Ok, let's see...phone charger, check! Toiletries, check! Clothes for any kind of weather, but not too many, check! New playlist of old music on the phone, check!
Oh, hi there! What are we doing? Why we're packing for our journey! We've been planning for almost a year for this trip and we want to make sure that we have everything we need! You know what they say, "Those who fail to plan, plan to fail!" Not exactly sure who "they" are but I'd like to meet them someday...they sure seem wise.
What's that? Why have we been planning for a year? Well, we intend to be gone for quite some time, and we want to make sure we don't have to spend extra money or waste time on getting something we forgot. Maximize time....minimize expense...another one of "their" sayings...or maybe I just made that one up. Anyways, we have everything we need and we're just double-checking the list before we pack everything up!
Back scratcher, check! Meds, check! Portable turntable and favorite records, check! Books, including our Bible, check!! Well, I think that's it! We leave out on Tuesday for our journey. Want to come along? You can use our checklist of supplies and necessities if you'd like. It should streamline your preparation. You're welcome to come along! But you need to hurry cause you see our 737's coming out of the sky, it's gonna take us down to Memphis for a midnight ride...
Written by John Fogerty (Tuesday's Musical Notes - "Centerfield" (John Fogerty)), and made famous by Creedence Clearwater Revival, "Travelin' Band" would soar up the charts to #2 but not have enough momentum to unseat the 6 week run of Simon and Garfunkel (Tuesday's Musical Notes - The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)(Simon and Garfunkel)) and their song "Bridge Over Troubled Waters" at the #1 spot on Billboard's Hot 100.
"Travelin' Band' was part of a rare "double A-side" single where neither song was designated as a "B" side due to both songs being predetermined as hits. Proof of this is the fact that "Who'll Stop the Rain" is the flip side of this record (also, #2...I guess they predetermined correctly!). This single was one of three "double-sided" singles to be released from the Creedence album Cosmo's Factory. Due to the strength of its singles, the album is listed at #413 on Rolling Stone's updated 2020 edition of the "500 Greatest Albums of All-Time" list. "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" - Rolling Stone Magazine, September 22, 2020 - genius.com
"Travelin' Band" was inspired by the musical stylings of Little Richard which fit well with the range and style of Fogerty. In 1972 there were deemed to be so many similarities to Little Richard, that the publishing company who owned the rights to "Good Golly Miss Molly" sued the band for plagiarism. The suit was settled out of court. Yup...you're humming it right now....ooooh (ala Little Richard falsetto).
The song is descriptive of the life that Creedence was living at the time as a "Travelin' Band". Lost luggage, constant flights, radio interviews, and the occasional "tense" politically demonstrative moments at concerts in the 70s all play their role in the lyric as Fogerty belts it out with his trademark vocals. Wait...what...the lyrics don't even mention the planning that went into being a "Travelin' Band"! It bodes the question: were they really prepared for their journey down the Rock-N-Roll highway? Maybe they should have taken a few tips from some middle eastern friends.
As we join the Israelites at the base of Mt. Sinai (yet, again! But soon their gonna move...), we find them making preparations for their journey to the Promised Land. They had been at the mountain for nearly a year. Why the delay? Simple answer? God needed to get them prepared for their journey.
Remember, by most accounts; there were over 2 million folks that come out of Egypt. They were slaves whose only rules for 430 years were determined by the work quota that had been made by their Egyptian taskmasters. They knew very little about any other law or how to govern themselves.
Alongside the legal influences of their Egyptian masters, during this time they were immersed in the idol worship of the Egyptians. While many had held on to the hope of a deliverer from the God of their ancestors this would have at the very least slanted their spiritual practices and views.
As they departed Egypt, they were only sure of 3 things: God had brought them out, He was holy, and their lives were in His hands. It is remarkable, that in 11 months and 5 days (closing chapters of Exodus to the 10th chapter of Numbers), and only by God's divine providence, that the Israelites were able to get organized into a nation with a legal system and societal structure. This system also enabled the boundaries by which they would recognize the holiness of God and why He alone should be worshiped.
To compensate for the 430 years in Egypt, God knew that they would need a concentrated time to prepare for the journey and for the skills and abilities to fight the battles to take over the Promised Land.
We see this same preparation later in the lives of the 12 disciples of Jesus. For 3 years, Jesus instructed them on how the laws of Moses and the structure of Israel's religious systems had been hijacked by man and mitigated to a "works" based system of holiness. Jesus also took the time to show them what Godly love looked like and how they were to be emblems of that love to all men. He taught them that all of Moses' laws and the designs their ancestors had for a government were based on 2 things: loving God above all else, and loving each other as we love ourselves. He also taught them that all of the events of Exodus and the writings of Moses pointed to Him (Jesus) and His ultimate display of love on the cross.
So...what has been the preparation you've made for your journey? Does each component of your plan align with the 2 principles that Moses pointed to and Jesus explained? You see friend, we were created as eternal beings. Where we spend that eternity is dependent on our journey. Have you asked God for His checklist in your preparation or have you gone from a manifest from man? Are there items that you forgot and they cost you more to get on the way? I confess, there have been and probably will certainly be things I've forgotten as I've gone on the odyssey of my life. We have to repent of that lack of planning and prepare for the next time through God's strength, mercy, and grace. And then we gotta move...as we're flyin' cross the land, tryin' to get a hand...
'Til Tuesday
Serving HIM by serving You,
randy
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