Conduit Oregonian Style

I’m reporting to you live from Eugene, Oregon. Tomorrow night will be another night of no gathering for Conduit. I miss you guys and can’t wait to be back live and in person next week.

Last week I had the distinct pleasure of sharing the study live from the Four Bears Lodge and Casino in not scenic New Town, ND. It was a great outreach time for a tour that doesn’t normally get into places like that. We had an amazing response with dozens of first time decisions to follow Jesus. Special thanks to our friends Matt Best and Nick Hall with Pulse Ministries.

The tour is going amazing. Lots of sold out concerts at a time when I had lots of anxiety wondering if the economy could support something like this.

My conduit brothers and sisters will be especially happy to know that over the past 5 shows we've seen over 150 children sponsored through Compassion International. Long after this tour is over there will be hundreds of children who will fed, educated, given health care and taught about the Love of Jesus Christ.

If you missed last week, we were in Exodus 13. Its’ the infamous chapter where God declares that He will lead the People of Israel with a cloud by day and a fire by night. I was struck by the fact that God took Israel the long way. The route that God had chosen for them was a year long journey for a trip that should have taken only 10 days. It’s been said that God chose that because it was easy to get them out of Egypt but it was going to take some time to get Egypt out of them.

It’s such an amazing picture of how God leads us. Sometimes He takes us a long way, the scenic route, it’s not because He’s a cosmic buzz kill. It’s just that He sees things we can’t see and knows things we can’t know. When I’m wondering why I’m not where I want to be, or haven’t achieved the goals I know He has led me to, that He is still there and taking me the long way for my own benefit.

We saw that in Psalm 105:39 that the cloud that was there for Israel was a cloud that was actually covering them, floating over them and not just hanging around out in front of them. When He was ready for them to move, He moved the cloud. They were in the desert where temperatures can reach 125 degrees. Once that cloud moved, they would’ve been roasting. Staying under the cloud where it’s cool and peaceful. That’s a picture of how God leads us today. If it’s peaceful, if it’s “cool” then it’s God.

And then there’s the picture of the fire. Fire is always a picture of trials in the scriptures. When Shadrach et all were in the furnace it’s interesting to note that the fire did NOT burn their clothing but did burn the ropes off. The fiery trial that they went through did not hurt them, but rather freed them of the thing that was binding them.

Tomorrow we go into Exodus 14. Pharaoh was the leader of a nation that was not following the Lord. Israel was a nation that must have been confused by the way things were turning out. It seemed bleak and hopeless. And yet God was right there and had a plan all along.

If you’re looking at our nation and feeling like our leader isn’t necessarily following the Lord or that maybe our nation is in confusion and things look bleak, then join us tomorrow night.

I’ll be broadcasting from Medford, Oregon in beautiful southern Oregon. We’ll be at www.mogulus.com/conduit. I hope you can join us. Let’s hope and pray that our chat room doesn’t crash this week.

so... tomorrow night. 7:30pm Central time. hope you can join us.

Blessings,
Darren