As I post this, Pope Benedict XVI will be arriving for his first, quick, weekend visit to my country. I am therefore using this opportunity to write about how God can help one to face his challenges, even if they are among the largest that man has to face...and how God has solved them without our help (of course). It will deal, in a way, of list of mathematical miracles of all time that centres around the Pope and the followers of Jesus on the one hand, and Moses and the people of Israel on the other.
I am sure you will recall that there were about 3.5 million people following Moses through the desert. Their story is well documented and clearly narrated in both the Hebrew and Christian Bibles. It says that they crossed the Red Sea in one night with the Egyptian army hot in pursuit. So let's picture this in its real perspective.
> If they went on a narrow path, double file, the line would be 800 miles long and would require 35 days and nights to get through. So, there had to be space in the Red Sea 3 miles wide so they could walk 5,000 abreast.
> Feeding 3.5 million people requires about 1,500 tons of food each day. To bring that amount of food each day, today we would need two trains, each a mile long
> They would need firewood to cook. This would take 4,000 tons of wood and a few more trains, each a mile long, every day. And remember they were forty years in this transit in the desert.
> They would also need water. If they only had enough to drink and wash a few dishes, it would mean they needed 11 million gallons each day, and a train with tank cars 11.8 miles long, just to bring them this water.
> Every time they camped, they needed an area of 25 miles wide and 30 miles long....every night!
When you stop and think of this all you can say is "Wow!" But...do you think Moses figured all this out before he left? I think not. Moses believed blindly in God and that He was going to take care of all these things, impossible and daunting as they might seem. Let us take courage in this wisdom...for we have the same God! Ours is the same God who spoke to Jesus Christ and we have the same Spirit who empowered Jesus to be the Messiah. That same Holy Spirit is still working today and empowering us....we just need to pray until we are empowered. "I am with you always to the every end of the ages" (Matthew 28, 18-20).
But is the Spirit really doing anything in the world today? "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart" said the prophet Jeremiah (29:13). So here are some more basic mathematical facts for you to ponder about the Spirit's work:
> every day, at least 160,000 people hear the message of Christ for the first time
> every day, at least 74,000 people across the globe come to Christ.
> some people are working backstage, some are playing in the orchestra, some are on-stage, some are in the audience as critics, some are there to applaud, some are there to direct everything concertedly (my pun!)...the point being to know who and where you are in this life. The Pope, like Moses, believes that God will get him and his people through the Red Sea no matter how many millions are trying to pass through it at the same time....and He will do it safely for them too.
> I've learned to pick my battles; I ask myself, "Will this matter one year from now? How about one month? One week? One day? Will my stance stand the test of time? Somehow with Popes, theirs has. The first Pope, Peter, knew a thing or two about fishing but when empowered by the Holy Spirit he was able to lead with dynamism. He wrote that the "The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). Let's face it, he should know, he let Jesus down once too often in his lifetime!
> If today you woke up breathing, congratulations! You have another chance at doing what you were called to do. And the octogenarian Pope needs all the Divine help he can get. While there's a lot of truth in these three statements above, I think this last one is especially interesting. How often have we done something we regretted and said: "I wish I could have a second chance". The truth is God has given us a second chance. He's given us hundreds of second chances. The fact that we - like the ageing Pope - got up out of bed today means that we have one more opportunity to face up to our responsibilities and to make right anything that has destroyed our relationship with God or with others. It becomes our duty to step out and face the "enemy", as the good Pope is now doing. I think that in the end he knows that the One Who Matters is really directing things and empowering those chosen to stand up and lead. He is the real orchestra director.
So if you woke up breathing today, congratulations! You've been given another chance. Don't waste it.
