May 14, 2013 (Tuesday)
“The first white men of your people who came to our country were named Lewis and Clark. They brought many things that our people had never seen. They talked straight. These men were very kind.” — Chief Joseph
Remember the guy who turned down Jesus’ invitation by saying, “I bought a piece of land and I must go and see it?” Turns out he was setting the example for Thomas Jefferson, who bought a little piece of land 828,000 square miles in size in 1803. Jefferson had already commissioned his private secretary, Meriwether Lewis, to explore the Northwest, so he could now include “The Louisiana Purchase” in his itinerary. He set out on this date, May 14, in 1804 from St. Louis with William Clark and 45 men (Corps of Discovery) on what became a permanent and important part of American history: The Lewis and Clark Expedition.
The group had many exciting and dangerous experiences and reached the Pacific coast in Oregon. They got back to St. Louis by September of 1806. Tales of their journey make very exciting reading.
Today, in 2013, we have a wonderful interstate highway system in the United States. Roads, bridges, tunnels and other systems make possible travel limited only by national borders and the amount of time and money we have for travel. As we zoom along these highways at breakneck speed, do we think about those pioneers like Lewis and Clark, their co-workers and all the road builders who came after them, making our journeys possible?
Devotional Thought: This country grew and flourished because of brave pioneers, whose dreams fostered courage and the will to face and overcome obstacles. The Bible speaks of Jesus as the “pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2 NIV). He has gone before us, making a way for us into Heaven itself. He is preparing a place for us. In the words of the apostle, Paul, “how we thank God for all of this!” (1 Corinthians 15).