Exodus 18:14 When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, “…Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?”
Delegating is hard for me. I’ve always subscribed to the philosophy “If you want something done right, do it yourself.” But Jethro brings up a very important point in his conversation with Moses. When you take on more than your share, it leads you to burnout and robs others of the chance to join in God’s work.
Exodus 18:15 Moses answered him, “Because the people come to me to seek God’s will.
So how do we go about figuring out what’s ours to do and what belongs to someone else? Unfortunately, I have no go-to answer, but I think it begins with paying attention. If we are exhausted, worn out, that could be a sign we are taking on more than He’s calling us to. As I enjoy the time and space to breathe and relax this holiday season, I definitely need to seek His guidance about what he’s calling me to do.
Exodus 18:17 Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing is not good.”
Lord, Thank You for this day, for this scripture, for this reminder that we need to seek Your will daily so that we can do what You have set aside for us without taking someone else’s opportunity to serve. Help me to know what You call me to do and what You call me to delegate to others so that we all can take part in your kingdom work. Give us rest and peace as we partner with You and with each other. Draw us closer. Amen.
Exodus 18:18 “You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone.”
Have a blessed day.
Just like the Israelites…. (devo reflection)
Exodus 17:3a But the people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against Moses….
I have seen God work through my circumstances enough that I should not doubt His presence and providence, and yet, just like the Israelites, I find myself, when dealing with a certain situation that’s been an issue for a decade or more, asking, “Is the LORD among us or not?” (Ex 17:7). Jesus, Help me.
Exodus 17:3b …They said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?”
The irony is not lost on me that on the one hand I am thinking, “What is wrong with the Israelites? They have so much evidence of the LORD’s presence and provision, yet they doubt His sovereignty,” while on the other hand I have just as much evidence of His presence and provision in my own life, and I’m still whining about the fact that there is no sense of resolution for this ongoing issue in my life. Jesus, Help me.
Exodus 17:4 Then Moses cried out to the LORD, “What am I to do with these people?….”
Lord, Thank You for this day, for this scripture, for this wake-up call that I am being just as bitter, just as stubborn, just as whiny and hard-hearted as the Israelites in my attitude. I believe that You are with me in all things, even this. Help me to lay down my anger, bitterness, defensiveness, and fear and to trust that You’ve got me, that You’ve got all of us, that You are in control, that You are making a way, even if we cannot yet perceive it. Draw me closer. Help me surrender this issue completely to You. Amen.
Exodus 17:7 And he called the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled and because they tested the LORD saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?”
Have a blessed day.
A precious baby who would save the world…. (devo reflection)
Exodus 16:4 Then the LORD said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you….”
Commentary on this verse “…reminds us that God may provide from resources we never knew existed. Sometimes He provides from familiar resources, sometimes from unexpected resources.” This idea puts me in mind of Isaiah 43:19 “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way….”
Exodus 16:14 When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor.
How often do I try to limit God to resources I know, solutions I understand? Thankfully, His thoughts are nothing like my thoughts, and His ways are far beyond anything I could imagine (Isaiah 55:8), like when He sent His son as a newborn baby in order to save the world. So I try to cling to Isaiah 43:19 and trust His promise and provision, even when I don’t understand, even when I cannot see a way forward. He’s making a way, in His time, with His resources.
Exodus 16:15a When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was….
Lord, Thank You for this day, for this scripture, for this reminder that You are in control and You are making a way. Thank You for not limiting Yourself to solutions and resources that I understand. Thank You for the birth of Your Son, a precious baby who would save the world. Draw us all closer. Amen.
Exodus 16:15b …Then Moses said to them, “It is the bread the LORD has given you to eat.”
Have a blessed day.
The great I Am…. (devo reflection)
Exodus 16:11-12a Then the LORD said to Moses, “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites….”
When I read these verses, all I can think is “Praise God for His love and patience.” As a fallible human, I can say that the Israelites are plucking my last nerve. They are whiny and ungrateful. I would be sorely tempted to smite them just to teach them a lesson. Maybe then they would be more grateful.
Exodus 16:12b “…Tell them ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God’.”
Thankfully, God does not react that way. His goal is not to teach them not to question or mess with Him. He wants them to understand who He is, the great I Am. He wants them to learn that He fulfills His promises, even though it may look nothing like they hoped or planned. He wants them to understand that He is sovereign and loving, making a way, even if they cannot yet perceive it.
Exodus 16:19 Then Moses said to them, “No one is to keep any of it until morning.”
Lord, Thank You for this day, for this scripture, for the fact that Your thoughts are not our thoughts and Your ways are beyond anything we can imagine (Isaiah 55:8). Thank You for responding to the Israelites from a place of love and not retribution. Thank You for loving us so fiercely and so deeply, even when we fight Your loving provision. Break down our defenses. Draw us closer. Amen.
Exodus 16:20 However, some of them paid no attention to Moses; they kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggots and began to smell….
Have a blessed day.
Removing the barriers…. (devo reflection)
Exodus 16:2 In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron.
I am a planner, primarily, I think, because I don’t want to feel inconvenienced. I plan out and secure what I think I’ll need so that the yawning ache of want will not touch me. When I do feel the sting of want, I react much the same as the Israelites, whining and complaining. And while this tendency may have gotten a smidge better as I’ve aged, I am truly ashamed to say it is something with which I still struggle mightily at times.
Exodus 16:3 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 the desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”
I suppose that’s one of the reasons today’s verses strike me so. Moses rightfully calls the Israelites on their grumbling and points out the important fact that it is actually the LORD that they are grumbling against. If I trust that the LORD will provide my needs—and I do—them when I grumble about being in want, He is the One I’m grumbling against. But that I not my intent. Jesus, Help me.
Exodus 16:7a “…in the morning you will see the glory of the LORD, because He has heard your grumbling against Him….”
Lord, Thank You for this day, this scripture, this revelation. It stings to see that I am behaving in this manner, but Your intention is not to shame me but to remove the barriers separating us so that You can draw me closer. Thank You for pointing out this tendency. Help me to correct it so that I can draw closer to You. Amen.
Exodus 16:7b “…Who are we, that you should grumble against us?”
Have a blessed day.
When troubles come…. (devo reflection)
Exodus 15:22 Then Moses led the people away from the Red Sea…. They traveled in this desert for three days without finding any water.
My default is to sit in judgement of the Israelites. The echoes of their songs of joy and thanksgiving haven’t even fully faded yet, and they are already whining and complaining again. But in my heart, I know I have more in common with the fickle Israelites than I would like to admit. I, too, am guilty of whining and complaining when the going gets rough. I, too, am guilty of not remembering God’s provisions when things get tough. Jesus, Help me.
Exodus 15:23 When they came to the oasis of Marah, the water was too bitter to drink….
James 1:2 reminds me to count it all joy, whenever I face trials of any kind. I know firsthand that it is during trials and troubles that I can feel God’s presence most clearly. Those are the times I feel Him drawing me closer. But just like the Israelites, I’m so quick to whine and complain when those trials come. Jesus, Help me.
Exodus 15:24 Then the people complained and turned against Moses. “What are we going to drink?” they demanded.
Lord, Thank You for this day, for this scripture, for this reminder not to judge and not to whine and complain when troubles come. Thank You for using the difficult times to strengthen my faith and draw me closer to You. Be my strength, my shield, and my very great reward. Amen.
Exodus 15:25 So Moses cried out to the LORD for help….
Have a blessed day.
No matter what…. (devo reflection)
Exodus 15:2a “The LORD is my strength and my defense; He has become my salvation….”
Commentary on this verse pointed out an incredibly important distinction about the wording here. It does not say “The LORD gave me strength.” It says, “The LORD is my strength.” If the LORD only GAVE me strength, I would still have to use it, employ it. If He IS my strength, He’s got me covered. He does the work. It is a gift to me. Thank You, Jesus.
Gen 15:1 After this, the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.”
The wording of Exodus 15:2 reminds me of Genesis 15:1, which I love. Again, there is the very distinctive wording: He IS my shield. He IS my reward. It’s not something He GIVES me. It’s something He IS for me. No matter what happens. No matter how situations turn out, I can cling to the fact the HE is my strength, HE is my shield, HE is my reward. And because of that fact, NO MATTER WHAT, I will be ok, and so will those I love because He gives them the same promise. Actually, we will be so much better than ok, no matter what our feelings tell us, because we are His. Thank You, Jesus.
Exodus 15:2b “…He is my God, and I will praise Him….”
Lord, Thank You for this day, for this scripture, for Your promises. Thank You, especially when life is overwhelming and frightening, that You are our strength, our shield, our very great reward. Help us to cling to and celebrate that fact, no matter the path we are walking. Draw us closer. Amen.
Exodus 15:13 In Your unfailing love You will lead the people You have redeemed. In Your strength You will guide them to Your holy dwelling.
Have a blessed day.
Making a way…. (devo reflection)
Exodus 14:13 Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today….”
One of my favorite verses is Isaiah 43:19 “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness….” I cling to this verse especially when, like the Israelites in Exodus 14, I cannot conceive of a way forward.
Exodus 14:14 “The LORD will fight for you; you need only be still.” (NIV)
As strong as my faith is, I still struggle in so many areas, but I am learning to trust God to make a way where I see no possible way. I am learning to trust that even as I realize I cannot make way own way forward, He is already at work, even if I cannot yet perceive it. This belief is a gift, and I cling to it, especially during difficult times.
Exodus 14:14 “The LORD Himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” (NLT)
Lord, Thank You for this day, for this scripture, for making a way, even when I can’t yet perceive it. Thank You for the hope that comes from my faith. It is beyond frightening when we come to a “stuck place,” no seeming way forward or back. Help us to remember that in those times as always, You are right beside us, fighting for us, making a way. All You need in those moments is for us to be still and know that You are God (Psalm 46:10). Draw us closer. Amen.
Exodus 14:31 And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the LORD displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and put their trust in Him….
Have a blessed day.
Fear makes us feel powerless…. (Devo reflection)
Exodus 14:10 As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were afraid and cried out to the LORD.
The fear of the Israelites is understandable here. In front of them is the Red Sea, solid and impenetrable. Behind them, cutting off the only exit they have, is the Egyptian army. Kudos to the Israelites for calling out to God in their fear. That’s exactly the right thing to do.
Exodus 14:11 They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die?…”
However, after they call on God, they turn on Moses in their fear. They ridicule him for taking them away from the safety and security of the known into the danger of the unknown. Fear makes us feel powerless. Anger feels incredibly powerful, so as much as I want to judge the Israelites for their behavior, I cannot—because I have acted exactly the same way in situations where I was afraid.
Exodus 14:12a “Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? …”
Lord, Thank You for this day, for this scripture, for the reminder that it is so easy and so dangerous to judge others when we don’t walk in their shoes. Thank You for the blessing of the Israelites calling out to You in their fear. What a gift to know who to call on, especially in times of distress. Help us not to give in to anger when we are afraid, Lord. Help us to cling to You. Draw us closer. Amen.
Exodus 14:12b … “It would be better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!”
Have a blessed day.
Faith greater than fear…. (devo reflection)
Exodus 13:17a When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter….
I like routine. I find it very comforting to know what to expect, to know there won’t be any unexpected surprises. After over 400 years in slavery, the Israelites in Egypt were fully ensconced in routine. They knew they weren’t free, but they also knew exactly what to expect from life, what was expected of them, where their food came from, what the punishments were if they stepped out of line, etc. It wasn’t freedom. I’m sure it wasn’t easy, but it was predictable, and comfort can definitely be found in predictability.
Exodus 13:17b …For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.”
But God doesn’t want us to just be comfortable. He didn’t send His son so that our lives could merely be predictable. He wants us to know freedom in Him, and freedom in Him can be messy, scary, unpredictable, uncomfortable, complicated. Jesus, Help me.
Exodus 13:18 So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. So the Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle.
Lord, Thank You for this day, for this scripture, for the reminder that You call us to so much more in life than just comfort and predictably. Thank You that even in the midst of the upheaval You are in control, You are guarding and guiding us, You are our shield and our very great reward. Help us not to be afraid, but even when we are afraid, help our faith and trust in You to always be greater than our fear. Draw us closer. Amen.
Exodus 13:21 By day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light….
Have a blessed day.