Tag: Exodus

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Advent Reflection: Drawn into Christ’s Love

656b8228-6f39-443c-82fd-0c3f0771c483An Advent series on the Names of Jesus from Isaiah 9:6.

Guest writer: Mercy Perez

Name of Jesus: “Wonderful”

READ

Romans 11:33

O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable are His judgments
and unfathomable are His ways!

REFLECT & PRAY

When I was a child and found myself in a difficult situation I would run to my mother for help. I remember, on one occasion, twirling my hair around a hairbrush and not able to undo it. My hair was wound tight on that hairbrush. My mom, with all the patience in the world, sat me between her legs and masterfully freed my hair.

As a child, I ran to my mother because she was always there. She was constant in meeting my basic needs. I grew to trust her for answers and guidance.

As an adult, I have learned that God knows me better than I know myself and it is a good thing to seek his wisdom and guidance in making life choices.

There is one thing that I have learned as I read the stories and events in the Bible; God does not follow anyone’s plans. His ways are unconventional and I must not put limitations on what He can do and does.

He promised a nation – as many descendants as there are the stars in the sky – would come from a 100-year-old man and a barren wife, and it was so (Ex. 32:13).

He made a passage of safety for his people by opening the Red Sea and they walked on dry ground (Ex. 14:21).

He also promised a Savior, not only for the Jewish nation but for all people.

Born of a virgin, in a stable, Jesus lived a humble life and died on a tree. Yet he turned the world upside down with a message of the kingdom of God, a message of reconciliation.

God’s love for us is deep and unceasing. He can do the impossible. And all that he has done and continues to do is for the purpose of drawing us closer to him, through the reconciliation of his son.

In your prayer time today, start by acknowledging to God that his ways are more than we can know or understand. Praise him for his wondrous riches, power, and knowledge.

Ask Jesus to bring to mind that one thing, or that one situation, that has kept you from drawing closer to him. Then, ask him to give you the strength, wisdom, and knowledge to face and overcome whatever is drawing you away.

OBEY

As you hear Jesus’ voice, ask for his help to respond with trust. Believe he is working in your life, in your situation, and in your struggle. Take a moment to be still, letting your loving, wonderful Savior draw you further into his love.

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Rescued From Death

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Summer in the Psalms is a sermon and written reflection series based on the weekly Psalm and associated readings from the Revised Common Lectionary. 

Guest Writer: Mimi Otani @ crazy4jazz.com

Read

Exodus 1:8-2:10

Reflect

Women played significant roles in the birth and growth of Moses. Were it not for the courage and compassion of these women, the story of Exodus would not be. First, the midwives, Shiphrah and Puah: they feared God and disobeyed Pharaoh’s decree to kill the newborn Israelite boys. The Lord later rewarded them with their own families. Second, Moses’ mother: she also defied Pharaoh’s order. Not only did she save Moses’ life, she also had the consolation of being able to care for him until he was weaned. Third, Moses’ sister, Miriam: she watched over Moses from afar and arranged to have him nursed by his own mother. Last but not least, Pharaoh’s daughter: she, too, defied her own father’s order. She knew Moses was an Israelite baby, but she still saved him and adopted him as her son.

Pharaoh thought he could eliminate his enemies by targeting their sons. But God thwarted his plan through the fidelity, courage, and intelligence of women.

Respond

Psalm 124 is a song about the Israelites crossing the Red Sea, but it also refers to Moses. He could have drowned as an infant in the Nile, but instead, he was drawn out of the water as one comes out of baptism. In baptism, we symbolically die to our old selves and are reborn as new creatures in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). When Christ rescues us from sin and death, it is as though “we have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowlers; the snare is broken, and we have escaped!” (Psalm 124:7 ). With each new day, God gives us life and freedom.

Thank God for the new life and freedom you have in Christ. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you one or two ways you can follow the example of the women in this story. Even though they were under Pharoah’s rule, they lived as though they were free; they chose to follow God and his promptings regardless of what Pharoah did or what risks they faced.

How can you live today in the freedom Christ has given you, regardless of your external circumstances?

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Faith = Risk: Lessons in Leaving Our Comfort Zones (Genesis 24)

unnamedDay 26 of my 30-day writing challenge / Summer in the Psalms

A summer sermon and reflection series from my church, based on the weekly Psalms and associated readings in the Revised Common Lectionary. 

Read

Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67

Reflect

On Sunday, our church hosted a guest speaker who shared how God led him and his wife to make a life-changing move. With each step of the process, God seemed to require them to show more faith and take bigger risks. In the same way, the Israelites were continually asked to demonstrate their trust in God in new ways as they traveled to the Promised Land. Our speaker reminded us of the best-known saying of the founder of our denomination: faith = risk. In other words, faith is lived out in actions that take us out of our comfort zones.

In Genesis 24, Abraham’s servant is on a journey of faith, sent by Abraham to find a wife for his son, Isaac, from among his extended family. Abraham doesn’t allow Isaac to take the trip with his servant, making the task even more difficult. However, Abraham has faith that God will send an angel ahead of the servant to help.

When the servant arrives at his destination, he is desperate for God’s guidance. He asks God for a very specific, detailed series of signs that will show him the woman God has chosen for Isaac. God does exactly as he asks, revealing Rebekah as Issac’s future wife. Rebekah and Isaac eventually become the parents of Jacob, the founder of the nation of Israel.

God’s plans for his chosen people required great faith and risk from everyone in this story. First from Abraham and his servant, and then from Rebekah, who agreed to leave her hometown and family behind to marry a man she had never meet.

What’s your story? How is God inviting you to step out in faith?

Respond

Spend 10 minutes each day this week listening to God, asking him if there is something he is leading you to do. Is there a decision you’ve been struggling with, or are you sensing God asking you to make a change somewhere in your life?

Ask the Holy Spirit to come and help you listen to God’s promptings. Ask Jesus to give you courage to risk everything to follow his will for your life.