whipped around us as if doing its best to interrupt our time together at the Lord’s feet but my husband’s voice was steady and strong as he asked He who loves us to give us safety during our ride and fun together as husband and wife. I love hearing my husband talk with the Lord about us. We put on our helmets and I climbed on my bike with a smile on my heart as I put the bike into gear eager for the adventure that lay ahead.
The eagerness quickly turned to apprehension as my husband turned and headed in the opposite direction of where I thought we were going to go.
While I wanted adventure, I wanted it to be the same adventure we had shared yesterday. “He didn’t ask me if this is where I wanted to go,” I muttered to myself. I barely finished my complaint when we turned onto another trail and there before me lay deep sand. “Arrrgh”, I exclaimed as my bike began to fishtail and I hit the brakes which I knew was the opposite of what I should do. The front tire dug into the sand and I had to use my legs as I turned the throttle to try to get moving again. As I started to move ahead I saw a large prickly bush on the right and knew I did not want to hit it; but as I focused on not hitting it; the bush apparently sensed it and turned on its tractor beam and drew me in and the very thing I didn’t want to do, I did as I smacked into it. The bush tried to take me down as one part of it grabbed hold of my boot while the other jammed in the gear shift. I was pulling myself free when my husband arrived and asked if I was okay. “I hate sand,” was my reply. “Remember to keep your speed up and then you will go right over the sand instead of digging into it,” he said in his most patient instructor voice. As I pulled the remaining plant off my bike I looked at my husband and could see his eyes were smiling from behind his goggles as he said, “Isn’t this fun?” As I started my bike and struggled through the sand I thought, “Fun is not the word I would use to describe this.”
I tried to put my husband’s instructions into practice as I picked up speed and it was easier but I still felt out of control as the rear tire would wobble a bit as I turned corners and my heart was somewhere in my throat as my apprehension grew. Suddenly the sand became a landmine of rocks as they protruded randomly on the trail. “Great!” I said, “Why on earth did I ever take up dirt bike riding?” I asked myself as my bike seemed to find every rock hidden in the sand. But as I bumped along and saw my husband up ahead I remembered the reason very clearly and I knew the Lord had brought it to mind in this moment. I had prayed for it. Oh not specifically for dirt bike riding but for time with my husband. I wanted us to grow closer and so I became very diligent in my prayers about it. My husband had taken up dirt bike riding and I began to pray that he would desire to spend time with me. Well, he did but he wanted me to ride dirt bikes with him.
I remembered when he first suggested I learn to ride and I declared most emphatically that I would NEVER ride a dirt bike. But as time passed and I continued to pray for time with my husband, the Lord impressed on me that He wanted me to go riding with my husband. In fact, it became a matter of obedience. I remember telling my husband that I would learn to ride a quad but his reply was, “No. No quads. I want you to ride a dirt bike because two wheels are safer than four.” That did not make any sense to me. To my way of thinking four wheels seemed much safer than two; more stable; more predictable. But my husband persisted and the Lord kept whispering to my heart that He wanted my marriage to grow too but He wanted to do it from a dirt bike. And so my husband taught me to ride and before I knew it I had a bike of my own.
My thoughts were abruptly interrupted as I saw a large hill up ahead and at its base a mote of large rocks. I watched as my husband flew across with rocks flying as he sped to the top of the hill. He turned looking down at me expecting me to follow but instead I put on the brakes and put my boots firmly on the ground. There was no way I was going across those rocks or up that hill. My husband soon realized I was not moving nor did I appear to have any plans for moving in the near future so turning his bike around he came down the hill and motioned me to follow him. I fell in line behind him relieved to have escaped the hill of doom.
As we rode, the freeway came into view in the distance and I wondered if I could hike there and get a ride back to camp. A newsflash suddenly played in my mind, “Wayward dirt biker found on freeway. Story at 11.” I rejected the great freeway escape and followed my husband over a very rocky trail. It turned this way and then that and went uphill and then downhill. We came up out of it and he pulled to the side of the trail, shut his bike off and removed his helmet. “This is great!” he exclaimed. “I love the hills and turns”, he finished. I looked at him as I said, “I’m more of a flat-land, straight road, no rocks, no sand kind of gal myself.” He looked off into the distance as he said, “Life isn’t like that. Life is like a rollercoaster.” “Well”, I said, “I don’t like the rollercoaster. I’m afraid of the rollercoaster.” He looked at me as he said, “Embrace your fear. Fear is the invitation to courage.” This made me laugh as I playfully socked him in the arm and asked him where he had heard all these one line words of wisdom. He didn’t answer but simply kissed the end of my nose and put his helmet back on.
We rode off down the trail in a cloud of dust and flying rocks. I tried hard to quell my fear but it just wouldn’t leave me alone. We continued down the rocky trail and descended into a canyon. There were sharp cacti along the trail and large boulders everywhere and my body jarred with every turn of the wheels. “Lord!” I cried and I hurried to the well as fast as my heart could go. “What’s wrong?” He asked as He looked at a map of some kind. I wondered what it was a map of as I proceeded to tell Him what was wrong. “I don’t think I can dirt bike ride with my husband anymore,” I blurted out. He was quiet so I continued with my whining about the trails and the big rocks and the deep sand and the towering hill of doom. “You liked it yesterday,” He replied. “The trails were easy yesterday and I thought we were going to go the same way today or I never would have come. And do you know he didn’t even ask me if I wanted to go this way!” I finished, certain He would be sympathetic and give me permission to stop following my husband. He didn’t.
Instead He said. “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him.” I recognized the words from His book – they were from 1st Kings. “Why are you riding dirt bikes with your husband?” He asked. I sighed as I knew He already knew the answer but I said it out loud any way. “Because you told me to,” I finished. “Who is your husband following?” He asked. “You,” I replied. “That’s right,” He said. Then He put a finger on my heart and began to quiet my fear as He spoke about what it meant to follow Him. Then He said, “Follow the Leader.” I was about to ask Him what He meant when I noticed my husband had disappeared over a hill and when I arrived at the top I slid to a stop.
I looked down as the hill was steep and about half way down it turned sharply to the left and protruding all the way down were rocks. I sat there on the hilltop staring down at the obstacles that lay on the trail ahead and found myself longing for the familiar trails of yesterday. It was then I saw Him fly down the hill on a dirt bike not sold in any earthly store. His eyes burned like fire as He rode and He called out as He passed me, “Follow the Leader.” I saw Him ride just past my husband and then turn around and look up at me; bidding me to follow Him. I let the clutch out and slowly eased up on the brake and the bike moved down the hill I squealed all the way down to the bottom where my husband was waiting and he gave me a high five as he said with a voice filled with pride, “you did it!”
We continued on but had not gone far when we were met with a beautiful sight. We removed our helmets as we took in the scene that lay before us. On either side of the trail there were dark red rocks and in the center; coming up out of the trail were huge boulders of quartz; they were brilliant white. We had never seen anything like it. As we put our helmets on and started up our bikes it occurred to me that I had almost missed it and I wondered how many other treasures I had missed because I was afraid to follow the trail; afraid to follow the leader. His voice thundered across my soul then as He said, “You can’t know what might have been. Follow the Leader,” He said.
There it was again, that funny phrase He kept saying, “Follow the Leader.” I put my bike into gear and pulled out behind my husband. I watched him as he expertly rode over the rocks and sand and I mirrored his actions. He stood up then as we came to some dips and I stood too. It was then my sometimes slow heart began to understand what He who gave all for me was trying to teach me. Following Him would sometimes be scary and there would be times the trail would be unfamiliar and I would have no idea where He was leading me; it would be filled with obstacles and sometimes hills of doom would loom up before me but as I mirror Christ and stand with my feet firmly planted on the pegs of His Truth I can follow Him in complete confidence, being carried along by the Holy Spirit who lives in me.
I laughed as we sailed through a series of dips and I even think I caught a little air and in the midst of my laughter I saw Him. He who loves me was just ahead of my husband leading the way and I realized in that moment we were following the Lord. I smiled as His words thundered through my soul, “Follow the Leader.”
The Lord may never ask you to ride a dirt bike but I do know He asks each of us to follow Him. Is there something the Lord has asked you to do that you are afraid to do? Write it down.
Look up 1 Kings 18:21 and read this verse slowly. My friend, are you wavering? If the Lord is God, follow Him.
“He went out, not knowing whither he went.” Hebrews 11:8
The Bible is filled with ordinary people called by God to follow Him and in following Him extraordinary things happened. Tonight we are going to read about a young girl named Hadassah also known as Esther. Turn with me now to the book of Esther (just before the book of Job in the Old Testament.)
Please read this story from beginning to end. Allow the Holy Spirit to stop you; keeping in mind that Esther followed God.
Answer the questions below as we go.
What had happened to Esther’s parents? (Esther 2:7)
What ethnicity was Esther?
Where was Esther taken? Verse 8
Little Hadassah loses her mother and father through death and goes to live with her uncle Mordecai. She has just settled into her new life when she is carried off to the king’s palace. Look out, Esther has left the familiar trails and God is leading her into the unknown.
Can you think of a time in your life when you were just settling in to life and suddenly the trail turns and you veer off into the desert where nothing is familiar? Take some time to journal about it.
How long did the beauty treatments last?
When Esther’s turn came to go to the King what did she ask for? 2:15
Read on, dear friend.
In chapter 3 a plot is unveiled. What group of people was the plot against?
Who thought the plan up?
According to Haman’s plan, what would happen to the Jews?
How does Mordecai find out about the plan?
The towering hill of doom has risen up out of the desert and Esther is headed straight for it!
In Chapter 4 Mordecai sends word to Esther about the plot to destroy the Jews. What is Esther’s response to Mordecai?
What was Esther’s response back to Mordecai in 4:10-11?
Read carefully verses 13-14 focus in on what Mordecai says to Esther.
Do you feel the tension mounting? Esther has just arrived at the top of the hill and is looking down the other side; it is steep and filled with obstacles; even death. But Esther sees Him; the One she calls LORD and He is bidding her follow.
Take a moment and think about the beginning of this lesson. You know, that thing God has asked you to do that you don’t want to do so you are pretending not to hear Him. My friend, what if He has brought you to this point for such a time as this? Oh maybe you won’t save an entire people but what if by following into the unknown people came to know Christ. For such a time is this…
Read chapter 4 verses 15-16. I can visualize this scene in my mind. Esther is at the top of the hill looking down with danger and probable death at the end but as she sees the Lord in the midst of it all she lets out the clutch, eases off the brakes and she goes down the hill screaming all the way. “If I die, I die.” (But I’m going to follow Him anyway).
Go ahead and finish reading the story. I’ll see you at the end.
Look up Deuteronomy 1:34-36. Who did the Lord say would receive what He had promised?
Why was Caleb going to receive the promise?
He followed the Lord wholeheartedly.
Let’s finish our time together by reading Hebrews 11:1 – 12:3
My dear friend, are you following the Lord with your whole heart or are you stuck in the sand somewhere or have you skidded to a stop before the towering hill of doom? Have you ridden to the top of the hill and all you see below you are obstacles? But wait! Do you see Him? He’s standing at the bottom of the hill and He is bidding you to follow? Will you do it? Come on. Let out the clutch. Ease up on the brake and go down the hill in complete obedience to Him; even if it means you are screaming all the way down. There is reward in obedience to the Lord; just ask Caleb. The Lord has a plan for you (Jeremiah 29:11) but it requires you to follow Him; follow the Leader.
An Original Conversations at the Well
© by Diana Morgan May 2009
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