Tag: Pentateuch

October 10, 2023

October 10th, 2023

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Exodus 16

Highlight Verse:

““If only the Lord had killed us back in Egypt,” they moaned. “There we sat around pots filled with meat and ate all the bread we wanted. But now you have brought us into this wilderness to starve us all to death.””
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭16‬:‭3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

It’s funny how attitude can twist your memories.

Were they well-fad back in Egypt?

It’s highly doubtful.

They were slaves.

But the human mind has a tendency to look for the bad in a situation. That blinds one’s view of the good.

There were many unanswered questions at that point which blocked the view of the extraordinary situation.

The bottom line is – they were free now!

If that’s not a cause for celebration, I don’t know what is.

Have you ever missed a celebration because you couldn’t take your eyes off a bad situation?
What can you do to focus on the good of a situation?
October 3, 2023

October 3rd, 2023

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Exodus 15

Highlight Verse:

“The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory. This is my God, and I will praise him— my father’s God, and I will exalt him!”
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭15‬:‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I love how the Bible sometimes resembles a musical.

Some events are so memorable and exciting that they inspire songs on the spot. While they probably lacked the choreography of a Broadway musical, I’m sure that celebrations like this one included spontaneous song and dance.

Why can’t life be like that now?

Seriously, why not?

The times I’ve seen spontaneous song, it has always brought joy. If a few people would share their celebrations with song in the middle of everyday life, there would be quite a bit more joy in this world.

So, let’s make a joyful noise and bring some smiles back into this world.

Have you witnessed spontaneous music break out near you?
Have you brought that music yourself?
Share your stories!
September 19, 2023

September 19th, 2023

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Exodus 12

Highlight Verses:

“Then your children will ask, ‘What does this ceremony mean?’ And you will reply, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, for he passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt. And though he struck the Egyptians, he spared our families.’” When Moses had finished speaking, all the people bowed down to the ground and worshiped.”
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭12‬:‭26‬-‭27‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I always thought that Passover was the most important Jewish festival.

After all, it is closely associated with Easter. In fact, that sacrifice was a foreshadowing of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross that our lives may be spared.

In fact, most scholars would call Yom Kippur, or the Day of Atonement the most important holiday.

Like Easter, it is all about the forgiveness of one’s sins.

Unlike Easter, one’s sins needed to be forgiven every year through sacrifice.

Jesus already made that sacrifice to pay the penalty for all we have done wrong.

Once and for all!

What is your favorite holiday?
Do you know first hand about the Day of Atonement?
September 12, 2023

September 12th, 2023

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Exodus 10-11

Highlight Verse:

“Pharaoh retorted, “The Lord will certainly need to be with you if I let you take your little ones! I can see through your evil plan.”
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭10‬:‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

As we would say when I lived in the south, “well ain’t that the pot calling the kettle black.”

Pharaoh, the man who kept a whole nation as slaves and whose predecessor ordered the Hebrew baby boys to be throw into the Nile, calls Moses’ plan evil.

But then, the human race has a long history of doing that. When one’s values don’t agree with someone else’s values, you just call them evil because your own are the best, right?

With all these conflicting values, how do you know which ones are right?

I prefer to stick to the values of the One who created us. An easy place to find them is in the Ten Commandments.

If that’s too complicated for you, let me sum up how Jesus summed up the Law in Matthew 22:34-40 –

Love God and love people.

All the rest of the Law was based on those two simple commands.

And, in case you’re wondering, enslaving an entire nation is not a great way to show that you love God and people.

What are ways that you can love God better?
What about loving people better?
September 5, 2023

September 5th, 2023

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Exodus 9

Highlight Verse:

“Please beg the Lord to end this terrifying thunder and hail. We’ve had enough. I will let you go; you don’t need to stay any longer.””
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭9‬:‭28‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Pharaoh and Moses had an interesting relationship.

You have to ask, “Why didn’t Pharaoh just kill Moses and Aaron?”

Did Pharaoh respect him? Fear him? Fear God?

Maybe it was all of the above.

One thing is certain, by the time the plague of hail came, Pharaoh knew for certain that Moses could stop the plagues with a prayer.

So why did he wait until the worst plague possible to stop going back on his word to let the people go?

Maybe we should ask ourselves the same thing.

We do that thing that God asked us to not do, or we don’t do that thing he asked us to do. Then we repent. We earnestly turn to the right path and swear we’ll never do that again. And then we blow it again. Or we mess up in an entirely different way.

But if we truly trust Jesus, we will make progress.

We may have relapses or discover something else that is wrong with how we live. But we trust Jesus to guide us on the best path and learn with each step.

Pharaoh never really learned his lesson. You’ll read how that turned out for him later.

Do you trust that Jesus will guide you on the best path for you?
Do you act on that trust?
August 29, 2023

August 29th, 2023

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Exodus 7-8

Highlight Verse:

“Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron was eighty-three when they made their demands to Pharaoh.”
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭7‬:‭7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

It’s just a little verse that opens up so many questions.

First, did you know that Aaron was older than Moses?

Apparently, Pharaoh didn’t have the baby boys killed off when Aaron was born. It’s quite possible that Aaron knew about Moses the whole time he was growing up in Pharaoh’s household. Aaron obviously knew about Moses when Moses encountered God at the burning bush since Aaron was already on his way there.

Why did God choose to speak through Moses who then needed Aaron to speak publicly?

I won’t spoil the story in case you haven’t read it, but Aaron tended to be a people pleaser. He gave in to the people when Moses stood strong.

Moses even talked back to God. Think about that. Moses was no pushover!

Why did God wait until Moses and Aaron were so old to have them speak to Pharaoh?

Life expectancy in Egypt during the time of the Pharaohs was about 40 years. Many Pharaoh’s lived much shorter lives. There would have been a sharp contrast between these two extremely old (by the standards then) men and a young impetuous Pharaoh.

God may have planned this so that Pharaoh would be less likely to give in to Moses’ demands and more miracles would be displayed.

Now that I’ve bored you with that little history lesson, here’s my takeaway from this verse. We tend to think of the prime time of our lives as being when we’re younger. In reality, the most productive decade of our lives in terms of eternal legacy tends to be when we are in our 70’s! The second most productive decade is our 80’s.

So if you’re feeling old, just keep Moses and Aaron in mind and see that their most important career started in their 80’s.

Have you felt the drag of aging pulling you down?
What does it feel like knowing that the most productive years are yet to come for most of us?
August 15, 2023

August 15th, 2023

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Exodus 3-4

Highlight Verses:

“But Moses protested again, “What if they won’t believe me or listen to me? What if they say, ‘The Lord never appeared to you’?” Then the Lord asked him, “What is that in your hand?” “A shepherd’s staff,” Moses replied.”
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭4‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

If you read the whole reading, you know that Moses was tending sheep in the wilderness on Mount Sinai. Of course he has the tool of his trade – his staff.

It’s kind of like if God spoke to me while I was repairing a copier –

God, “What’s that in your hand?”

Me, “A power screwdriver.”

God, “Throw it down.”

Me, “What, no way! It cost over a hundred bucks!”

Okay, maybe not exactly the same but…

God used what Moses had.

Frankly, going into the job, Moses didn’t have much.

He couldn’t speak well.
He ran away from Egypt and his people.
He didn’t even know God well enough to recognize His presence in the burning bush.

But he had his shepherd’s staff.

Maybe it’s the same with us.

God will use what we have to do His will.

If we are willing, he will take our little and do a lot.

Like Moses, we might take some convincing before we’re willing to step out in faith with our meager tools. But, once we do, there’s no limit to what God can do with us.

Have you had any of those “step out in faith moments?” Please share!
Are you willing to step out in faith when God calls you?
August 8, 2023

August 8th, 2023

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Exodus 1-2

Highlight Verse:

“The woman became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She saw that he was a special baby and kept him hidden for three months.”
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭2‬:‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Okay, what mom doesn’t think that their baby is special?

In case you didn’t read the context, Pharaoh had commanded that all the Hebrew baby boys be throw into the Nile after birth.

His previous order to the midwives to kill all the baby boys at birth had gone ignored.

We are not told for sure how well this order was followed. It is implied that baby Moses’ case was the exception.

In his case, Pharaoh’s decree was followed. They just added the little boat to keep baby Moses afloat.

God and Moses’ mother arranged it so that Moses could survive to save his people.

Do you think that still happens today?

I do.

I’m not saying that those who die early had nothing else they could do with their lives. Tragedies happen. Lives are cut far too short.

I cannot explain why, in some situations, God allows people to pass from this world far too soon.

I can say that there are times when God intervenes and protects people from harm or death. I’ve heard far too many amazing stories to think otherwise.

I am certain that we don’t always know when that happens.

For that reason, I firmly believe that

we should take each day as a gift

and take every opportunity we can to make a difference in this world.

Have you or someone you know seen supernatural protection that saved you or them from injury or death?
In what ways can you treat each day as a gift from God?
July 18, 2023

July 18th, 2023

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Genesis 47

Highlight Verses:

““How old are you?” Pharaoh asked him. Jacob replied, “I have traveled this earth for 130 hard years. But my life has been short compared to the lives of my ancestors.” Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh again before leaving his court.”
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭47‬:‭8‬-‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I found this whole interaction interesting.

Jacob obviously must have looked very old because – you guessed it – he was.

I got the impression that both Pharaoh and Jacob held each other in high regard.

This shouldn’t be surprising.

What jumped out at me is that Pharaoh’s respect for Jacob was likely highly enhanced by Jacob’s age.

More and more as I grow older, I can attest to that effect. The grayer my hair, the more deference most people show me.

Twelve years ago, when the clerk at Golden Corral asked if I qualified for the senior discount, I didn’t much appreciate it.

Now, less than a decade from retirement, I’ll accept that discount, and the respect – often with the simple gesture of me pointing to my gray head and uttering two simple words, “four teenagers.”

I look at today’s verse and am reminded that those older than me have more experience, more wisdom, and likely more knowledge than I.

I can respect that.

Have you stopped to think about the experience, wisdom, and knowledge of those who have been on this earth longer than you?
If you have been around long enough to show the signs of aging like me, have you experienced the increase in respect from others? Got any stories to relate about it?
May 16, 2023

May 16th, 2023

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Genesis 33-34

Highlight Verse:

“Shechem wasted no time in acting on this request, for he wanted Jacob’s daughter desperately. Shechem was a highly respected member of his family,”
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭34‬:‭19‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This is another one of those stories that’s too messed up not to be true.

I’ll admit, I went into this praying, “Lord, what on earth can I pull out of this?”

Then the word “desperately” popped out at me.

Have you ever been desperate enough to do something foolish?

The Lord knows I have.

We think, “if I don’t settle for this person, I’ll never get married.” Or “I need a car so I have to accept these finance terms.”

Whatever the “desperate” situation, our desperation takes away our cognition.

We don’t think things through.

We agree to foolish terms.

In Shechem’s case, it cost his life and the lives of all the men in his town.

Is there anything that you are desperate about today?
Is there something you can do to recognize that your “desperate” situation may not be as desperate as you think?
Can you trust God instead of a foolish decision to get you out of those situations?

Tag: Pentateuch

It’s funny how attitude can twist your memories.

If that’s not a cause for celebration, I don’t know what is.

I love how the Bible sometimes resembles a musical.

Why can’t life be like that now?

So, let’s make a joyful noise and bring some smiles back into this world.

I always thought that Passover was the most important Jewish festival.

Jesus already made that sacrifice to pay the penalty for all we have done wrong.

As we would say when I lived in the south, “well ain’t that the pot calling the kettle black.”

With all these conflicting values, how do you know which ones are right?

Love God and love people.

Pharaoh and Moses had an interesting relationship.

Maybe we should ask ourselves the same thing.

But if we truly trust Jesus, we will make progress.

First, did you know that Aaron was older than Moses?

Why did God choose to speak through Moses who then needed Aaron to speak publicly?

Why did God wait until Moses and Aaron were so old to have them speak to Pharaoh?

So if you’re feeling old, just keep Moses and Aaron in mind and see that their most important career started in their 80’s.

God used what Moses had.

If we are willing, he will take our little and do a lot.

Okay, what mom doesn’t think that their baby is special?

God and Moses’ mother arranged it so that Moses could survive to save his people.

we should take each day as a gift

I got the impression that both Pharaoh and Jacob held each other in high regard.

I can respect that.

Have you ever been desperate enough to do something foolish?

Whatever the “desperate” situation, our desperation takes away our cognition.