God's Ways Are Not Our Ways

Exodus 6:1-4 -  Then the Lord said to Moses, “Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh. For with a strong hand he will let them go, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.” And God spoke to Moses and said to him: “I am the Lord.   I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name Lord I was not known to them.  I have also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage, in which they were strangers. 

Moses had asked God why.  Why had he sent him….why had his coming made the Hebrews lives even tougher…why he had not kept his word. He poured out his frustration and confusion on God in his prayer…perhaps with a bit too much judgement on God’s version of however Moses had imagined the job he gave him to do coming down.

So God answered him.  It wasn’t one of those short answers … God made sure he went back to the beginning of his relationship with the Hebrews. God simply stated the facts…I am God….I made  a promise…and I will keep it.  Then he told Moses to go and tell the same thing to the Israelite people.

It’s another reminder to me of how God’s ways are not our ways.  God knew that Pharaoh was not going to let his favorite slaves go easily…so he was going to use the stubborn spirit of Pharaoh to teach him just how mighty and powerful the God of the Hebrews was. Pharaoh wasn’t just going to let them go…he was going to drive them away in fear of what else God might do to him.

It’s hard to see the full picture of how God can use the tragedy or trial of a friend…family member…or even one’s self to bring about a picture of God’s glory when it happens.  But as time passes…the pieces start to fall together and God reveals a bit more of why he allowed certain things to happen.  Just like the release of the Hebrews from Egypt…which probably took about two months to complete… how long it took isn’t the point. It’s what we learn along the way. The Hebrews had lived so long in captivity …they needed the reminder of how strong God’s power was too.

Father…thank you for the reminder that your timetable does not always match my logic or imagination.  Forgive me for the times I get impatient like Moses and lose faith and trust in your final promise to give me a purposeful future that will help you build the kingdom of God on Earth.  Help me to be ever willing to wait as long as it takes to have the answers to my questions…even accepting the times that no answers are given. Amen.

Confidence Is Found In God

I don't usually stop and write devotionals in the middle of the day.  But the quiet of the mountain while watching Andrew play with his skateboard lured me into my phone keyboard and quicknote ap. The sun is shining bright. The view is amazing. I can't help but listen to the quiet whisper of God on this mountain top.

Andrew had no one to skate with today....so I went with him. I had never watched him skate...so I had no real excuse when he asked if I wanted to go. The few times I dared to watch  one of the videos he posted...I closed it thinking....oh my that sure looks dangerous.

I will admit that as we climbed the mountain in his car....my mother's heart got more and more anxious. As he walked up the short distance to the start of the run...I had to restrain myself from saying be careful! But as he fluently rolled...very fast I might add... I became very proud of how confident he was. His confidence makes me enjoy watching him...even if it does look dangerous. 

That's kinda how God works in our lives. We delay...procrastinate....and make excuses...but when we actually do something he tells us to do...and see how he makes it his ....it brings a confidence to our spirit that Satan can't handle. Proverbs 3:26 says...  "For the LORD shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken. We don't have to fear because God has us...no matter what. If we let him build us into what he needs us to be ...we can be courageous disciples like Paul...Jesus...Moses...and present day saints like Billy Graham and Charles Stanley. The sun is shining even brighter because God used this simple time with my son to me two lessons from his word today.

Father...thank you for the reminder that you are all I ever need in any situation.  Forgive me for the times that I let fear hold me back from being the confident servant you need me to be.  Show me how to live in your confdence more and more each day.  Amen.

Perseverance Through Prayer

Exodus 5:21-23 -  And they said to them, “Let the Lord look on you and judge, because you have made us abhorrent in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us.”  So Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Lord, why have You brought trouble on this people? Why is it You have sent me?  For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, he has done evil to this people; neither have You delivered Your people at all.”

Moses had done exactly what God had instructed him. He asked…the Pharaoh said no…and then increased the labor required of his captives.  The people were all for Moses when they thought it would be a simple matter to release them….but now they were angry at him.  His presence did not help them as he promised…it made their lives much harder.

Perhaps Moses remembered God’s words that Pharaoh’s heart would be difficult to change….so he did not give up.  He took his frustration and confusion straight to the God that had sent him. He asked the hard question why.  He stated the facts of his confusion … and the trouble God had not warned him about.

It is a reminder to me that some jobs that God gives us to do are not simple or easy.  They require perseverance….faith….trust …and many sessions of prayer and Bible study to continue to press on.  As Paul wrote in Philippians 4:13… we must continually… “ press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

I have felt deeply since I moved here that God wanted me to organize a Celebrate Recovery Group at my home church. We have met many times…each meeting thinking and working out the issues that will keep it from being a successful ministry. It is okay that it is a long process…for God’s timeline is not always immediate. We will keep bathing it in prayer…until the staff of the church decides to move forward with a date for a leadership meeting. Then we will bathe it in even more prayer until God is ready to make it a program he can use to increase his kingdom …strengthening the ones that come to help them recover from a life hurt…hang up…or habit that has weakened their faith.

Father…thank you for the reminder that you are always there…ready to hear our praises and our frustrations.  Forgive me for the times that I have vented my concerns to others before I have taken them to you. Help me to always remember to come to you with any concern or issue…so you can help me understand and persevere through any situation Amen.

God Knows Our Limits

Exodus 4:13-14 - But he said, “O my Lord, please send by the hand of whomever else You may send.” So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and He said: “Is not Aaron the Levite your brother? I know that he can speak well. And look, he is also coming out to meet you. When he sees you, he will be glad in his heart.

God was patient with Moses first 4 excuses …but the fifth brought anger.  God had reached his limit …his promise to send his brother Aaron to help him was his final directive. Moses saw that God was not going to change his mind and use someone else…so he went back to his father-in-law Jethro and asked to take his family back to Egypt.

It reminded me of some of the times my role as a mother required me to get angry before my children knew I meant business.  They would take their time and play and procrastinate as long as I would let them.  But when the angry voice came out…they knew momma wasn’t going to back down….they had better get to work or face the consequences.

In my heart…I knew exactly what it was going to take before they rose to follow my directions…but I gave them the benefit of the doubt…in hopes that I was wrong. Maybe they had finally grown up and would do it the first time. Since it was usually the third request for me.... the saying …third times the charm….was a great encouragement to me as a mom.

God knows exactly what we are thinking when he calls us to do something.  He knew exactly what Moses was going to use as an excuse…and he knew that seeing God’s anger would be the thing he needed to commit to God’s will for the next season of his life. God knew that Jonah would need to spend 3 days in the belly of a whale before he got it.  God knew that Thomas would need to see and touch his scars to believe.

I am so glad that God knows our every excuse and has a plan to put our hearts and mind in a commitment mode.  He will do whatever it takes to get us to commit to follow his will for our life.  Even if I mess up…God just throws backup plan number….well mine is probably in the thousands by now…into action to get us back on track. I am not sure I have reached God’s limit yet…I still mess up way too much. And he just lovingly picks me back up and steers me in the right direction again.

Father…thank you for the reminder that you know our very thoughts before we think them…and you love so very much that you keep chasing us with your will.  Forgive me for making you work so hard to keep my heart and mind focused on you.  Help me to listen and trust you when I hear you call me to do something for you.  Amen.

Team Up With God

Exodus 3:11-12 - But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”  So He said, “I will certainly be with you. And this shall be a sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

Moses had spent 40 years in Midian with his father-in-law herding his flocks. This day…as he neared Mount Horeb…his eyes beheld a bush.  It seemed to burn from within but the fire never consumed the bush.  As he approached it…just to get a better look…he heard the voice of God come from within.  He told him to take off his shoes to stand on such holy ground.  He told him he had a job for him to do that involved going back home to Egypt.

Moses reaction to God’s call reminds me so much of myself. He thought he was unworthy…and questioned the very sense of God to pick him at all.  His doubts began a dialogue with God that quickly taught Moses that who he was really wasn’t the point.  It was who God could make him if they teamed up together.

Not a day goes by that I do not think about my failures and mistakes. They creep into my head and try to convince me that I have no abilities…no authority to be any use to God.  The thoughts would weaken my faith…. weaken my ability to do God’s work…if it weren’t for one thought that God planted when he called me. I am not doing anything on my own…I am in a partnership with Christ.  It is his strength inside me that keeps me from hitting the snooze button on days that I know I need to be up early to spend time with him.

There has never been a day that when I call on God to help me that he hasn’t shown up.  It may not have been in a burning bush…but if I sit still…and focus my mind on him…and what I have read out of his word…he whispers softly to my fingers exactly what he needs me to understand.  Throughout the day…even when I am not paying attention…he shows up with lesson after lesson….using the great world around me.

Father…thank you for the reminder that you called each of us to a certain task for you when we ask you to be our Lord. Forgive me for the many times that I have let my unworthiness trick me into thinking I don’t have any authority or power in this world.  Help me always to remember to call out your promise in Philippians 4:13….I CAN…do ALL things…with YOU...at my side. Amen.

It Might Be A Bad Idea

Exodus 2:13-14 - And when he went out the second day, behold, two Hebrew men were fighting, and he said to the one who did the wrong, “Why are you striking your companion?”  Then he said, “Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you intend to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?”  So Moses feared and said, “Surely this thing is known!” 

God had used the faith of a simple Hebrew family to save and raise his chosen servant Moses.  He was raised as a prince in the Pharaoh’s palace…but never forgot his roots.  One of his weaknesses was a great temper. He lost it so bad on one occasion that he killed an Egyptian taskmaster that was abusing one of his Hebrew brothers.

He thought no one had seen him.  He had looked around carefully before he acted so violently.  But there were eyes and ears he had not seen that spread the news quickly of what he had done.  And even though some may have thought it was a good thing…the two men he tried to counsel used his action against him. When the Pharaoh found out…Moses had to flee to Midian.

It is a reminder to me that what we do is watched carefully…especially if we proclaim to know and follow Christ. We are to be living examples of God’s love… what we do should reflect God at all times.  Yes…I agree that is a very hard calling.  Yes …I agree that it is wrong for others to throw our mistakes up in our faces.  Yes… I agree that God loves us no matter what.

The point isn’t how others don’t have the right to judge us.  The point is that God is our judge….and he sees everything we do. Wrong is wrong….and we will be judged for it when we stand in front of God in the end. Yes he will forgive us…but what if our wrong affects their chance to be saved….or causes a fellow Christian to stumble.   Mark 9:42 says… "If anyone causes one of these little ones--those who believe in me--to stumble, it would be better for them if a large millstone were hung around their neck and they were thrown into the sea.”  That tells me ….If I have to look around to see who’s looking at me…then what I am about to do is probably a bad idea.

Father…thank you for the reminder that you see all that we do….and think in our heart.  Forgive me for all the impure thoughts that my flesh can bring into my mind.  Wash them from my heart as soon as they appear to tempt and weaken my faith.  Help me to pray each day for discernment and guidance for all that I do …think… and say. Amen.

Harsh Times? Draw Closer to God!

Exodus 1:11-13 -   Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh supply cities, Pithom and Raamses. But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were in dread of the children of Israel.  So the Egyptians made the children of Israel serve with rigor. 

The Israelites prospered in Egypt…even after Joseph’s death. The 70 original Hebrews that traveled there to survive the famine had all passed away…but God had blessed their children so that they grew to an enormous number.  It made the new Pharaoh nervous…to have such a great nation beside him.  In his evil heart…he decided to enslave them and make them work for him.

His plan backfired…no matter how hard he made them work...they still prospered.  Even his plan to kill all the male babies was delayed….because the midwives feared God more than the evil Pharaoh.  God’s people….toughed out the harsh conditions and hit their knees…instead of giving up to their harsh living conditions…they somehow used the strength God had instilled in them to persevere.

It is a reminder to me that all of life… the good times and especially the hard times are allowed in our lives to help us grow. We coast by on the good times…sometimes forgetting how God blessed us to be there.  But in the tough times….God needs to be our strength… depending on him is how to get through it. The early church grew more in persecution than it did any other time in history.  People rally together to help each other in times of tragedy.

Father….thank you for the reminder that hard times can help us grow in our faith.  Forgive me for the times that I have failed to hit my knees and ask for your help. Show me how to use the hard times of life to draw even closer to you.  Amen.