Expect No Help

The image above is of an encoded note that was given to a confederate general at the battle of Vicksburg. The battle of Vicksburg is viewed as a pivotal turning point in the civil war that led to the fall of the confederacy. The note was only recently extracted from the bottle and decoded by the Museum of the Confederacy this past year. It reads…

“You can expect no help from this side of the river.”

It must have been a moral punch to the heart of the receiver of this bottle to unravel it. When I think about starting 2011 and ending 2010 I find myself asking God…

Where are you in the places I battle?


Where is the ground you want to take?


What do I need to let go of?


What do I need to accept and what do you want me to expect? 

For the confederate general this note from the other side was bad news. For us a note from the other side is exactly what we want even if it is to the end of our selfish and fleshly desire.

A prayer for 2011.

“God, help me to think like you think, talk like you talk, and love like you love. If there is any place where I am my own idol or a place where you are not first do not reinforce me. Let me accept the good and the bad as part of the journey in trusting you with tomorrow. Place me where you want me and let me only do and be what you desire.”