Friday Thought – July 31, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

“In the third month after the Israelites left Egypt they came to the Desert of Sinai. They entered the Desert of Sinai, and camped there in the desert in front of the mountain. Then Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain and said, ‘This is what you are to tell the people of Israel: “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”’” (Exodus 19:1-6)

God spoke to Moses on the mountain and gave him a clear message for the people. As the days progressed and the Lord continued to speak to Moses, the message would get even clearer. God would speak in precise detail about how Israel was to live and how they were to follow Him.

Wouldn’t it be great if God would speak today in the way He spoke to Israel? Wouldn’t it be great if He would tell us what to believe and how to act and what it means to follow Him?

The truth is – God has spoken to us and with clarity similar to the clarity with which He spoke to Israel!

The people of Israel had only the word of Moses that he orally communicated to the people. But for us, we each have in our homes a copy of God’s full communication to us. It goes on for hundreds of pages, each carefully provided for our benefit. God’s revelation in the Bible clearly tells us what to believe. It provides a clear message about how to act, with principles that can be applied to every situation in life. It provides an unmistakable guide to reveal how to follow God.

I wonder how many of us wish that God would speak to us like He did in the days of Moses, and yet don’t read what He has given us?

His, by Grace, Steve

Thursday Thought – July 30, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

“Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, ‘What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?’” (Exodus 18:13-14)

Moses answered that he was only doing what the people wanted him to do. “Because the people come to me to seek God’s will.” (Exodus 18:15-16)

Jethro was convinced that God had other ideas for how the needs of the people were to be met. “What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. … Select capable men from all the people – men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain – and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. … If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.’” (Exodus 18:17-23)

Moses was misunderstanding God’s plan for his life. He thought he was to do everything the people wanted him to do. Moses felt obligated to meet whatever need was brought to him. But the people were not to set Moses’ agenda. God wanted to set Moses’ agenda. Moses’ agenda was to represent the people before God. Others could be appointed to handle the minor problems and disputes to free Moses for what God called him to do.

Every leader is to be a servant of the people. But the principle is that each person must determine what God is calling him to do and do that. What God is calling a person to do is not always the same as what people around us think God is calling that person to do!

We aren’t leading a group of the people as large as Israel, but the principle is still good. Don’t allow the clamor of people around you to determine what God is calling you to do. Listen for God’s call and do those things!

His, by Grace, Steve

Wednesday Thought – July 29, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

“The Amalekites attacked Israel at Rephidim. Moses said to Joshua, ‘Choose some of men and go fight the Amalekites. I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.’ Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses held up his hands, Israel was winning, but when he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up – one on one side, one on the other – so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army.” (Exodus 17:8-13)

There were enemies of Israel between Egypt and Canaan. The journey would not be an easy one, but God promised that He would be with them to help and protect. He would keep that promise over and over again.

Israel did not go looking for people to fight, but opponents came against them. The Amalekites attacked and Israel defended themselves, with Moses standing watch from the top of the hill. It was no ordinary battle. God wanted Israel to clearly understood, “Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.” (Zechariah 4:6)

As long as Moses kept his hand raised, Israel continued to win the battle. When Moses’ hands dropped to his side, the Amalekites began to prevail. It wasn’t the strength of the Israelite army that allowed them to prevail, it was the presence and power of God that would ensure victory!

We face many difficulties in our own lives and some seem like they are no big deal. We have the resources needed to solve the problem ourselves. Other difficulties seem overwhelming and there is no way that we can prevail. Both attitudes are wrong! In every situation, whether easy or difficult, it is only through the Lord – His power and presence – that we can overcome.

Remember always to turn to the Lord. It is His presence and power that will arm you for what you face.

His, by Grace, Steve

Tuesday Thought – July 28, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

The book of Exodus is an amazing story of God’s patience with a stubborn people.

Having escaped from Egypt, the people of Israel came to a place called Marah and they found the water there undrinkable. “When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah.) So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, ‘What are we to drink?’” (Exodus 15:23-24)

They had watched God do great miracles to set them free in Egypt, but they still didn’t understand how much He cared about them and they did not trust that He would provide for them. They grumbled and complained!

Still God answered, “Then Moses cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a piece of wood. He threw it into the water, and the water became sweet.” (Exodus 15:25)

They moved on into the Desert of Sin and this time the people grumbled because they had no food. “In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The Israelites said to them, ‘If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.’” (Exodus 16:2-3)

Though the people grumbled and complained, still God provided for their needs. “Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days.’” (Exodus 16:4-5)

The people grumbled and God provided water.

The people grumbled and God provided food.

What amazing patience God demonstrated. What amazing grace and love.

He shows the same characteristics to us, despite our grumbling and complaining.

His, by Grace, Steve

Monday Thought – July 27, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

“Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord: ‘I will sing to the LORD, for he is highly exalted. The horse and its rider he has hurled into the sea. The LORD is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father's God, and I will exalt him. … Who among the gods is like you, O Lord? Who is like you – majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders?’” (Exodus 15:1-2; 11)

Moses and the people of Israel had stood on the east shore of the Red Sea and watched as God caused the sea to crash back over the dry path that He had created across it. The army of Egypt was destroyed and the people of Israel were set free. They would never be held in slavery by the Egyptians again! God had delivered them with His miraculous power. Moses and the people of Israel broke into a song of praise.

They recognized God’s power – and they gave Him praise for it.

They sensed God’s love for them – and they let Him know they appreciated it.

They felt God’s awesome presence – and they were overwhelmed by it.

Praise to God was the natural response of what they felt in their hearts. Praise to God should be the natural response of what we feel in our hearts as we remember and understand what Jesus has done for us.

The Hebrew author instructed us, “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise – the fruit of lips that confess his name.” (Hebrews 13:15)

Let’s lift our hearts (perhaps our voices, too) in praise for what God has done for us. For what He has done for us in Jesus is more powerful and shows greater love than what He did for Israel at the Red Sea!

His, by Grace, Steve

Friday Thought – July 24, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

It’s one of the most dramatic scenes in the entire Bible. Israel got to the shore of the Red Sea. The sea was in front of them. Behind them was the Egyptian army. There was no way out and their hearts melted in fear.

“They said to Moses, ‘Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? … It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!’” (Exodus 14:10-12)

Moses was convinced that God would act on their behalf. “Moses answered them, ‘Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.’” (Exodus 14:13-14)

Boy did God act!

“That night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground.” (Exodus 14:21-22)

The Red Sea was parted and Israel was able to walk across the sea on dry ground! That’s a miracle! God didn’t just allow the Israelites to escape, He worked to devastate their enemy so that they would not be pursued again.

“The Lord said to Moses, ‘Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the

waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.’ Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were fleeing toward it, and the Lord swept them into the sea. The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen -- the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived.” (Exodus 14:26-28)

“When the Israelites saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant.” (Exodus 14:31)

God knows how to rescue His people.

His, by Grace, Steve

Thursday Thought – July 23, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

“By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.” (Exodus 13:21-22)

I’ve always wished for the kind of clarity of direction that the Israelites got as they were leaving Egypt. God’s presence and His direction were so obvious for them. During the day it was a pillar of cloud that represented God’s presence and that went before them so they would easily know the way to go. During the night, when the cloud could not have been seen, it changed to a pillar of fire. There would never be a time when the Israelites could even question whether or not God was with them or question whether they had made a wrong turn.

But here’s something to remember: the pillars of cloud and fire did not guarantee that the people would easily follow God’s direction!

When they got to the edge of the Red Sea, even though they were led there by God, they were ready to turn back to Egypt because of the difficulty! When they camped at the bottom of Mount Sinai while Moses was atop receiving the Ten Commandments, they still forged a golden calf, not satisfied with the pillars that God provided, not satisfied with God’s presence. When they arrived at the edge of the land of Canaan and sent spies into the land, they did not have the faith to enter the land, even though God had clearly brought them to its border!

God’s clear presence and His obvious direction did not guarantee obedience!

God’s direction in my life has never been as obvious as it was for the Israelites during that season. But the truth is, I haven’t always obeyed the direction from God that I have known! Why would I think clearer direction from God would mean easier obedience?

The point is: it’s not about how clear God makes His direction for our lives … it’s about being obedient to the direction we do understand!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought – July 22, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

God instructed the Israelites to observe Passover every year. It was a reminder for them of what God had done to bring them out of Egypt. “On that day tell your son, ‘I do this because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ This observance will be for you like a sign on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that the law of the LORD is to be on your lips. For the LORD brought you out of Egypt with his mighty hand. You must keep this ordinance at the appointed time year after year.” (Exodus 13:8-10)

Passover was a memorial for the Jews to bring back to their memory the great works of the Lord on their behalf. They were to remember His miracles, remember His power, and remember His love for them. It was a time of worship and rededicating themselves to the Lord.

Passover was also to be a proclamation to others. When they observed the Passover with all of its regulations and ceremonies, everyone who participated would know something was different. Especially the children who had not heard or understood the story before would take notice. The Jews were to use the Passover to teach their children and others who did not understand the work of the Lord on their behalf.

God knew that the Jews would be prone to forget. Aren’t we all? God has done marvelous, even miraculous things, in each of our lives. The work God did to bring us into a relationship with Him was unique and powerful work in each of our lives. There have been specific times when God has answered prayers or shown Himself powerful on our behalf. We think we will always remember them. The truth is that we are so prone to forget. The Passover was given so that every year the Jews would have a reminder of the powerful work of the Lord for them.

The Lord’s Supper is to serve the same purpose. It is a time to remember what the Lord did to bring us to Him. It’s a reminder of His sacrifice to pay for our salvation and His work to bring us into it. It is a time to worship the Lord with thanksgiving. It as an opportunity to proclaim His love to your children and to others. Tell them your story – tell them God’s story in your life.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought – July 21, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

“Now the length of time the Israelite people lived in Egypt was 430 years. At the end of the 430 years, to the very day, all the Lord’s divisions left Egypt.” (Exodus 12:40-41)

The Israelites had been living in a foreign land for 430 years. For 430 years they had been waiting for God to take them back to the land that He had promised to give them. There is a lesson about patiently waiting for the Lord in this story!

Not only were they in a foreign land for over 400 years, but for many of those years they were living as slaves. I’m not sure when their time in Egypt changed from their being guests of the Egyptians to their being slaves, but it had to have been at least 80 years. They were slaves when Moses was born and suffering severe persecution at that time. Moses was 40 when he fled from Egypt after killing one of the slave drivers. Moses spent another 40 years living in the desert as a shepherd for his father-in-law, so he was 80 years old when God sent him back to Egypt to lead the people out of their slavery. At least 80 years of slavery and probably many more than that.

80 years is more than a lifetime for most people, yet God required at least 80 years of patience as they waited to be released from their slavery. 430 years is longer than America has been a nation! Yet the Israelites were required to wait patiently that long before they were returned to their own land, a land God had promised to give them.

Can you wait a lifetime for God to fulfill a promise He’s made to you? At times He may require that kind of patience!

Can you wait generations to see His blessing revealed? That’s what He asked of Israel. That’s what He’s asked of the church as we wait patiently for the Second Coming!

Patience – it’s one of the hardest virtues to learn. It’s one that God requires that we learn!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Monday Thought – July 20, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

God had one final plague for Egypt. It would be far more painful that any of the others. God would send the death angel to take the lives of every firstborn son in Egypt. But for the Jews there would be a way out from under this plague.

Each family was to take a year old lamb or goat, without defect. (Exodus 12:6) These animals were to be killed, their meat eaten in a celebration, and the blood of the animal was to be used as a marker on each house. The blood was to be applied to the doors, along the sides of the door and over the top of the door. (Exodus 12:7) When the death angel passed through Egypt he would see the blood on the doors and he would pass over those homes without bringing death to them.

“The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.” (Exodus 12:13)

The lives of the Israelites would start over because of this miracle of salvation from God. “The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, ‘This month is to be for you the first month of your year.’” (Exodus 12:1-2)

Passover was to commemorate a new year – a new life for Israel!

A couple of thousand years later, God performed another miracle of salvation through blood. Not through the blood of lambs or goats, but by the blood of God’s own Son. When the blood of God’s own Son is applied to your life, it’s the start of a whole new life. The past is gone and a new day has dawned for you!

Israel would never be the same again. God was freeing them from their bondage to Egypt. He was setting them on their way toward the Promised Land!

When we come to the Lord, our lives are never the same again, either.  We are freed from our bondage to sin. God sets us on our way toward the Promised Land!

In Jesus, it’s a new day – a new life!

His, by Grace

Steve

Friday Thought – July 17, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

God sent plague after plague on the land of Egypt. Horrible things happened to the Egyptians, their livestock, and their crops. There was water turned into blood, frogs, gnats, flies, livestock died, boils infected the people, and hailstones. It was horrible.

“The LORD said to Moses, ‘Get up early in the morning, confront Pharaoh and say to him, “This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me, or this time I will send the full force of my plagues against you and against your officials and your people, so you may know that there is no one like me in all the earth.”’” (Exodus 9:13-14)

The plagues that afflicted Egypt were not just a demonstration of God’s judgment. They were also a demonstration of God’s mercy. The Egyptians deserved greater punishment than God was giving to them. They deserved to the wiped out from the face of the earth. That God only afflicted them instead of destroying them was kindness from God. He was giving them more chances to turn to Him. Even if Pharaoh would not because his heart was so hard, some of the Egyptians could have. They could have seen what the Lord was doing, recognized it was the work of the Lord to punish wickedness, and they could have repented. That is what the Lord wanted!

God’s discipline in our lives is an evidence of His love. The Hebrew author declared, “The Lord disciplines those he loves.” (Hebrews 3:12)

Even God’s judgment in the lives of those who do not follow Him, His punishment of sin, is an evidence of His grace and mercy. Most often His punishment does not lead to destruction – certainly His initial punishment does not. It is motivated by a desire to see people change, to come to Him in repentance.

So, as Solomon reminded us, “Do not despise the Lord’s discipline and do not resent His rebuke.” (Proverbs 3:11) They are an evidence of His grace, His mercy, His love.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought – July 16, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

The story of Moses and Pharaoh is an interesting look into human nature. Moses worked miracle after miracle. His staff turned into a snake and then back to a stick. The water of Egypt turned to blood when Moses gave the word. Frogs swarmed over the whole land, then gnats. On and on the miracles went and with each one came the same response from Pharaoh, he hardened his heart and would not do what the Lord was asking through Moses. (Exodus 7-10)

Pharaoh did not want to believe and so nothing would change his mind.

I once read of a graduate student in science who gave convincing proofs of God’s existence to his roommate over the course of the year. The roommate’s mind remained steadfastly unwilling to accept that there was a God. Finally, the Christian roommate asked the other why he would not believe. With surprising honesty, the roommate replied, “If I wanted to believe I would, but I don’t want to believe.” Not many people are that honest.

That’s the story of Pharaoh. That’s the story of many others through the centuries.  It’s not that they can’t see the evidence of God. It’s not that the evidence is unconvincing. They do not want to believe, so they harden their heart against what they see.

In Jesus’ story of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man in the place of torment cried out to Abraham to send someone back to his brothers to warn them of what was ahead. Abraham replied, “If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.” (Luke 16:31) The most convincing proof will not be enough if they do not want to believe.

Proof doesn’t move someone to God. Willingness to surrender moves them. Pharaoh stubbornly refused because he could not imagine a life in which he was not in control of his destiny. There was a hardness in Pharaoh’s heart that would never change.

When God looks at your heart does He see hardness or a softness that is willing to listen and surrender?

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought – July 15, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

“Say to the Israelites: ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. And I will bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to give to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the LORD.’” (Exodus 6:6-8)

God was promising to bring the people of Israel out of their Egyptian slavery. It would not be a swift or easy process, but God would do what He was promising. He would unleash His power to bring about the fulfillment of His promise. He could have just wiped out the Egyptians in the very beginning and allowed the Israelites to walk out to freedom. But God also cared about the Egyptians and although He knew they would not respond to His power or His judgment, He was unwilling to destroy them without giving them multiple opportunities to repent.

God’s heart is revealed in what He said to Moses. Buried within that paragraph is the reason God was moving so powerfully to bring the people of Israel out of Egypt. He had heard their cries for help, to be sure, and He was responding out of the compassion that is the characteristic of His heart. He loved them and He wanted to bless them. But there was a deeper reason than these for God’s action. “I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God.” The deepest motivation of God’s heart was His desire for relationship with the Israelites!

God wanted them to know Him. God wanted them to be His people. He was unleashing His power to draw them to Him. That desire is still the deepest longing of God’s heart, to have a people of His own, to be in relationship with people.

God wants men and women who will know Him. He wants to be their God, to love them, and care for them. It’s about relationship. It was from the beginning, and it still is today.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought – July 14, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

Moses asked Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go into the desert to sacrifice to God and Pharaoh had said, “no.” But Pharaoh’s response did not stop with a simple “no.” He told his slave drivers to “make the work harder for the men so that they keep working and pay no attention to lies.” (Exodus 5:9) Pharaoh told his slave drivers to stop providing straw for the Jews to use in making bricks and make them go gather it for themselves. Despite this extra work the quota of bricks they were to make each day was not lowered. Their work just became harder.

When they weren’t able to make their quota, the Israelite foremen were beaten by the slave drivers. They appealed to Pharaoh because they did not consider what was being demanded to be right. Listen to Pharaoh’s response to their appeal, “Pharaoh said, ‘Lazy, that’s what you are – lazy! That is why you keep saying, “Let us go and sacrifice to the LORD.” Now get to work. You will not be given any straw, yet you must produce your full quota of bricks.’” (Exodus 5:17-18)

So the Israelites turned on Moses.  They said to him, “May the LORD look upon you and judge you! You have made us a stench to Pharaoh and his officials and have put a sword in their hand to kill us.” (Exodus 5:21) What God was doing through Moses did not seem right to the Israelites. It wasn’t helping their situation, it was just making it harder for them.

Moses agreed, it didn’t seem right to him, either. “Moses returned to the LORD and said, ‘O Lord, why have you brought trouble upon this people? Is this why you sent me? Ever since I went to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has brought trouble upon this people, and you have not rescued your people at all.’” (Exodus 5:22-23)

Moses had heard the instructions of God clearly. He was doing what God asked him to do. But it wasn’t working! At least it didn’t seem to be working to Moses, or to the Israelites.

The road that God sends us down isn’t always smooth and easy. It’s often hard and arduous. The point is to keep following God’s path even when it’s difficult. It may not be easy, but eventually it will take us to the Promised Land!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Monday Thought – July 13, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

Just a brief look at the moral condition of our own country sends us into concern and depression.

The emphasis on sex is everywhere. It’s all over TV, all over movies, all over advertising, all over the Internet, it’s everywhere. On the Internet, more dollars of sales are made for pornographic material than any other category of sales!

There is violence all around us, especially in our larger cities. Terrorist threats, racial unrest, school killings, gang wars. Many people seem to view violence as an answer to their problems with other people.

Corporate greed, especially among those who are at the heights of corporate power, is common. Martha Stewart went to jail. Enron collapsed. Madoff was convicted. CEOs and CFOs now have to be compelled to sign for the accuracy of the financial statements of their corporations. They have to be forced to be honest because they don’t have the moral standards to make that choice on their own.

Don’t you wonder why people don’t just see the importance of doing what is right? Don’t you wonder why there isn’t something inside people that points them in the direction of right?

The first time Moses appeared before Pharaoh he brought a simple request, “Let us go hold a festival to the Lord in the desert.” They wanted to worship God and they asked for the permission of the king. Pharaoh’s answer is honest and direct and provides insight into why others disobey the clear instructions we have from the Lord.

“Pharaoh said, ‘Who is the LORD, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD and I will not let Israel go.’” (Exodus 5:2)

Pharaoh’s basic problem – he didn’t know the Lord. Since he didn’t know the Lord, there was no reason for him to do what God said was right!

Giving people moral guidelines or teaching them right and wrong and then expecting them to just follow the rules will never work. A morality imposed from the outside will never change a man’s life or the society in which he lives. The change has to start on the inside. Introduce a person to the Lord and his life will be forever changed.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Friday Thought – July 10, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

God satisfied all of Moses’ objections and doubts and provided Moses with all that he needed to accomplish the task he had been assigned. Finally, Moses headed toward Egypt, intent on doing what the Lord had asked of him.

But something strange happened along the way – God stopped Moses and was about to kill him. As a response to God’s threat on Moses’ life, Moses’ wife took her son and circumcised him. At that, the Lord let Moses alone.

“At a lodging place on the way, the LORD met [Moses] and was about to kill him. But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son's foreskin and touched [Moses'] feet with it. ‘Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,’ she said. So the LORD let him alone. (At that time she said ‘bridegroom of blood,’ referring to circumcision.)” (Exodus 4:25-26)

For some reason, Moses had not had his sons circumcised when they were born. Moses knew the command of God about circumcision for Hebrew boys, but he ignored it. Perhaps he was giving in to the hesitation of his wife who was not a Jew. Perhaps it was an act of defiance against God because of what already happened to Moses in Egypt. We don’t know why Moses failed to circumcise his sons – just that he failed.

The problem wasn’t about circumcision or any magical powers it had to protect. The problem was disobedience. Moses was disobedient to God. His disobedience almost cost him the opportunity to be used in a really significant way to help his people. His disobedience almost cost him his life.

There was something wrong in Moses’ life and before he could move forward that problem had to be dealt with. God wasn’t willing to use a man who was openly disobedient to Him.

You see, God does care about obedience. Disobedience gets in the way of God’s ability, or willingness, to use us. Disobedience creates a problem in our relationship with God.

Are there areas of disobedience in your life that are keeping you from being all that God wants you to be?

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought – July 9, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

“Moses said, ‘O Lord, I have never been eloquent. I am slow of speech and tongue.’ The LORD said, ‘Who gave man his mouth? Is it not I, the LORD? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.’ Moses said, ‘Lord, please send someone else.’ Then the LORD's anger burned against Moses and he said, ‘What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth; I will help both of you speak and will teach you what to do. He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him. But take this staff in your hand so you can perform miraculous signs with it.’” (Exodus 4:10-17)

“O Lord, please send someone else to do it.” That was the bottom-line for Moses. He was afraid. He didn’t feel adequate. He didn’t want to do what God has asked him to do.

Ever felt that way? I have, and I know that many others who have been asked by God to fulfill some responsibility in His kingdom have felt the same way, too.

The tasks God assigns carry a huge weight of responsibility. When God asks you to do something for Him it has eternal consequences. Your assignment affects the lives of the people it touches, not just for a short time, not just during this life, but for all eternity.

Moses was worried about his speaking ability. He wasn’t eloquent. He called himself, “slow of speech.” Does that mean he had some kind of speech defect or that he didn’t think quickly on his feet? Moses thought it would keep people from listening to him. Someone else would have been a better choice for this task.

God rarely chooses people for assignments who can carry them out with their own natural talent. God chooses people who have to rely upon Him in order to fulfill their responsibilities for Him.

God doesn’t look for the most talented to accomplish His missions, He looks for the one through whom He can show Himself! Remember that the next time God taps you for an assignment!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought -- July 8, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

“Moses answered, ‘What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, “The LORD did not appear to you?”’ Then the LORD said to him, ‘What is that in your hand?’ ‘A staff,’ he replied. The LORD said, ‘Throw it on the ground.’ Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it. Then the LORD said to him, ‘Reach out your hand and take it by the tail.’ So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a staff in his hand. ‘This,’ said the LORD, ‘is so that they may believe that the LORD, the God of their fathers – the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob – has appeared to you.’” (Exodus 4:1-5)

Moses’ first objection to what God was asking him to do was, “How will they know God has sent me?” God patiently told Moses how to respond and gave Moses His own name by which to identify Him.

Moses’ second objection was, “What if they do not believe me?” God patiently responded to this objection, too. God provided Moses with miraculous signs that would confirm that God was behind what Moses was doing. If they did not believe Moses when he told them God’s name, surely they would believe him when he demonstrated that God was behind him with the miracles God had given to him.

Moses would have more objections, too, and God would respond with the same kind of patience and provision. He would patiently deal with Moses’ objections and the graciously provide what Moses would need to overcome those objections.

God could have expected unquestioned obedience, instead, He allowed Moses to ask his questions, raise his doubts, and express his fears. God is not afraid of our questions, doubts, or fears. As He responded to Moses with such patience, so also He responds to us with similar patience. Ask God your questions, tell God your doubts, and show God your fears. God has offered you the kind of open and honest relationship with Him.

God provided for Moses in astounding ways. Everything Moses needed was given to him. God never sends His servants out without fully equipping them. Miraculous powers, spiritual gifts, co-workers, finances, whatever is needed, God can and will supply. Tell God what you need in order to accomplish what He has assigned you, and God will supply.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought – July 7, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

“Moses said to God, ‘Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the

Israelites out of Egypt?’ And God said, ‘I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.’ Moses said to God, ‘Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, “The God of your fathers has sent me to you,” and they ask me, “What is his name?” Then what shall I tell them?’ God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites:  “I AM has sent me to you.”’” (Exodus 3:11-14)

When you are doing God’s work, who you are doesn’t make any difference. David was just a young shepherd boy. Peter was a simple fisherman. Paul was a Hebrew scholar. Mary was a young maiden and Joseph just a poor carpenter. Just ordinary folks, and God used them in mighty ways to impact eternity. When Moses wasn’t sure that he was right one to go deliver the people of Israel from their slavery, God reminded him that who he was didn’t really matter. What mattered was that God was with him!

That brought follow-up question: who is God? To answer that, God told Moses a secret. God revealed His name to Moses. It’s a strange name, I AM WHO I AM, or just I AM for short. What is God communicating by calling Himself by that name? He’s saying that He is eternal. There is no past or future in God, He lives in the eternal now. There was no beginning to Him and there will be no end. He’s saying that He owes His existence to no one else. There was no other being responsible for bringing Him into existence. He is the self-existent One. He just is and always has been.

The name by which God identified Himself to Moses has been His sacred name ever since for the Hebrew people. It’s a name so sacred that they refuse to speak it. When they come to it in the biblical text, they substitute another word for it, afraid that they will speak the name of God without the reverence He deserves. It is God’s name, it still is. He’s revealed it to us. He’s invited us to know it and to use it. Bring the Hebrew name into the English language and it becomes Yahweh or perhaps Jehovah.

God revealed His name so that the people of Israel would know what power and authority was behind Moses. It didn’t matter how insignificant Moses was. It only mattered that God was with him.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Monday Thought – July 6, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

After killing the Egyptian slave driver, Moses fled Egypt to protect his own life. He wound up in the desert taking care of his father-in-law’s sheep for forty years. It seemed like God had forgotten Moses and His people.

“The angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, ‘I will go over and see this strange sight -- why the bush does not burn up.’ … God called to him from within the bush, ‘Moses! Moses!’ And Moses said, ‘Here I am.’ … The LORD said, ‘I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey …. So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.’”  (Exodus 3:1-10)

God had been watching over His people and waiting for them to be ready for Him to deliver them. When the people of Israel cried out in desperation God moved to rescue them. God had a plan to rescue them and He was just waiting for the right time to unveil it.

When God moved to help His people, He moved through Moses. God could have helped His people without using Moses or any other man, but God’s plan almost always involves working through those who know Him and love Him.

God sees the pain and suffering of His people. He is not blind or deaf to our situation. His rescue may not come on our time table, but God is not absent, unknowing, or uncaring! God responds to the cries of His people.

God will move miraculously to come to the aid of His people. God’s rescue started with a small miracle, a bush that was on fire but did not burn and a voice that came from heaven. Those were just the first and the smallest of the miracles that God stood ready to perform to help His people.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Friday Thought – July 3, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

Have you ever gotten ahead of God? Moses did.

Moses had a heart for his own people, the people of Israel. Although he was raised in the house of Pharaoh, he never really became an Egyptian. The book of Hebrews says, “By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.” (Hebrews 11:24) He knew who his people were and he identified with them, not with the Egyptian family that had raised him.

Exodus says, “One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to where his own people were and watched them at their hard labor.” (Exodus 2:11) The Israelites were his own people and he cared enough about them to go watch what they were doing.

It seemed that God was building in Moses a heart of compassion for the plight of his people and a desire to be used by God to help them. God’s plan would not come to fruition for forty more years, but Moses was ready to get started right away. “He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people. Glancing this way and that and seeing no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.” (Exodus 2:11-12)

It seemed like the right thing to do. There was an injustice being done, an Egyptian was beating a Hebrew. Moses moved to respond to the injustice. Surely this was God’s plan?

But it wasn’t. It was Moses taking matters into his own hands. The time was not right for the Israelites to rally against Pharaoh. The Israelites weren’t ready. “The next day he went out and saw two Hebrews fighting. He asked the one in the wrong, ‘Why are you hitting your fellow Hebrew?’ The man said, ‘Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?’” (Exodus 2:13-14) The Israelites weren’t ready to follow Moses. They weren’t ready for God to come to their rescue. It would be another forty years before the Israelites would cry out to God to deliver them from their slavery. (Exodus 3:9)

Moses’ actions in killing the Egyptian slave driver came out of good motives. He really wanted to help. But his actions did not come out of a heart that was listening to God’s voice and following His direction. It was Moses’ plan and Moses’ action, not God’s plan and God’s action. When the time was right, when it was God’s time, Moses didn’t even have to lift a sword! God’s plan is always better than our own.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought -- July 2, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

Pharaoh had given the order that all boys born to the Jews were to be killed. It was a dark and frightening time for the Jews. The Jewish women must have prayed that they would give birth only to girls. In the midst of that darkness and fear, God moved to save one baby boy in miraculous ways. The story of how God saved Moses’ life is a story that demonstrates God’s ability to move to accomplish His purposes, even using those who are His enemies.

“Now a man of the house of Levi married a Levite woman, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months. But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile.” (Exodus 2:1-4)

First, Moses’ mother did what she could to protect the baby. She hid the baby for as long as she could keep his birth a secret from the Egyptians. Even when she could no longer hide him, she found a way to continue to do what she could, putting him in a basket in the river. The principle is that God does expect us to cooperate with His work ... to do what we can. When what Moses’ mother could do came to an end, she trusted him into God’s care.

“Then Pharaoh’s daughter went down to the Nile to bathe, and her attendants were walking along the river bank. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her slave girl to get it. She opened it and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt sorry for him. ‘This is one of the Hebrew babies,’ she said. Then his sister asked Pharaoh's daughter, ‘Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?’” (Hebrews 2:5-7)

In a miraculous twist, God used Pharaoh’s own daughter to save Moses. God used His enemy to accomplish His purpose! God put Moses in the most secure place in all of Egypt, Pharaoh’s own house. God provided a way for Moses’ own mother to be involved in his care and training.

It’s a story of God’s creativity. It’s a story of God’s ability to protect in the midst of great danger. It’s a story that tells us that nothing, not even the worst of man’s schemes, can stand in the way of God’s plan.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought – July 1, 2015

Good Morning Friends,

“The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, ‘When you help the Hebrew women in childbirth and observe them on the delivery stool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.’ The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live.” (Exodus 1:15-18)

The Hebrew midwives were given an order by Pharaoh that went directly against God’s will. It wasn’t a gray area, God’s will was very clear. Killing another person was wrong. God had spoken to Noah, “From each man, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of his fellow man. Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made man.” (Genesis 9:6)

God’s will also was clear with respect to the obedience that was owed by His people to those who ruled over them. The Hebrews were not to be a rebellious people, they were to respect their rulers and be good citizens. The midwives were faced with a dilemma: should they obey their ruler or obey the clear will and command of God.

Actually, it didn’t pose much of a dilemma for the midwives. They knew what was right. When the ruler asked them to do something that was clearly wrong, they refused to obey. They followed the plan the apostles would later declare to the rulers of the Jews, “We must obey God rather than men!” (Acts 5:29)

Fortunately, this kind of situation does not arise often. Those who rule over us: the government, our employers, our teachers … do not often ask us to do that which is clearly wrong. But when they do ask us to do what we know is wrong, then the path before us is clear. We must obey God, even if it means to disobey those who rule over us.

God’s will and commands take precedence over all others. That’s what it means to be His disciple!

His, by Grace,

Steve