Stop, Look And Listen
Stop, Look and Listen
After the beautiful new tent-church was built, the pillar of cloud came down, down, down, and rested right over the top of it - and STOPPED. And stayed there. And the people knew that meant they were going to stay awhile, too. And they did.
They stayed and stayed and STAYED. Days went by. Weeks went by. MONTHS went by. And if any of the boys or girls said, "When are we going to move on to the land God promised us?" their fathers would say, "Not until the pillar of cloud moves. God says we have to STOP." And so they kept watching the cloud.
It was easy enough to see. Every single person in every part of the camp could see it. And that camp was big. It was bigger than that. It was HUGE. It was as big as a city! But everyone could see the cloud. If the people wanted to obey God, all they had to do was LOOK.
But sometimes Moses wanted to tell them something special. And they couldn't tell that he wanted them, by just looking. They had to have a signal. And God GAVE Moses a signal. God told Moses to make two l-o-n-g silver horns. They were called trumpets and when they were blown, they could be heard all over the camp.
"When you hear these trumpets," said Moses, "you'll know it's important. When they blow like this" - and they blew a certain way - "you'll know there is danger. And when they blow like this" - and they blew another way - "it means you are to come to the Tabernacle. But when the cloud moves again, and you get all packed up to go - and they blow like THIS" - and they blew a very special way - "It means forward - MARCH!"
So even though the camp was HUGE, everybody could hear the trumpets. If the people wanted to obey God, all they had to do was LISTEN. And so the months went by. A whole YEAR went by. And then, one day -
The pillar of cloud began to move! Everybody scurried this way and that. They packed up their tents and all their things. They packed dishes and rugs and clothes and blankets. But the most important thing to pack was the tent-church! They took down the curtains and the animal skins and carefully folded them. They packed the golden candlestick and the brass bowls and the table and the altar - everything! They unfastened the golden boards and put them in carts.
And last of all, they covered up the beautiful golden Ark with the angels on top. They covered it with the very special curtain that had been hanging inside the tent-church. Then they covered over that with badgers' skins. Then they covered over THAT with a blue, blue cloth. Then four men-hup-lifted it up and carried it very carefully on their shoulders. And then they listened.
And then -
The trumpets!
They blew a l-o-n-g "forward - MARCH!"
And everybody knew it was time to go! On they marched, through the wilderness. They knew that God was with them. For the pillar of cloud was there, and the trumpets were there - and all they had to do was STOP-LOOK-AND-LISTEN!

THINK!
Can you think of some of the signals in school that you have to obey in order to get along? How about at home? Which ones are you supposed to listen for? Which ones are you supposed to look for? What are the signals God gives us today, so we can follow him? What Book are these signals in?
A VERSE TO LEARN
"Be ye therefore followers of God" (Ephesians 5:1).