Exodus 14:13 And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will show you today: for the Egyptians which ye have seen today, ye shall see them again no more for ever.
Well Mornin’ mih good Friends and Neighbuhs! It’s another beautiful day on planet earth, and the Good Lord is up to His usual tricks. He’s again provided a quote that suits Today’s Bit, and this one is so true that I had to laugh when I first read it. It’s attributed to Joseph Addison, and says: ‘There is nothing which we receive with so much reluctance as advice.’ Now doesn’t that grab you by the short and narrow? It ought to, for those are some of the truest words ever written. Whether the advice is good or bad, we’re always hesitant, sceptical and doubtful, taking it with a grain of salt, or under advisement, and many times with anger and disdain. There’s just some insidious thing about advice that seems to rub the human personality the wrong way. We tend to think it’s belittling, calling into question our capabilities and restricting our independence. Those are all reasons why Moses had such a hard time with the Israelites. Nobody wanted to listen to him, to heed his god-given advice cause they all figured they knew better, that is, until the effluent hit the proverbial fan. When the Israelites saw Pharaoh’s army coming upon them, ‘they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the Lord.’ (Ex. 14:10) That sounds just like many of us believers through the ages, even unto today; we only call out to the Lord when we’re in trouble, but forget His very existence when all’s going well. Then they castigated poor Moses, who was only trying to help them: ‘Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt? Is this not the word we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness.’ (Ex. 14: 11-12) As Jesus said, ‘O ye of little faith!’ And I’ll add, ungrateful hypocrites! Having cried out to the Lord in Egypt re their inhumane and servile bondage, when the Lord in His mercy and LOVING kindness takes pity on them and punishes the Egyptians until they let them go, then they squeamishly balk at the first sign of trouble. Just like we do my people. We seem to expect the Lord to lead us in crimson and clover all the time, with no hardships whatever along the way. But that’s definitely not the Lord’s style. He expects us to pay some dues and tolls along the broad and dusty highway that’s life, so that we can be moulded into the likeness of His Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ; become less selfish, more understanding and appreciative. But He always provides a way out, though it’s not always easy. Now can you imagine the people’s consternation when Moses simply replied to their horrific situation with, ‘Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will show you today: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen today, ye shall see them again no more for ever.’ Hn! Can you imagine saying that to a tired, scared group of people in the hundreds of thousands, loaded down with all their possessions, many travelling on foot, running from slavery, with the slave master’s army breathing down their necks, ready to annihilate and/or herd them back to cruel bondage? The Lord must certainly have imbued Moses with much manly parts and courage, though I don’t think it was bravery so much as the faith and trust that Moses had acquired from His constant dealings with the Lord. For it’s under those circumstances that the whole idea of belief and trust comes in. You can’t have trust and believe one time when it seems easy and plausible, then renege when it seems humanly impossible because that simply negates the entire principle of faith, which by definition is absolute belief and trust under all circumstances. It’s the same advice the Psalmist gives in Psalm 46 that’s titled, ‘God is our refuge and strength.’ He says; ‘Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in all the earth.’ (vs.10) Now, be still doesn’t necessarily mean don’t move, but rather, pay close attention. That’s what Moses wanted the Israelites to do; take stock of how the Lord would operate in their favour that day; ‘see the salvation, (the deliverance) of the Lord.’ Yes my Friends, we so often take the Lord’s mercy for granted that we don’t pay sufficient attention to what’s really happening in our lives, we miss all the small, but very important nuances that occur. But if we were to stop regularly and contemplate His LOVING kindness and His numerous other attributes that play such important roles in our daily lives, we’d realize how lucky, how blessed we really are to be worshipping such a marvellous and powerful Deity. Today, I’m asking us, like Moses did the Israelites on that momentous occasion, to stop, ignore the contrived busyness around us, and take stock of all the Lord has done and is doing in our lives and the lives of those around us. Then we’ll see how truly indebted we are to the Most High God Jehovah, and that realization will hopefully reawaken and re-energize us to faithfully worship Him, give Him the thanks and praise that He so richly deserves, as well as live a life that glorifies His Holy Name. Friends, that’s our assignment for today. Till tomorrow, God willing, Much LOVE! …it’s inventory time…time to stop and count our many blessings…then say a most grateful…Thanks Lord!…
Well Mornin’ mih good Friends and Neighbuhs! It’s another beautiful day on planet earth, and the Good Lord is up to His usual tricks. He’s again provided a quote that suits Today’s Bit, and this one is so true that I had to laugh when I first read it. It’s attributed to Joseph Addison, and says: ‘There is nothing which we receive with so much reluctance as advice.’ Now doesn’t that grab you by the short and narrow? It ought to, for those are some of the truest words ever written. Whether the advice is good or bad, we’re always hesitant, sceptical and doubtful, taking it with a grain of salt, or under advisement, and many times with anger and disdain. There’s just some insidious thing about advice that seems to rub the human personality the wrong way. We tend to think it’s belittling, calling into question our capabilities and restricting our independence. Those are all reasons why Moses had such a hard time with the Israelites. Nobody wanted to listen to him, to heed his god-given advice cause they all figured they knew better, that is, until the effluent hit the proverbial fan. When the Israelites saw Pharaoh’s army coming upon them, ‘they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the Lord.’ (Ex. 14:10) That sounds just like many of us believers through the ages, even unto today; we only call out to the Lord when we’re in trouble, but forget His very existence when all’s going well. Then they castigated poor Moses, who was only trying to help them: ‘Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt? Is this not the word we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness.’ (Ex. 14: 11-12) As Jesus said, ‘O ye of little faith!’ And I’ll add, ungrateful hypocrites! Having cried out to the Lord in Egypt re their inhumane and servile bondage, when the Lord in His mercy and LOVING kindness takes pity on them and punishes the Egyptians until they let them go, then they squeamishly balk at the first sign of trouble. Just like we do my people. We seem to expect the Lord to lead us in crimson and clover all the time, with no hardships whatever along the way. But that’s definitely not the Lord’s style. He expects us to pay some dues and tolls along the broad and dusty highway that’s life, so that we can be moulded into the likeness of His Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ; become less selfish, more understanding and appreciative. But He always provides a way out, though it’s not always easy. Now can you imagine the people’s consternation when Moses simply replied to their horrific situation with, ‘Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will show you today: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen today, ye shall see them again no more for ever.’ Hn! Can you imagine saying that to a tired, scared group of people in the hundreds of thousands, loaded down with all their possessions, many travelling on foot, running from slavery, with the slave master’s army breathing down their necks, ready to annihilate and/or herd them back to cruel bondage? The Lord must certainly have imbued Moses with much manly parts and courage, though I don’t think it was bravery so much as the faith and trust that Moses had acquired from His constant dealings with the Lord. For it’s under those circumstances that the whole idea of belief and trust comes in. You can’t have trust and believe one time when it seems easy and plausible, then renege when it seems humanly impossible because that simply negates the entire principle of faith, which by definition is absolute belief and trust under all circumstances. It’s the same advice the Psalmist gives in Psalm 46 that’s titled, ‘God is our refuge and strength.’ He says; ‘Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in all the earth.’ (vs.10) Now, be still doesn’t necessarily mean don’t move, but rather, pay close attention. That’s what Moses wanted the Israelites to do; take stock of how the Lord would operate in their favour that day; ‘see the salvation, (the deliverance) of the Lord.’ Yes my Friends, we so often take the Lord’s mercy for granted that we don’t pay sufficient attention to what’s really happening in our lives, we miss all the small, but very important nuances that occur. But if we were to stop regularly and contemplate His LOVING kindness and His numerous other attributes that play such important roles in our daily lives, we’d realize how lucky, how blessed we really are to be worshipping such a marvellous and powerful Deity. Today, I’m asking us, like Moses did the Israelites on that momentous occasion, to stop, ignore the contrived busyness around us, and take stock of all the Lord has done and is doing in our lives and the lives of those around us. Then we’ll see how truly indebted we are to the Most High God Jehovah, and that realization will hopefully reawaken and re-energize us to faithfully worship Him, give Him the thanks and praise that He so richly deserves, as well as live a life that glorifies His Holy Name. Friends, that’s our assignment for today. Till tomorrow, God willing, Much LOVE! …it’s inventory time…time to stop and count our many blessings…then say a most grateful…Thanks Lord!…
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