[Frodo]

Genesis 6:1- 8:22

When God told Noah to build the ark, he wasn't just building it for a pleasure cruise. If God told me to build a huge boat to bring my family onto because he was going to flood the whole earth for a year, I'd get pretty freaked out.
I wouldn't think that I'd really want to do it! I mean, maybe I would think, "If I don't build this boat, will God keep the floods from the earth?" Noah didn't know how long he'd be cramped in that boat with stinky, wild animals. I'd want out pretty quickly.
But the great thing about Noah is that he trusted God, even though it must have been hard. He was building that ark for 100 years! That's a long time. And then, after he got on, scholars say he stayed there with his family for 11 months.
I don't know about you, but after that amount of time, I'd not only be sick of animals smell, but of seeing the same seven people over and over again. I'd want to be out of there fast! I mean, couldn't I just go for a little swim? But no, Noah stayed faithful, saving his whole family.
Noah had a lot of faith, and is definitely one of my role models. I used to always think "Awesome, being on a boat with tons of animals!" But that's probably not how it was. It was a literal zoo. Cleaning up after them, taking care of them, feeding them, washing them…the list goes on and on. After a while, it'd get really old. And he wasn't even getting paid!
And think about when Noah got off the ark, and saw his first rainbows. That would be well worth it. If you'd never seen something like that before, I'd think that would be pretty amazing. All in all, Noah did receive his payment. His family's lives were saved, the earth was saved, and he had a promise he would remember the rest of his life.
So the next time you're tempted to say "That's too hard" or "That would take too long", think of Noah. God will never give you more than you can handle. He promised that with temptation, and I think he promises that with our whole lives too. He wants us to enjoy living here! Today, remember that.

[hockeydad]

I wish that God's calling for me was always as clear as his call to Noah. Some times God's calling can be prettly subtle and some times it's very hard to distinguish between what He wants for me and what I just want for myself (For example: When job hunting, do I take the first one that comes along? What if I get more than one offer?).

On the other hand there are a lot of areas in which God makes himself very clear (like helping someone in trouble or in need) and I think we make a grave error when we fail to respond ("He who knows the thing he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.").

Another interesting thing about Noah...just imagine the ridicule he must have received for obeying God. As I understand it, there had never been rain up to that point and here was Noah building this gigantic boat in the middle of nowhere with no body of water to be seen for miles.

Are we strong enough in our faith and willing to be obedient to God in the face of ridicule and worse?

[Frodo]

Those are good points, hockeydad. Thanks! And you're right, my Bible says that until then, water came up from the earth to water the plants. That would be cool! I wonder if it was like a sprinkler, or if you couldn't see the water. That'd be cool to know.