Category Archives: In the Word

beautiful whispers

As I met with God in the 19th chapter of Exodus today, I began to hear a whisper. It started out faint, but once it had my attention, it grew louder. Whispers from the God who knows the beginning from the end.

“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.”  (v. 5-6)

{“I have claimed you as Mine.”}
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God…” (1Peter 2:9)

~  ~  ~

“And the LORD said to Moses, ‘Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow. Have them wash their clothes…'” (v. 10)

{“You washed, but could not come clean. So I did it for you.”}

“But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” (1Corinthians 6:11)

~  ~  ~

“On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast… the LORD descended on it in fire…and the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder.”  (v. 16, 18)

{“I will come for you! With loud shouts and trumpets, I am coming for you!”}

“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God…” (1Thessalonians 4:16)

Just whispers. Shadows darting in and out of the story. But it is enough to make my heart bow once again in awe of the One who has laid claim to me, to my heart and my life, the One who did for me what I could not do for myself. The One who promised to come back for me. Beautiful whispers.

looking past me

“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

He had freed them from bondage, completely destroyed their pursuers and allowed the Israelites to walk through the Red Sea on dry land, after which they sang a spontaneous song of jubilation (15:1-18).

But now they were hungry. Forget what happened months ago or even days ago. Forget that they were on their way to a promised land. Right now, they were hungry. In this moment, they had discomfort, and it caused them to recall “back when” their stomachs were full. Even after all God had done, their empty stomachs convinced their minds that God would not continue to be good to them, that He would not meet their immediate needs. This “I know You’ve done great things, but what have You done for me lately” pattern would repeat itself many times in this epic journey.

And then I heard God speak to me. “They could not see past themselves to the destiny I had for them. Will you be different?”

With all of my heart, I want to be different. I ache at the thought that I would be among a generation that would die in the wilderness because I could not see past myself.

And so I speak to my own heart:

“Stand up and cast your gaze outward, past yourself. See that God is calling you to your destiny, a destiny that leaves a legacy of faithfulness. Quit looking back, for behind you is the place of your captivity.

Your flesh craves comfort and a feeling of fullness, causing you to dwell only in the moment of need. But you were made for more than this kind of dwelling. You were made to journey with Your God, through the wilderness and barren places, through valleys and up mountains, past quiet streams and through fire. You were made to have hands trained for war and a heart ruled by peace. You have a destiny and a purpose beyond this wilderness of self focus and self want. Turn down the sound of your craving for lesser things, so that you can hear deep calling to deep…the deep places in the heart of God calling to the deep place in you, stirring a craving for something so much greater than your personal comfort.

You have a hope and a destiny. Will you look past you to see it?”

the long road to glory

My continued reading in Exodus today led me to the subject of shortcuts.  I did a brief review of my life and realized that taking the shortest way to anything was my general lifestyle, and it still is. From getting my GED rather than finish high school, all the way up to checking my facebook page this morning, I have lived on shortcuts. Even my microwave, which I dearly love, and use FAR more than my stove, is a shortcut. 

“When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, ‘If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.'”  Exodus 13:17

God doesn’t care about shortcuts. He cares about the people He is leading. My research tells me that, although the road through the Philistine country was the shortest route, it was also heavily guarded by the Philistines.  God knew His people were not ready for what they would face on the shortcut. And God still knows that although the shortcut looks most appealing to us, it is also the road that is heavily guarded by the enemy. Maybe because he knows it is the way we are most prone to taking.

But there was another reason for taking the long road, which placed the Israelites with the Red Sea on one side, and Pharaoh’s army on the other side.

“The Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I gain glory through Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen.” Exodus 14:18

“And 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.” (14:31)

I was reminded this morning of God’s intervention in one of my “shortcut” decisions. At a time in my  life when divorce was clearly the quickest way out of pain and into a “normal” life, God stepped in and invited me to follow Him on a long road of marriage restoration. I struggled with the invitation because frankly, the shortcut looked better. I finally said yes, and followed Him on the long, often difficult road to a restoration that only He could have accomplished. It was on this road that I found some of the deep places of God’s heart, as He led me into healing and forgiveness. It was in following God the long way that I learned what it really means to die to myself, to love with His love instead of mine, and to seek His glory rather than my own comfort. It was also the road that many times left me feeling as though I had a Red Sea on one side, and the enemy on the other. For those that watched the process, including my family, and for those with whom I now have the privilege of sharing my testimony, God is clearly seen, and glorified. The long road left no doubt that He is able to do what is clearly impossible.

We are a people with a shortcut mentality, physically and spiritually. We so often bemoan how long God is taking to get us from point A to point B. The temptation is always there to take matters in our own hands and figure out the shortcut. For many of us, decisions are made based on the shortest distance to where we want to be, not even thinking that there may be a long road God wants to lead us down.

Remember…the shortcut looks appealing,

but it is the long road that leads to Glory.

irreversible power

The book of Exodus has God’s power, His terrible, beautiful power, on display. But there is also another power on display.

Aaron threw down his staff and it became a snake.  “Pharaoh then summoned wise men and sorcerers, and the Egyptian magicians also did the same things by their secret arts: Each one threw down his staff and it became a snake.” (Exodus 7:11-12)

God turned the water of the Nile into blood. “But the Egyptian magicians did the same things by their secret arts…” (7:22)

God brought frogs to cover the land. “But the magicians did the same things by their secret arts; they also made frogs come up on the land of Egypt.”  (8:7)

God brought gnats. And that’s where their power found its limit. “But when the magicians tried to produce gnats by their secret arts, they could not.” (8:18)

From these displays of power, I am impressed with two thoughts.

~ The power of the enemy has a limitation, but God’s power goes on, limitless. I love what God said to Pharaoh, after the plagues of blood, frogs, gnats, flies, death to livestock, and boils. “let My people go, so that they may worship me, or this time I will send the full force of my plagues against you…” (9:13-14)

By the time the enemy’s power had reached it’s limit, God’s was just getting started!

~ The enemy can mimic God’s power, but he cannot counter His power. Notice that Pharoah’s magicians only did what God had already done…turned a staff into a snake, turned water into blood, brought frogs to cover the land. What they did not do was turn Aaron’s staff back into a staff, turn the blood back to water, or make the frogs go back where they came from.

They had no power to undo what God had done.  God affirms this truth in Isaiah.

“No one can deliver out of my hand. 
   When I act, who can reverse it?” Isaiah 43:13

And again…

“My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of My hand.” (John 10:27)

Today, I am struck once again by the beautiful, limitless, irreversible power of the God to whom I belong.

Uncommon faithfulness

Many promises are made with good intentions, but good intentions without the faithfulness and power to back them up are useless.  We have become jaded by man’s inability to keep his word, so common are broken promises.  Our hope lies not in the promises of men, but in the uncommon faithfulness of God to keep His word. 

In Genesis 15 God made a promise to an old man with a barren wife.

“‘Look up at the heavens and count the stars – if indeed you can count them.’ Then He said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be’.” v. 5

“Then the LORD said to him, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions.” v. 13-14

The stage is set. The promise has been made. 

Fast forward to Moses, who is currently in a bit of a tizzy. “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)

We can all tend to get a bit frantic when it looks like God isn’t doing what we thought He would do, what we were sure He said He would do.  I’ve been there, and I know the sense of hopelessness it brings. I know how tired we get of waiting and how frightened and overwhelmed we can be in that dark period of time when it appears that God, while faithful to others, is not going to come through for us.  It can turn our waiting into unbelief. We find ourselves waiting to see if God will really do what He promised, if He will do something about our circumstance, if He is really there for us. It will make the waiting so much easier if we can stop waiting for if, and start waiting for now.

“Now you will see what I will do…”. (6:1)  For every promise He makes, there is a “now” moment.  

And so begins the very dark days of Pharaoh, the enemy of God who refused to let His people go, until finally…

“The Egyptians urged the people to hurry and leave the country… The Israelites did as Moses instructed and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold and for clothing. The LORD had made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people, and they gave them what they asked for; so they plundered the Egyptians. The Israelites journeyed from Rameses to Succoth. There were about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children.” (Exodus 12:33-37)

God’s promise to an old man with a barren wife.  Four hundred and thirty years after He made the promise, God made good on His word. He never forgets. 

How long have you been waiting? More importantly, are you waiting for if, or are you waiting for now? With God’s promises, it is never a matter of if, it is always a matter of when.

“…What I have said, that will I bring about;
   what I have planned, that will I do.” Isaiah 46:11

Uncommonly faithful.

the real question

Who are you?  A doctor, lawyer, teacher…famed preacher of God’s Word? Maybe just an ordinary Joe. A tired housewife and mother or a stressed out husband and father. A misfit.. outcast…addict.

Moses was a murderer who covered up his crime, and had to flee his home. (Exodus 2:11-15) He settled down in a place called Midian and quietly attended the flocks of his father-in-law. Nothing flashy, nothing big. Just a man with a sense of justice that got him into trouble, living an obscure life. (2:16-3:1)

Then one day, God appeared and called Moses to be the deliverer of His people.  And like most of us, Moses questioned God’s decision to use him, an ordinary man who had lived a less than sinless life.

“But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?'” (3:11)

And then it comes. The five words in answer to every person’s insecurity and question of their own ability to do what God has told them to do. It is the answer to our identity issue.

“And God said, ‘I will be with you'”. (3:12)

Moses, it doesn’t matter who you are. What matters is Who will be with you.

“Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the LORD Almighty says: I took you from the pasture and from following the flock to be ruler over my people Israel. I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you.” 2Samuel 7:8-9

David…shepherd, military leader, adulterer and murderer. King. Man after God’s heart. It was never about any of that. God is the One who was with you. 

“But Lord,” Gideon asked, “how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”

 The LORD answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites together.” Judges 6:15-16

Dear Gideon. It doesn’t matter how weak and small you are. It’s all about Who will be with you.

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20

It has been His promise from the beginning. He knows who and what you are. And He has always known that who you are is not the issue. The question is not are you good enough, smart enough, brave enough or strong enough. The question will never be “who are you?”.

Who is with you?

women. don’t underestimate us.

It’s time to dig into another book of the Bible to study, and I’m feeling pulled to Exodus. I look forward to hearing God’s voice as I turn to one of my favorite books in the Old Testament.

The book opens with the Israelites being fruitful and multiplying, which becomes a threat to the new King of Egypt. I would love to stop here and make the correlation between the Israelites, God’s people, and the Church, also God’s people. I’d love to talk about the threat we become to the enemy when we are “being fruitful and multiplying” (and I’m referring to evangelizing…bringing people to Christ. Just so we’re clear about that). But I can’t stop here. God is speaking something else to me, so I have to keep moving.

So the king begins to oppress the Israelites by putting slavemasters over them, but the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the bigger threat they became. What was the king so afraid of?

“Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country.” Exodus 1:10

 So the king took drastic measures. He ordered the Hebrew midwives to begin killing any male babies born to the Israelites, which the midwives did not do. So he gave the charge to his own people.

  “Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: ‘Every boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live.’”  Exodus 1:22

Why the boys and not the girls? From the oppressor’s perspective, it makes complete sense. Boys become men. Men are warriors, created and built to fight for what is theirs. They are fierce, competitive, strong and brave, created to lead. With this in mind, it is understandable why the king of Egypt wanted to rid himself of the males of the people he was oppressing.

But while this king understood men, he greatly underestimated women. Many people do.

When Moses’ mother gave birth to him, she managed to hide the fact that a male had  been born for 3 months. When she could hide it no longer, she made a basket, put him in it and put him in the reeds along the Nile river. Pharoh’s daughter bathed in the Nile, and found the baby in the basket.

And here is where I begin to smile.

Moses’ sister had been watching to see what would happened to the baby. When Pharaoh’s daughter found him, she knew he was “one of the Hebrew  babies” (2:6). So, the sister asked her if she should go find a Hebrew woman to nurse the baby. You can see the plan coming together now. Of course, she went and found the baby’s mother and brought her to Pharaoh’s daughter, who then told her “Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you.” (2:9)

Not only did this Hebrew woman save her male baby from the clutches of Pharaoh and his evil decree, but she ended up being commanded to nurse the baby (which probably would have lasted around 2 years), and was paid for it! By Pharaoh! After she finished nursing him, she gave him back to the Pharaoh’s daughter, and he was raised in Pharaoh’s household. Because of these women, Moses was spared the fate of so many other Hebrew babies.

Women. Fiercly protective of their children. Resourceful and intelligent. Quietly dangerous to the schemes of evil.

Pharaoh feared what the Israelite men could do, and rightly so. His fear should have been bigger than that.

As we know, Moses grew up and became the man who would be used by God to make the Pharaoh’s biggest fear a reality. He would lead God’s people out of Egypt.

A lesson for the enemy…Fear God’s men, but never underestimate the threat of His women.