But God

Dear Faith Family,

But Moses fled from Pharaoh and stayed in the land of Midian. And there he sat down by a well, (Exodus 2:15).

What a waste! No? I mean God totally saved Moses’ life in a bulrush basket.  In a land where boys were the endangered sex, God used Moses’ mom, his sister, and the very Pharaoh’s daughter to keep him alive. And not just alive!  Moses was raised…Pharaoh’s grandson! (Now that’s funny! The Egyptian Pharaoh had a Hebrew grandson!) What an investment! Trained in the ways of God. Educated in the ways of Egypt. Moses was a shoo-in for the position of deliverer. A natural. 

And yet, Exodus 2 informs us that Moses was vacationing (ok, maybe not) somewhere in Midian. Doesn’t he know that the people of God are still suffering in Egypt?  Doesn’t he care about all that God has invested in him? Isn’t he grateful for the opportunity to stand in the gap between Egypt and the people of God? 

Forty years (the time Moses was sheepherding in Midian) was the time available to conclude: “what a waste”! Think of what could have been. Consider how different things could have turned out. What if Moses hadn’t boarded the east-bound to Midian? Honestly, year thirty-nine demanded a less than passing grade on the life of Moses. What would you have written on his year-end review? 

Anybody know a Moses? Maybe a loved one? Maybe a friend? Maybe a classmate? And maybe you’ve held out hope for…years? Maybe you’re the one tending sheep in Midian?It’s hard not to hit the “fail” buzzer. Even though you don’t want to say the words (“what a waste”) they hang conspicuously before your thoughts. 

But God! 

God wasn’t done with Moses. Go ahead, you can add a long list of names to that list. Jacob, the deceiver. David, the adulterer. Jeremiah, an ignorant youth. The disciples, defense attorneys for their own greatness. Consider that God wasn’t done with any of that great cloud of witnesses! And neither is He done with your loved one, your friend, your classmate…or you! 

What if our focus shifted from Moses, or Jacob, or David, or Jeremiah, or the disciples, or…?  What if with new clarity we could see our God – present? What if we marveled at His ability to accomplish His purposes in this world through the likes of such that we might be tempted to label as a waste?! 

Our performance isn’t the reason that we are not a waste! But God. His performance is the reason for our value (created in His image and redeemed by His Son)! But God is patient. But God is faithful. But God is able. But God cares. But God is up to stuff that we cannot yet see – even in the dessert-wilderness of Midian. 

But God,

Pastor Karl