I was speaking with a Pastor friend of mine this weekend and we started talking about the journey. Reflecting on the past, looking toward the future, we pondered the journey and talked about sticking with it. The sad thing is, many don’t stick with the journey. People come and go for the oddest reasons. My wife and I always keep reminding ourselves that we simply drive the bus. People get on, people get off. But, so often, people get off before arriving at their destination.

The church seems to be filled with wanderers instead of sojourners. A wanderer is someone who moves from place to place, without a fixed course, aim or goal. A sojouner, is one who stays in a certain location, but as a temporary resident. It’s true, we are only visiting this planet, but we should not be aimless wanderers. Instead, we should remain in one place, growing in that place, and learning all we’re supposed to learn in that one place. But, many in the church today wander from one place to another. The reasons for the wandering are many, but in the end, I do believe the wandering not only hurts the individual, but also hurts the overall body.

As I spoke with my Pastor friend we reflected on the life of Moses. He was the man who led the people of God out of Egypt. He was supposed to lead them into the Promised Land, but, that didn’t work out so well. One day Moses struck a rock twice because he was frustrated with the people and God told him because of his frustration, he would not enter the Promised Land. As a matter of fact, none of the generation Moses was leading would enter the Promised Land. Instead, it was up to him to lead the wandering people around the desert for 40 years, until that generation died off, so the new generation of sojourners would in turn enter into the Promised Land.

Wow! Think about that for a minute or two. Moses knew he would not enter the Promised Land. But, as a leader, he stuck with his assignment, became a sojourner in the desert, so he could point the next generation in the way they should go.

I believe this is a lesson not only every leader should learn, but many of the wanderers of today should also learn. Too often we toss in the towel and complain, and we don’t even ultimately know how the journey will go. Moses knew the outcome of his journey, but he remained faithful and sojourned in the desert, pointing the way to the Promised Land.

A Fellow Sojourner,
Dr. Rus