The story of manna feeding the Israelites in the desert is one that everyone knows. I'm sure I have learned the lessons from it before, hearing in Sunday school and sermons preached on it. But in this time of learning to trust God it really shows how He only led them day by day, never giving more than they needed but just enough.
I picture myself in their situation where in Exodus 16 they are given specific rules for the weird little white flakes that appear on the ground in the morning and melt away by the end of the day. They are told to gather enough for each person but not to store any of it for the next day. How crazy is this? If you are in the barren desert, is it not instinct to collect all the food you can while you have the opportunity? Who knows when its going to stop or when you are going to come across food again? But, Moses became angry with those that disobeyed because by the following morning it stunk, had molded, and maggots were crawling around in it!
God led these people here with wondrous signs along the way. The plagues, the swallowing up of Pharaoh's army by the sea, the pillar of fire or cloud to guide them. The very manna itself is a miracle. Yet it strikes me that God keeps people on edge, hanging on by the skin of their teeth. Moment by moment, day by day, forcing them to give full trust to God because they can do nothing else.
We face decisions each day and do not usually take the time to consult God with them, usually just the ones where we aren't sure what to do. Can you imagine, trading places with the Israelites? I think about how hard it is to trust God now, asking him what he has in store for my future. It is good to think about the future, but what about each day? Are we taking the small steps of trust? Honestly, thinking like this makes me nervous. I don't particularly enjoy crazy spontaneity (planned spontaneity is cool though haha) or not knowing things ahead of time so the idea of trusting that God is going to leave manna with the morning dew each day is frightening. It does give me insight into what believing, trusting, putting absolute faith looks like. Just enough for each day. Don't worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own (Matt 6:34). This solidifies Jesus nifty little message about not fretting, bringing it to life showing how the Israelites lived. Crazy.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Psalm 130
Psalm 130:
"1 Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD; 2 O Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.
3 If you, O LORD, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand?
4 But with you there is forgiveness; therefore you are feared.
5 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.
6 My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.
7 O Israel, put your hope in the LORD, for with the LORD is unfailing love and with him is full redemption.
8 He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins."
This Psalm really reached me today. It is simple and beautiful--waiting, crying out, putting hope in God's redemption, love, and forgiveness. Even moreso, I felt I was able to identify with the comparitive metaphor about waiting for the Lord with that of a watchman. As a watchman, I know that feeling very well, dying for the sun to come up so the shift is done and I can go home. I just found it so interesting that I don't ever recall reading this Psalm before and yet an entry I wrote earlier ("Graveyard", two posts back) is similar in nature, comparing the reprieve of the morning with God's hope. Oh how the Psalmist says it so much simpler and more beautiful. Amazing how the Word keeps coming alive and can always reach us anew with things that touch us and push us forward. Praise God for his faithfulness!
"1 Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD; 2 O Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.
3 If you, O LORD, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand?
4 But with you there is forgiveness; therefore you are feared.
5 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.
6 My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.
7 O Israel, put your hope in the LORD, for with the LORD is unfailing love and with him is full redemption.
8 He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins."
This Psalm really reached me today. It is simple and beautiful--waiting, crying out, putting hope in God's redemption, love, and forgiveness. Even moreso, I felt I was able to identify with the comparitive metaphor about waiting for the Lord with that of a watchman. As a watchman, I know that feeling very well, dying for the sun to come up so the shift is done and I can go home. I just found it so interesting that I don't ever recall reading this Psalm before and yet an entry I wrote earlier ("Graveyard", two posts back) is similar in nature, comparing the reprieve of the morning with God's hope. Oh how the Psalmist says it so much simpler and more beautiful. Amazing how the Word keeps coming alive and can always reach us anew with things that touch us and push us forward. Praise God for his faithfulness!
Thursday, February 12, 2009
exodus
My little revelation that identified my time of struggle and transition with the exodus of the Israelites was exciting, for a day. When I wrote that I somehow thought that this realization would give me some bearing which would give me direction and solid footing. I had felt so refreshed after feeling the scriptures hit home and had great hopes. I think that when we are shown these things we are met with equally difficult responses, either as testing or to prevent us from going the right way...I'm not sure. The reason being, the week that followed such optimism was in fact very dark. My moods were sour I was in a sort of torpor. I liken this to the way we go about setting New Year's resolutions--we aim high and when we're off target we crash and give up. I also wonder whether the enemy sent a dark cloud to limit my vision and discourage my soul. Either way, the first step was realizing where I am and then giving up trying to go it alone.
Something that has spoken to me is found where God battles through Moses for his people against Pharaoh in a demonstration of power and stubbornness. Before Moses ever encounters Pharaoh God tells him that He "will harden Pharaoh's heart, and though I multiply miraculous signs and wonders in Egypt, he will not listen to you...And the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out of it." (Exodus 7:3-5) You can tell this isn't about convincing Pharaoh to release the covenant people but about God displaying his power--not just to the Israelites but to the Egyptians--as Pharaoh relents after each sign and then defaults on his promise. By the 4th sign--the gnats--Egypt's magicians issue a cryptic caveat: "This is the finger of God." (Ex 8:19) This phrase is huge! First that the magicians who were able to emulate the first few miracles are admitting to the power of God. Second that they are warning that this is just a finger, beware of even greater power!
This image is further delineated when Moses says later on, "the hand of the Lord will bring a terrible plague on your livestock..." (Ex. 9:3) God's purpose is repeated twice later on, first as a proclamation of power to all the earth (9:16) and as a tale to pass from generation to generation of how the LORD made real his dedication to them (10:1-2).
The fact that God fights for his people that he has bound himself to through covenant is beautiful. The thing is that it is difficult to understand how God works, why he allowed for them to become enslaved for so long and to let them suffer. Why he couldn't cut to the chase and be more forceful with his power.
Taking a look at Pharaoh and what he is left with is startling. In a sense he ravaged his own land out of his stubbornness by all the plagues and his people lost much of their valuables as the Israelites politely plundered their silver and gold.
Although it may be hermeneutically incorrect or at least inconsistent, a lot can be learned from this when you look at both sides of this piece of history. First, that God is persistent, fighting to win hearts when you look at what he did for freedom for his people. Second, that God is persistent, fighting to show himself even to the hardest of hearts. I feel that we can really identify with Pharaoh in this situation. For a time I've been struggling because I know God exists and he is there, I've seen his handiwork but I was struggling against the feeling of not feeling Him. It is a sort of battle within, because logically you know that God is doing things to get our attention and only sometimes we notice. When we do notice, we relent and say that we'll turn to him only to turn away at the slightest distraction. Just as Pharaoh did over and over again--promising to let God's people go only to renege.
I peeked ahead a page or two from where I am currently reading and saw underlined, "The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still." When you plug this back into the perspective of God pursuing Israel, defending them, and awing the current generation and many to come this is a beautiful, powerful promise and reminder. Taken another way, it is a statement that should allow you to slow down and reflect. Reflect upon what God is doing and not what you are doing, that he is fighting for us and wooing us and sometimes we just don't notice so we need to be still.
Something that has spoken to me is found where God battles through Moses for his people against Pharaoh in a demonstration of power and stubbornness. Before Moses ever encounters Pharaoh God tells him that He "will harden Pharaoh's heart, and though I multiply miraculous signs and wonders in Egypt, he will not listen to you...And the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out of it." (Exodus 7:3-5) You can tell this isn't about convincing Pharaoh to release the covenant people but about God displaying his power--not just to the Israelites but to the Egyptians--as Pharaoh relents after each sign and then defaults on his promise. By the 4th sign--the gnats--Egypt's magicians issue a cryptic caveat: "This is the finger of God." (Ex 8:19) This phrase is huge! First that the magicians who were able to emulate the first few miracles are admitting to the power of God. Second that they are warning that this is just a finger, beware of even greater power!
This image is further delineated when Moses says later on, "the hand of the Lord will bring a terrible plague on your livestock..." (Ex. 9:3) God's purpose is repeated twice later on, first as a proclamation of power to all the earth (9:16) and as a tale to pass from generation to generation of how the LORD made real his dedication to them (10:1-2).
The fact that God fights for his people that he has bound himself to through covenant is beautiful. The thing is that it is difficult to understand how God works, why he allowed for them to become enslaved for so long and to let them suffer. Why he couldn't cut to the chase and be more forceful with his power.
Taking a look at Pharaoh and what he is left with is startling. In a sense he ravaged his own land out of his stubbornness by all the plagues and his people lost much of their valuables as the Israelites politely plundered their silver and gold.
Although it may be hermeneutically incorrect or at least inconsistent, a lot can be learned from this when you look at both sides of this piece of history. First, that God is persistent, fighting to win hearts when you look at what he did for freedom for his people. Second, that God is persistent, fighting to show himself even to the hardest of hearts. I feel that we can really identify with Pharaoh in this situation. For a time I've been struggling because I know God exists and he is there, I've seen his handiwork but I was struggling against the feeling of not feeling Him. It is a sort of battle within, because logically you know that God is doing things to get our attention and only sometimes we notice. When we do notice, we relent and say that we'll turn to him only to turn away at the slightest distraction. Just as Pharaoh did over and over again--promising to let God's people go only to renege.
I peeked ahead a page or two from where I am currently reading and saw underlined, "The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still." When you plug this back into the perspective of God pursuing Israel, defending them, and awing the current generation and many to come this is a beautiful, powerful promise and reminder. Taken another way, it is a statement that should allow you to slow down and reflect. Reflect upon what God is doing and not what you are doing, that he is fighting for us and wooing us and sometimes we just don't notice so we need to be still.
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