Genesis 6:22 (NIV)
Noah did everything just as God commanded him.
Imagine waking up this morning and feeling like you heard from God to build an extremely large boat to house 2 of every kind of animal. Imagine starting to build this boat and having the neighbors come along and laugh and poke fun of you. Imagine that you knew that all those who were laughing and poking fun were going to parish. That is all pretty heavy stuff.
I loved the movie, Evan Almighty. I know that the movie was not biblically correct in all of the aspects but it did draw on a number of the details. After all of the animals had started to show up and the new stations were there to film everyone was so skeptical of Evan’s sanity none the less the possibility of a flood.
Ultimately I am extremely impressed at Noah’s listening skills. The art of hearing God speak just does not happen by chance. It takes regular meeting times and investment in the relationship between Noah and God. Not only did Noah build a boat but he built one to exact instructions. I am also impressed with what we assume was the willingness of Noah’s wife and family to go along with the plan. Imagine today your spouse waking up and telling you that God has instructed him to move the entire family to Africa. Would there be some intense discussions and potential conflict between the ranks of the family.
There were no sleeping arrangements given by God for the animals. Noah was instructed to bring the right type of food for each but nothing was said about keeping specific animals apart from each other. Are we to assume that for the next 40 plus days everyone lived in harmony?
What we do know is that Noah did everything just as God told him. For some reason it was noted not just once but twice in the story. God gave Noah a pretty big order and he was faithful and followed God’s instructions. Nowhere in the story does it say Noah ran all this by his committee or friends. Nowhere in the story does it say they took a vote and agreed on the layout of the animal stalls or discussed the kitchen location. Noah just listened to God and completed the task just as he was commanded
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What is God telling you to do? Will you question his plans or act faithfully?
Spiritual Calisthenics 