Why now at 70 and not 30?
“After forty years had
passed, an angel appeared to him (Moses) in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in the
flame of a burning thorn bush.” Acts 7:30, NASB
In Exodus, we read a
little bit more of Moses' response to the Lord’s calling to him, after the Lord
appeared to him.
7-8 God said, “I’ve taken a good, long look at the
affliction of my people in Egypt. I’ve heard their cries for deliverance from
their slave masters; I know all about their pain. And now I have come down to
help them, pry them loose from the grip of Egypt, get them out of that country
and bring them to a good land with wide-open spaces, a land lush with milk and
honey, the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the
Hivite, and the Jebusite.
9-10 “The Israelite cry for help has come to me, and I’ve seen
for myself how cruelly they’re being treated by the Egyptians. It’s time for
you to go back: I’m sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the People of
Israel, out of Egypt.”
11 Moses answered God, “But why me? What
makes you think that I could ever go to Pharaoh and lead the children of Israel
out of Egypt?” (emphasis mine)
12 “I’ll be with you,” God said. “And this will be the proof
that I am the one who sent you: When you have brought my people out of Egypt,
you will worship God right here at this very mountain.”
13 Then Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the People of
Israel and I tell them, ‘The God of your fathers sent me to you’; and they ask
me, ‘What is his name?’ What do I tell them?”
14 God said to Moses, “I-AM-WHO-I-AM. Tell the People of
Israel, ‘I-AM sent me to you.’” The Message
When I was 30, having
already been married 7 years, with my wife being just 25, with two sons and two
daughters having escaped out of the womb, the Lord had already put in my heart
to “go to the nations”. I can remember being 10, and my mom talking about how
she had always wanted to be a missionary and telling me about it. But with her
marriage and eight kids to raise, that never happened.
I think her heart became
mine, which had come from the same Father.
But now, at the ripe old
age of 70, that long-held desire of my heart, which He had
put there, is being fulfilled. My wife Laurie and I are going to
Jerusalem to volunteer at Christian Friends of Israel for three months.
Finally!
But why did the Lord wait
so long? Why wasn’t the time right for me to go at 30, when I, really, really
wanted to? When I was young, and full of wisdom, and knew more than the Lord
did. Or so I thought at times.
Looking back at the
patriarchs, i.e., Abraham, Moses, even David, it is almost plain to see that
the Lord loves those who are “seasoned”, “prepared”, “having gone through the
wringer” (an ancient term that very old people know about.)
I do see the wisdom of the
Lord now. It has only taken me 40 years. Now firmly believing, as one should,
that “when I am weak He is strong”.
“Therefore I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in
distresses, in persecutions, in difficulties, in behalf of
Christ; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”
2 Corinthians 12:10, NASB
God the Father seems to
know what is best. After all, “Father Knows Best”, as the TV show proved,
beginning in 1954 (the year of my birth) through 1960, had us all believing in
a godly father, a godly mother, a loving household, and the good ways of American
life back then. Before much of it was stained by the ways of the world.
My heart is to see those
of you who have reached those “golden years” to realize that it is not the time
to retire, to sit on the front porch swing (which I do enjoy) and read the
latest Robert Whitlow novel (whom I know personally and highly recommend.)
It is time for us to use
that wisdom, those years of hard knocks and knives in the back, scares on our
knees from praying, and joys that we know He has blessed us with, and go to the
cities, the states, the nations…and do what our great Father, the Living God of
Israel, has so prepared for us to do.
Let’s go!
Ahava and Shalom,
Steve Martin
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Message #10 in my new
series (2025): "Why now at 70 and not 30?" - Aug. 2, 2025
#retirement #Jesus #Yeshua #SteveMartin #Moses #heart #goldenyears #GodtheFather # Jerusalem,
When the Lord calls each of us to “come, follow Me”, He does so because He has a great plan and purpose for each of our lives. He knows what our desires are, but most importantly, He is the one who puts those desires in our hearts.
As you seek Him, He will lead you to places you have never dreamed of, giving you missions you had never thought possible, and will direct your steps to complete the total picture He has for you, as you take your place in His Body among the peoples of the nations.
Each must hear the word to “Come”, and then listen to the word of the Lord to “Go.” May that be in your heart.
Buy now - Paperback $7.99, Kindle $0.99: COME AND GO
With this, my 38th book, I dedicate to those who hear the Word of the Lord. And obey it. First, to “Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28, NASB).
And then, to those who hear and obey His command. “And He said to them, 'Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” (Mark 16:15, NASB), taking His message of forgiveness, love, and grace to walk in His plans and purposes for your life.
May His Holy Spirit continue to guide you and lead you to the completion of the assigned mission He has given specifically to you.
When the Lord calls each of us to “come, follow Me”, He does so because He has a great plan and purpose for each of our lives. He knows what our desires are, but most importantly, He is the one who puts those desires in our hearts.
As you seek Him, He will lead you to places you have never dreamed of, giving you missions you had never thought possible, and will direct your steps to complete the total picture He has for you, as you take your place in His Body among the peoples of the nations.
We have heard the word to “Come”, and now we have again heard the word of the Lord to “Go.”
And thus, we shall!
Buy now - Paperback $7.99, Kindle $0.99: COME AND GO
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Dedication Page 5
Introduction Page 6
1. I’m Back Page 7
2. He Gives Us Signs Page 9
3. Friendships. We Need Them. Page 14
4. If You Seek Me Page 18
5. Call It What It Is Page 22
6. Live Generously Page 25
7. Live Generously. But How? Page 28
8. Snakes in the Grass Page 32
9. Family Page 36
10. Why now 70 and not 30? Page 40
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Page 44
CONTACT INFORMATION Page 46
OTHER BOOKS STEVE MARTIN Page 47
Buy now - Paperback $7.99, Kindle $0.99: COME AND GO
#ComeandGo #SteveMartin #newbook #Amazon #faith #Jesus #Yeshua #BenMartin #Laurie Martin
