Thy rod and Thy staff

Can you imagine the fear you would have if you were told to "pick up a snake" by the tail? I would have run right along with Moses - probably way ahead of him! I read that "serpent magic" was practiced in Egypt from ancient times whereby a snake is made rigid by hypnotism so that it could be picked up by the tail. But here God reverses this and with His mighty power turns a dry rod into a snake and then back again into a dry rod. (Is this what you call a "hot rod"?) The words in Psalm 23 came to me - "Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me." I believe that each time Moses held that rod in his hand, he remembered how awesome and powerful was the God that was sending him out.



Moses objects to God's call with several excuses - "they will not believe me . . . I am not eloquent . . ." What are the excuses and objections that I give when I feel God calling me to do a task? Do we not do the same thing - maybe we use different words, but objections and excuses just the same. Then, God promises to send Aaron, his brother, to speak for him. Wonder how long it had been since Moses had seen Aaron - years probably - and don't you just know their reunion was joyful.


On to Egypt they go, and then the bad turns to worse. Isn't that often the case? The first audience with Pharaoh fails when Moses asks that the people be allowed to leave for three days; the taskmasters take away the straw for making bricks; and it makes the work more difficult for the children of Israel. Moses questions God with the "why" - questions that we all ask, and God explains his "new name" to Moses - the LORD (YHWH) - "I Am Who I Am" or "I Will Be What I Will Be." Could we but remember the power in that name. The LORD is whatever we need at any time, any place, or anywhere. He is all sufficient for "His strength is made perfect in weakness."


Stay tuned - more miracles are on the way.

There's a plan for your escape

God has set the stage- and now another act unfolds. It's been an interesting Drama so far. We leave "The Beginning" behind and start "The Exodus". Pack your bags...it's time to break out!!

There are approximately 300 years between Joseph's death and Moses' birth. In that time, the Israelites have multiplied from the 70 plus who came with Jacob to over 2 million strong. Memories of Joseph have faded, and the once favored Israelites are now nothing more than a threat. Pharaoh tries to stifle their numbers and kill their babies. He succeeds, partially. One small baby sneaks through.

A deliverer.

Is anyone else hearing or noticing echoes of another story about a king, threatened by a baby, attempting to wipe out a whole generation of baby boys? Then, just like here...that small baby sneaks through.

A deliverer.

Man...I have goose bumps. God is so amazing.

I could really wrap the post up there. Seriously. Sermon done. With every post I feel like there is just SO MUCH...I always feel like I'm leaving a ton out...and my posts are still too long! So, I really can't stop there- because well...there's just SO MUCH! And, it all connects together like one gigantic puzzle, still being put together. So- are you ready?? Here we go..

• A woman successfully hides her baby boy who should have been killed...puts him in a basket and floats him on the Nile. THE NILE folks...this isn't your everyday backyard stream...
• Who should find said baby boy but Pharaoh's daughter. Who, "just so happens" to decide to take pity on him and find a Hebrew nursemaid to feed him until he's weaned. That was a gracious gift from God to Moses' mother for sure.
• Then, lo and behold, one of the Hebrew boys Pharaoh was so intent on having killed is raised as a grandson in his very own palace. Moses received a top notch egyptian education including reading, writing, math, geography, military training, PUBLIC SPEAKING (ahem, cough, cough)...Does anyone else find it ironic that Pharaoh was ultimately training the man who would bring his kingdom to it's knees?
• Things start to look pretty bleak for Moses when he kills an egyptian for harassing a Hebrew. This puts a price on his head, so he flees to (ahem) the desert...where he gets a wife and makes a life. I bet at this point Pharaoh probably wondered what he'd done with Moses all these years. I doubt he ever thought that someone raised as an Egyptian prince would choose the slaves over palace life.
• Ahhh, the bush. The bush. Moses meets God and receives his "commissioning." I love his stuttering and stammering. "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" If I were witnessing this scene, I'd look around and ask "Who else???" I mean, if anyone was prepared, groomed and set up for this Moses was. He was "the missing link" between the Israelites and the Egyptians. Blood of one ran in his veins and the culture, training, education and language of the other formed his mind. I don't know about you, but this blog has provided me the opportunity to discuss scripture with my husband more often. I was asking him about what sort of education and training Moses would have gotten in Pharaoh's palace and he listed it out for me...(I have well trained resources...:) Then he said that Moses saying he had trouble speaking was basically like he was saying "Uhh..well, I failed speech class..."

Now, seriously, cutting Moses some slack, I have to admit that the conversations between God and myself over something a tiny as starting this blog were very similar to Moses' "Uh...well, I failed speech class...". I can't imagine what my response would be if he asked me to go confront the president and tell him...well, I don't know what...but something he didn't want to hear. But, as I've gone along, I've realized just how God really had prepared me for doing this. The beautiful thing is he didn't just prepare me, but he prepared all the other contributors and you as readers. All the little "coincidences" in our lives were God working his plan out before our eyes.

We will all have a moment at "the bush". Maybe more than one. A point of commissioning. Ladies, God does not have you here on this planet for no reason at all. There is a task for you to do. God has a purpose for your life, and it may be something you think is pretty scary. But I promise you this, you already have all you need. You're thinking, "She just doesn't know me. There's no way I have anything to offer." Maybe not, but I don't even need to know you. I know the One who's asking you.

"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."

What God was telling Moses was "I'm not the God who was, I'm not the God who's coming, I AM God. I have been God. I will always be God. I saw you in Egypt, I see my people still in Egypt, I was there when you were born, when you were rescued, and I will be with you when you go forward. I AM the person who has orchestrated your whole life, and the lives of millions of people, to be part of what I AM about to do right now." God ALWAYS has a plan. It's key to His "I AMness". We are still in the midst of a great story of deliverance, and your part and mine are integral to the plot. There are "coincidences" in your life that God has placed there to prepare you for something, even if you don't see it now.

When you meet God at your own personal burning bush I pray you feel the power in the I AM. I hope it gives you the perspective to see past your own shortcomings and straight to His all encompassing power and knowledge and perfection. I hope you say, "Yes. Lord, yes." It's a turning point for your life...the end of your beginning and the beginning of your end.

Go ahead, escape with your deliverer.

Amen Lord. Thank you.

A Father's Blessing

Are you as anxious as I am to see what is to come for all these sons of Jacob? Sure, I have studied different books of the Bible but I have never read straight through. I have heard of the twelve tribes of Israel and even recently studied Revelation where the 12 are mentioned as being sealed or marked for special protection by God. Here in the last few chapters of Genesis we read about the blessing of the sons by their father Jacob or Israel. It is very interesting to see what Israel says to his sons.

First he blesses the sons of Joseph and adopted them as his own to be a part of the inheritance of the promise of God to Abraham. They were made to be the head of a tribe. Of course the blessing didn’t fall on them in the customary way. Do you suppose Joseph assumed his father was too old to tell what he was doing? Joseph even tried to correct his father by removing his hand from Ephraim’s head. Jacob knew exactly what he was doing. He was listening to God. Although Manasseh was the older God told Jacob that Ephraim would become the greater. When God chooses people to fulfill his plans He doesn’t look at what we do. It is not by status, appearance, or tradition, but He looks much deeper. He very often uses the less obvious person.

As Jacob blessed each son he made a prediction about his future. He also spoke of their past. Reuben lost his special birthright because of his past dishonorable behavior. He wasn’t left out but he didn’t receive his full intended blessing. This makes me think about the choices I make. How many bad decisions keep me from the blessing God intended for me. Our past certainly shapes our future. Like Judah, who was not the perfect son, we saw how his heart had changed. He was willing to give up his freedom to save his brother Benjamin. His past influenced his future decision. And do you know who Judah is? It is from his line that our Savior comes.

Jacob lived to be 147 years of age. He was taken back to Canaan to the be buried with Abraham and Isaac. One question I have is why were they not already back in Canaan? The famine had been over for some years, but they stayed in Egypt. God knew they would.

We have learned about many great men and women of God in our reading of Genesis. I hope that through learning about these people and their struggles that you are encouraged and inspired to maintain a daily walk with God. We will fail at times but He is gracious and merciful. He has a plan!