Exodus 12:34, So the people took their dough before the yeast was added, and carried it on their shoulders in kneading troughs wrapped in clothing. I was pleasantly surprised to see God's message for Paul and me this week. He continues to speak to me through His word; through discussions with my husband; through friends; through living. I've discovered this journey God's put me on is like a giant jigsaw puzzle. Each day pieces are revealed and connections are made. It's exciting and keeps me yearning for more. I feel like my eyes have been opened and my senses have been heightened. The more I pursue God's Word, the more I hunger and thirst for His voice and seek His purpose in my life. And it feels good.
While reading Exodus, I learned about the character of Moses. What. A. Man. In Exodus 3:8, God spoke to Moses from a burning bush, "So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey." The Lord heard the Israelites cries and told Moses in 3:10, "So now go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt."
So maybe I'm not alone in my fear of failure, as Moses expressed to the Lord his fears of being incapable, but God encouraged in 3:12, "...I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on the mountain."
"I will be with you." Seriously? You will be with me? Even through all my uglies? As my sister always says, "God don't like ugly." BUT HE DOES LOVE ME - through it all - right by my side. Thank you, Jesus that I'm never alone. Moses believed, too, but HIS faith, perseverance, and endurance astounds me. Through all the plagues that the Lord brought on the Egyptians in Exodus - rivers of blood, frogs, gnats, flies, sickening livestock, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, first born - Moses never doubted the Lord. He never tired of His instructions. He never gave up in frustration, though he repeatedly heard from Pharaoh, "I have sinned against the Lord your God and against you. Now forgive my sin once more and pray to the Lord your God to take this deadly plague away from me." (Exodus 10:16-17) And each time, immediately thereafter, "the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart and he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said to Moses." (Exodus 7:22, 8:15, 8:19, 8:32, 9:7, 9:12, 9:35,10:20, 10:27) I wonder if Moses had mixed emotions - second guessing God's directives. Maybe Moses didn't. Maybe he mastered something I haven't yet...PATIENCE.
Sometimes I still become impatient by questioning if I'm really following God's plan for me. If it doesn't happen in "my time" then I must have misunderstood Him. Thank you Jesus for giving me the opportunity to reevaluate "your time vs. my time." A pleasant reminder from God came through Joyce Meyer this week, "When you are tempted to give up, your break through is probably just around the corner." In Exodus 10:28-29, Moses knew he had reached his break through. Pharaoh said to Moses, "Get out of my sight! Make sure you do not appear before me again! The day you see my face you will die. 'Just as you say,' Moses replied. 'I will never appear before you again.'" The final plague of the first born hit and Pharaoh and all the Egyptians urged the Israelites to hurry and leave their country for fear that they all may die rather than just the first born. "So the people took their dough before the yeast was added, and carried it on their shoulders in kneading troughs wrapped in clothing." (Exodus 12:34) After 431 years, All the Israelites did just what the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron. And on that very day the Lord brought the Israelites out of Egypt by their divisions. (Exodus 12:50-51)
The feast of unleavened bread (dough without yeast) commemorates the Passover. FEAST being the key word for me. I believe God was planting His seed for this 12:34 verse before I knew which one I was studying this week. We've been talking about recreating "family dinners" with friends on a weekly basis. Whether he believes it or not, Paul's a talented cook. He has a distinct ability to know what foods and flavors compliment each other. He will run to the store for 20 cents worth of herbs if his creation is missing "something." I, on the other hand, will cook anything in the crock pot in low sodium broth for flavor. You might say I'm the queen of bland. BUT I LOVE dinner parties. There is nothing better than sitting down for a meal with a group of amazingly interesting people who love sharing themselves; their souls with others. Don't be alarmed if you see us standing patiently on the corner with a cardboard box sign that reads WILL MAKE YOU DINNER IN EXCHANGE FOR AMAZING CONVERSATION AND LAUGHTER. Let's break bread together.
OR maybe I'll just make mini cardboard invitations and invite our friends...
Exodus 15:26 He said, "If you listen carefully to the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals all."
While reading Exodus, I learned about the character of Moses. What. A. Man. In Exodus 3:8, God spoke to Moses from a burning bush, "So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey." The Lord heard the Israelites cries and told Moses in 3:10, "So now go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt."
So maybe I'm not alone in my fear of failure, as Moses expressed to the Lord his fears of being incapable, but God encouraged in 3:12, "...I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on the mountain."
"I will be with you." Seriously? You will be with me? Even through all my uglies? As my sister always says, "God don't like ugly." BUT HE DOES LOVE ME - through it all - right by my side. Thank you, Jesus that I'm never alone. Moses believed, too, but HIS faith, perseverance, and endurance astounds me. Through all the plagues that the Lord brought on the Egyptians in Exodus - rivers of blood, frogs, gnats, flies, sickening livestock, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, first born - Moses never doubted the Lord. He never tired of His instructions. He never gave up in frustration, though he repeatedly heard from Pharaoh, "I have sinned against the Lord your God and against you. Now forgive my sin once more and pray to the Lord your God to take this deadly plague away from me." (Exodus 10:16-17) And each time, immediately thereafter, "the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart and he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said to Moses." (Exodus 7:22, 8:15, 8:19, 8:32, 9:7, 9:12, 9:35,10:20, 10:27) I wonder if Moses had mixed emotions - second guessing God's directives. Maybe Moses didn't. Maybe he mastered something I haven't yet...PATIENCE.
Sometimes I still become impatient by questioning if I'm really following God's plan for me. If it doesn't happen in "my time" then I must have misunderstood Him. Thank you Jesus for giving me the opportunity to reevaluate "your time vs. my time." A pleasant reminder from God came through Joyce Meyer this week, "When you are tempted to give up, your break through is probably just around the corner." In Exodus 10:28-29, Moses knew he had reached his break through. Pharaoh said to Moses, "Get out of my sight! Make sure you do not appear before me again! The day you see my face you will die. 'Just as you say,' Moses replied. 'I will never appear before you again.'" The final plague of the first born hit and Pharaoh and all the Egyptians urged the Israelites to hurry and leave their country for fear that they all may die rather than just the first born. "So the people took their dough before the yeast was added, and carried it on their shoulders in kneading troughs wrapped in clothing." (Exodus 12:34) After 431 years, All the Israelites did just what the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron. And on that very day the Lord brought the Israelites out of Egypt by their divisions. (Exodus 12:50-51)
The feast of unleavened bread (dough without yeast) commemorates the Passover. FEAST being the key word for me. I believe God was planting His seed for this 12:34 verse before I knew which one I was studying this week. We've been talking about recreating "family dinners" with friends on a weekly basis. Whether he believes it or not, Paul's a talented cook. He has a distinct ability to know what foods and flavors compliment each other. He will run to the store for 20 cents worth of herbs if his creation is missing "something." I, on the other hand, will cook anything in the crock pot in low sodium broth for flavor. You might say I'm the queen of bland. BUT I LOVE dinner parties. There is nothing better than sitting down for a meal with a group of amazingly interesting people who love sharing themselves; their souls with others. Don't be alarmed if you see us standing patiently on the corner with a cardboard box sign that reads WILL MAKE YOU DINNER IN EXCHANGE FOR AMAZING CONVERSATION AND LAUGHTER. Let's break bread together.
OR maybe I'll just make mini cardboard invitations and invite our friends...
Exodus 15:26 He said, "If you listen carefully to the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals all."
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