Exodus 17:8-18 (as in all of chapter 18)
Well, the people face their first big hurdle. The Amalekites came on over to fight the Israelites. Joshua (hmmm, that name sounds familiar :) led the Israelites in the battle.
Moses had to have his arms raised. As long as they were raised, walking stick in hand, the Israelites would "win". However, the times he became weary and let his arms fall, the Amalekites took the lead. Soon, Aaron and Hur were there with a plan. Moses had a nice comfy rock to sit upon, and Aaron and Hur helped hold Moses' arms up until victory was declared.
There are so many correlations to life here. And if it weren't midnight, I might try to share some (feel free to share your own). But to me, one of the biggest ones is that we are not fighting alone. We live in an evil world. We look to our God to help us. But He doesn't expect us to do it alone. We have help. We have support. We have someone holding us up. Yes, family and friends do that, but even more, that is the role of the Holy Spirit. He holds our hands up when we think we are too tired to carry on. He sits us down on that comfy rock when our legs are weary. And HE will ultimately win the battle.
The next chapter, 18, was a neat one. Moses meets up with Jethro, his father in law. They obviously have a close relationship. They embraced. They sat and chatted. And Moses got to share everything that had been going on. And Jethro was obviously moved by how God had moved in such a powerful way in Egypt and through Moses.
One part I really like that I had forgotten about was that Moses spent all day dealing with issues of the Israelites...disagreements that are sure to come about with that many people. The people lined up as Moses dealt with each one.
And he did so without complaining. Or at least without any records of complaints.
But this is the part I liked.
Jethro, his father in law, told Moses to delegate. Moses did NOT need to be the one and only one doing this. He could choose capable men to handle the simple arguments, while taking on only the bigger ones.
I love to see business principles at work this many years ago.
Just shows me that we may think we are doing something new.
But really, these ideas have been around for years. (And have withstood the tests of time...)
Reba
Not sure on tomorrow's reading...it is too dark for me to see. I guess it will be a surprise! :)
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Week 6 Day 3 Eat, Drink, and Be...
Grouchy?
I decided I could get one more in before I head to bed.
Exodus 15:22-17:7
Now the Egyptians are out of the way.
So things should be good. Right?
Well, at least until the people get thirsty.
One child who will remain nameless is extremely demanding. And when he is thirsty, he tells me about every five seconds. I don't even have time to respond and say, "I am getting it." He thinks he is dying of thirst. Right there. (Of course, he takes a tiny sip once I get it for him then goes off to play...)
That is what I think of with the Israelites. They act like they are dying of thirst. Poor Moses. Don't you know, he is thinking, "Don't kill the messenger..." Like he has ANY control of any of this.
So poor Moses goes to God and pleads for help For relief. For peace.
God gives him a plan.
So things are good, right?
Oh, wait. Now the people are hungry. Like wolves circling. They want to eat.
Once again, Moses pleads to God.
And once again, God provides. Meat and bread. Meat at night. Bread in the morning.
So now I am sure God has proven Himself. Right?
Well, at least until the people are thirsty again.
At this point, Moses is asking God, "What do I do with these people???"
How frustrated he must have been.
Even with all of the grumbling reaching His ears, God listens. And once again, He takes care of His people.
Grumble, complain, whine.
He listens anyway.
I am glad that is the God I serve, aren't you?
Reba
Next reading:
Exodus 17:8-18
I decided I could get one more in before I head to bed.
Exodus 15:22-17:7
Now the Egyptians are out of the way.
So things should be good. Right?
Well, at least until the people get thirsty.
One child who will remain nameless is extremely demanding. And when he is thirsty, he tells me about every five seconds. I don't even have time to respond and say, "I am getting it." He thinks he is dying of thirst. Right there. (Of course, he takes a tiny sip once I get it for him then goes off to play...)
That is what I think of with the Israelites. They act like they are dying of thirst. Poor Moses. Don't you know, he is thinking, "Don't kill the messenger..." Like he has ANY control of any of this.
So poor Moses goes to God and pleads for help For relief. For peace.
God gives him a plan.
So things are good, right?
Oh, wait. Now the people are hungry. Like wolves circling. They want to eat.
Once again, Moses pleads to God.
And once again, God provides. Meat and bread. Meat at night. Bread in the morning.
So now I am sure God has proven Himself. Right?
Well, at least until the people are thirsty again.
At this point, Moses is asking God, "What do I do with these people???"
How frustrated he must have been.
Even with all of the grumbling reaching His ears, God listens. And once again, He takes care of His people.
Grumble, complain, whine.
He listens anyway.
I am glad that is the God I serve, aren't you?
Reba
Next reading:
Exodus 17:8-18
Week 6 Day 2 Clouds and Fire
Yes, I realize I am now TWO days behind. I will get caught up by Monday. I will. I don't know what happened; it has just been a really long and busy week. I am not saying it will happen tonight but soon. :)
Exodus 13-15:21
Finally the people are out of Egypt.
Finally.
And here they have God right there with them. During the day, His presence is a pillar of clouds. At night, a pillar of fire.
What a comfort that would be! A tangible piece of evidence that God was with them.
Yet, they still doubted.
They are heading out on their journey when the king of Egypt notices, "Hey, all of our slaves are gone...we need to get them."
So Pharaoh and his men hop into their chariots and head to the Red Sea.
Even with a head start, the Egyptians catch up with God's people.
Now you would think after ALL that God had done, God's people would have thought, "This situation is not bigger than God. At all."
Instead, the people start whining right off. "Why did you bring us here? We could have died in Egypt just as easily? What will happen?" Blah. Blah. Blah.
I just think Moses had to get weary at some point of the complaining. Don't you think? I would have been. I would have been saying, "Um, God, I did NOT sign up for this!"
Thankfully, Moses was a better guy than me. He just listened to God. Raised his staff by the water. And the waters opened up.
The Israelites walked across the Sea on dry land.
The Egyptians tried. But at that point, the water that had been held back was released.
And that was the end of that. Or rather them.
Next reading: Exodus 15:22-Exodus 17:7
Exodus 13-15:21
Finally the people are out of Egypt.
Finally.
And here they have God right there with them. During the day, His presence is a pillar of clouds. At night, a pillar of fire.
What a comfort that would be! A tangible piece of evidence that God was with them.
Yet, they still doubted.
They are heading out on their journey when the king of Egypt notices, "Hey, all of our slaves are gone...we need to get them."
So Pharaoh and his men hop into their chariots and head to the Red Sea.
Even with a head start, the Egyptians catch up with God's people.
Now you would think after ALL that God had done, God's people would have thought, "This situation is not bigger than God. At all."
Instead, the people start whining right off. "Why did you bring us here? We could have died in Egypt just as easily? What will happen?" Blah. Blah. Blah.
I just think Moses had to get weary at some point of the complaining. Don't you think? I would have been. I would have been saying, "Um, God, I did NOT sign up for this!"
Thankfully, Moses was a better guy than me. He just listened to God. Raised his staff by the water. And the waters opened up.
The Israelites walked across the Sea on dry land.
The Egyptians tried. But at that point, the water that had been held back was released.
And that was the end of that. Or rather them.
Next reading: Exodus 15:22-Exodus 17:7
Monday, March 28, 2011
Week 6 Day 1 Passover
Exodus 11 and 12
One last time, God has a message for the king of Egypt. He (God) will be passing through the land the next day, killing the firstborn of every family, whether human or animal.
He also had a message for the people of Israel. He had very strict instructions on what they needed to do to prepare for this "passover" so that He would pass over their homes, not harming their children.
I am a little bit of a worrier, so I found myself intrigued with these directions. I think the whole time I would have been checking my list and checking it again to make sure I got it right!
Sure enough, at midnight, just as God had said, the firstborns of any child in a home not protected by the blood of an innocent lamb died. Even the king's son.
And there was a loud wail across the land.
Now he listens. The king listens. He orders Moses and his people to hightail it out of town.
And the people of Egypt who have come to respect the Israelites AND Moses agree.
In fact, they not only encourage the Israelites to leave but to take their gold and silver.
So the people of Israel leave.
430 years later.
And now a whole new set of adventures begin!
Tomorrow's reading: Exodus 13-15:21
One last time, God has a message for the king of Egypt. He (God) will be passing through the land the next day, killing the firstborn of every family, whether human or animal.
He also had a message for the people of Israel. He had very strict instructions on what they needed to do to prepare for this "passover" so that He would pass over their homes, not harming their children.
I am a little bit of a worrier, so I found myself intrigued with these directions. I think the whole time I would have been checking my list and checking it again to make sure I got it right!
Sure enough, at midnight, just as God had said, the firstborns of any child in a home not protected by the blood of an innocent lamb died. Even the king's son.
And there was a loud wail across the land.
Now he listens. The king listens. He orders Moses and his people to hightail it out of town.
And the people of Egypt who have come to respect the Israelites AND Moses agree.
In fact, they not only encourage the Israelites to leave but to take their gold and silver.
So the people of Israel leave.
430 years later.
And now a whole new set of adventures begin!
Tomorrow's reading: Exodus 13-15:21
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Week 5 Day 7 A Storm is a a Coming!
Okay, okay, I am going to be a day behind. At least until I catch up with myself. :)
Okay, Exodus 9-10
The Plagues continue...
Next on the list: Disease on farm animals. The Egyptians farm animals fell over dead from disease. The Israelite's animals...clean as a whistle. Don't you think the king of Egypt should be seeing a pattern here? I guess he probably did but his heart was hardened. So the plagues continue.
Next: Boils. Moses threw ashes into the air in front of the king, and the people of the land had boils all over their bodies. Even the magicians couldn't even come before the king because of the boils. I am such a baby. One little blister does me in. Can you imagine having boils all over your body? I think I would be calling for the head of the king at this point. Don't you know the people are wanting to say, "King, leave us out of your power games!"
Up to bat: Hail. Moses warned them. He told the people, "Get your people and your animals inside...a storm is a coming." Okay, he didn't say it exactly like that, but that is basically what he said. And some people listened. (You would think after all of this, all of the people would listen...) Some people didn't. Guess what? Moses knew what he was talking about. The next day, the storms started. BIG storms. Lots of hail. All over Egypt. Not at all in Goshen. And anything left outside was destroyed. You know, a hailstorm about does our roof in. We have had a couple of those storms where new roofs went on afterward all over town. And that is in a modern house. Can you imagine what it did to the houses back then? To the crops? To the animals? Pharaoh admitted defeat (or looked like he did...), asking Moses to make it stop. But as soon as the thunder and hail ended, guess what? Pharaoh changed his mind. Again. So the plagues continue.
Next on the list: Locusts. Moses tells the king that locusts are coming. Even the king's officers are feeling weary at this point. They urge the king to listen because anytime Moses comes around, trouble begins. So Pharaoh asks Moses who exactly will be going on this worship excursion. Moses tells him that they ALL would be going. Pharaoh says, "No, just the men." Then forces Moses and Aaron out. So guess what happens next? Swarms of locusts come in with a big gust of wind from the east. So many locusts that the land looked black? Can you fathom? Locusts are noisy. Just hearing a few of them sends shivers down my side. Finding their little skeletons (skins) hanging on the tree is a bit eerie. Can you fathom having a land covered by locusts? And of course, they eat anything green. And they did. Again, the king calls Moses back, feigning remorse. At least until the locusts blew away into the Red Sea. Then the king changed his mind yet again.
In the dark: Total darkness. Just last week we visited a cavern. When we were way back in the cave, the guide turned all of the lights off at one point so we could experience total darkness. I am glad it was only for a minute. I am claustrophobic anyway. I felt like I was suffocating. It was terrifying to me. Can you imagine three days of complete darkness? Not even a little moonlight coming through. Yet the people of Israel had light.
So the king calls Moses back. He tells Moses that he and his people can go worship the Lord but their flocks must remain. Moses calmly tells him that the animals are needed for sacrifices. The king again changes his mind and throws Moses and Aaron out, telling them the next time he sees them, they will die. Moses says, "Fine with me..." (paraphrase)
The saga continues.
Tomorrow's passage: Exodus 11-12
Reba
Okay, Exodus 9-10
The Plagues continue...
Next on the list: Disease on farm animals. The Egyptians farm animals fell over dead from disease. The Israelite's animals...clean as a whistle. Don't you think the king of Egypt should be seeing a pattern here? I guess he probably did but his heart was hardened. So the plagues continue.
Next: Boils. Moses threw ashes into the air in front of the king, and the people of the land had boils all over their bodies. Even the magicians couldn't even come before the king because of the boils. I am such a baby. One little blister does me in. Can you imagine having boils all over your body? I think I would be calling for the head of the king at this point. Don't you know the people are wanting to say, "King, leave us out of your power games!"
Up to bat: Hail. Moses warned them. He told the people, "Get your people and your animals inside...a storm is a coming." Okay, he didn't say it exactly like that, but that is basically what he said. And some people listened. (You would think after all of this, all of the people would listen...) Some people didn't. Guess what? Moses knew what he was talking about. The next day, the storms started. BIG storms. Lots of hail. All over Egypt. Not at all in Goshen. And anything left outside was destroyed. You know, a hailstorm about does our roof in. We have had a couple of those storms where new roofs went on afterward all over town. And that is in a modern house. Can you imagine what it did to the houses back then? To the crops? To the animals? Pharaoh admitted defeat (or looked like he did...), asking Moses to make it stop. But as soon as the thunder and hail ended, guess what? Pharaoh changed his mind. Again. So the plagues continue.
Next on the list: Locusts. Moses tells the king that locusts are coming. Even the king's officers are feeling weary at this point. They urge the king to listen because anytime Moses comes around, trouble begins. So Pharaoh asks Moses who exactly will be going on this worship excursion. Moses tells him that they ALL would be going. Pharaoh says, "No, just the men." Then forces Moses and Aaron out. So guess what happens next? Swarms of locusts come in with a big gust of wind from the east. So many locusts that the land looked black? Can you fathom? Locusts are noisy. Just hearing a few of them sends shivers down my side. Finding their little skeletons (skins) hanging on the tree is a bit eerie. Can you fathom having a land covered by locusts? And of course, they eat anything green. And they did. Again, the king calls Moses back, feigning remorse. At least until the locusts blew away into the Red Sea. Then the king changed his mind yet again.
In the dark: Total darkness. Just last week we visited a cavern. When we were way back in the cave, the guide turned all of the lights off at one point so we could experience total darkness. I am glad it was only for a minute. I am claustrophobic anyway. I felt like I was suffocating. It was terrifying to me. Can you imagine three days of complete darkness? Not even a little moonlight coming through. Yet the people of Israel had light.
So the king calls Moses back. He tells Moses that he and his people can go worship the Lord but their flocks must remain. Moses calmly tells him that the animals are needed for sacrifices. The king again changes his mind and throws Moses and Aaron out, telling them the next time he sees them, they will die. Moses says, "Fine with me..." (paraphrase)
The saga continues.
Tomorrow's passage: Exodus 11-12
Reba
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Confession
I haven't read today's passage. I will. Tomorrow. I am tired today and not in a deep thinking mood. I know you can't tell by the posts, but I do try to be somewhat deep thinking when I do this...
Reba
Reba
Friday, March 25, 2011
Week 5 Day 6 Shoo Fly
Exodus 6:28-8
Let the games begin!
Again, at God's urging, Moses goes to the king and asks that God's people be allowed to leave to worship their God.
And again, as will become a theme, the king says, "No way, Jose."
So now it is time to bring out some "signs of the time".
First up: Aaron throws his rod/staff to the ground where it becomes a snake in front of the king. Let me just say as a not so much snake fan, I would have been done at that point. But I wasn't there. Instead, the king just calls in his magicians and "wise men" who quickly do the same thing. The part I love? The staff/snake of Moses/Aaron ate the staff/snake of the magicians. You kind of think that would have been a sign. Guess not.
I think this is a good time to note that the magicians were able to do SOME of these "signs" too. So it isn't so improbable to me that some people can do things that should not be humanly possible. At the same time, being able to doesn't mean they should or that I should follow along...
Anyway, next in line: The water turns to blood. Ick! Can you imagine the whole Nile turning to blood? Stinky! And the kings' magicians come in and do the same thing. I was kind of puzzled how they knew it worked when they did it since Aaron/God had already turned all of the water to blood. What was left? Anyway, I feel kind of bad for the Egyptians. They can't help it if they have a hard hearted leader who is causing trouble by not listening to God.
Next up: Frogs. Frogs everywhere. I have tried to fathom this. I can't imagine opening up my pot and finding a frog in my soup. Or reaching for the shampoo in my shower and grabbing a frog by mistake. To make matters worse, the magicians try the same thing and add TO the frogs. Yet they can't make them stop. Only Moses/Aaron can do that (with God of course). Then they have dead frogs everywhere. Yuck!
Next: The Gnats. How annoying to have little gnats everywhere. This time the magicians couldn't do anything. They even told the king that it was the power of God that had done this. Nope, the king won't budge.
Next in line: Flies. Okay, I can barely handle having one or two flies in the house. They drive me crazy buzzing around, teasing me, as I chase them with my fly swatter. And this time God keeps the flies confined to the Egyptian homes. The Israelite people are fly free. Again, the king extends a plea for help in getting rid of the flies. Moses/Aaron relent and again the king's heart is hardened.
Hmmm, wonder what will happen tomorrow?
Reba
Let the games begin!
Again, at God's urging, Moses goes to the king and asks that God's people be allowed to leave to worship their God.
And again, as will become a theme, the king says, "No way, Jose."
So now it is time to bring out some "signs of the time".
First up: Aaron throws his rod/staff to the ground where it becomes a snake in front of the king. Let me just say as a not so much snake fan, I would have been done at that point. But I wasn't there. Instead, the king just calls in his magicians and "wise men" who quickly do the same thing. The part I love? The staff/snake of Moses/Aaron ate the staff/snake of the magicians. You kind of think that would have been a sign. Guess not.
I think this is a good time to note that the magicians were able to do SOME of these "signs" too. So it isn't so improbable to me that some people can do things that should not be humanly possible. At the same time, being able to doesn't mean they should or that I should follow along...
Anyway, next in line: The water turns to blood. Ick! Can you imagine the whole Nile turning to blood? Stinky! And the kings' magicians come in and do the same thing. I was kind of puzzled how they knew it worked when they did it since Aaron/God had already turned all of the water to blood. What was left? Anyway, I feel kind of bad for the Egyptians. They can't help it if they have a hard hearted leader who is causing trouble by not listening to God.
Next up: Frogs. Frogs everywhere. I have tried to fathom this. I can't imagine opening up my pot and finding a frog in my soup. Or reaching for the shampoo in my shower and grabbing a frog by mistake. To make matters worse, the magicians try the same thing and add TO the frogs. Yet they can't make them stop. Only Moses/Aaron can do that (with God of course). Then they have dead frogs everywhere. Yuck!
Next: The Gnats. How annoying to have little gnats everywhere. This time the magicians couldn't do anything. They even told the king that it was the power of God that had done this. Nope, the king won't budge.
Next in line: Flies. Okay, I can barely handle having one or two flies in the house. They drive me crazy buzzing around, teasing me, as I chase them with my fly swatter. And this time God keeps the flies confined to the Egyptian homes. The Israelite people are fly free. Again, the king extends a plea for help in getting rid of the flies. Moses/Aaron relent and again the king's heart is hardened.
Hmmm, wonder what will happen tomorrow?
Reba
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