Climbing Mountains

During my devotion time this morning I was finishing up Deuteronomy.  I have been reading through the Bible and was excited to be finishing the fifth book.  Funny enough, the ending of the book also tells the end of Moses' story.

Then Moses climbed Mount Nebo from the plains of Moab to the top of Pisgah, across from Jericho. There the Lord showed him the whole land—from Gilead to Dan,  all of Naphtali, the territory of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Mediterranean Sea,  the Negev and the whole region from the Valley of Jericho, the City of Palms, as far as Zoar. Then the Lord said to him, “This is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not cross over into it.”  And Moses the servant of the Lord died there in Moab, as the Lord had said.  He buried him[a] in Moab, in the valley opposite Beth Peor, but to this day no one knows where his grave is.  Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone.  - Deuteromony 34:1-7

I want to be like Moses.  On the last day of his life he was still climbing mountains. . . at 120 years old!  He was strong and able.  He followed the Lord's leading until he breathed his last.  He worked for the Lord until the Lord himself buried him.  I have no doubt that God gave him the strength and ability he needed to not only lead the people for 40 years but to also climb that mountain.  

I see so many brothers and sisters in the church who have "retired".  Retired might not be the right word.  Retired makes it sound like I am speaking of the elderly.  Maybe what I am really thinking of is moving to the inactive status.  They use to teach VBS and Sunday School, go out on visitation, share their faith at the checkout, make meals for the sick, and bring snacks for Bible study.  Now they are passing on the baton.  They are working hard at their career, raising a family, taking care of elderly parents, and the list goes on.  However, I wonder if God is finished with them or if they are finished with God?  Do we ever "retire" or move on from the Lord's work?  When I have served my whole life I still want to be "climbing mountains."  I believe God can do for me what he did for Moses; He can give me strength and ability to carry out his work.  I am not saying that God can't give people work to do in the office or at home with the kiddos - after all, that is where my work lies at the moment.  However, there is a difference in doing the work in our own strength and with our own agendas and relying on God for strength and making the focus of our lives being about His work.  Maybe what carried Moses to the top of that mountain was his heart - still following after God.

So, what about you?  Do you want to climb mountains?