Create a peaceful space to pause, and allow yourself to feel God’s presence alongside you, as near to you as your own breath. In following the reflection below, as a church we will draw closer to God and to one another as we grow in faith and deepen our sense of belonging to God.
Exodus 6: 5-7 ‘God promises Deliverance’ (ESV)
5 I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. 6 Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. 7 I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
Today fear and uncertainty have become common place and the so called ‘new normal’ isn’t at all familiar or for many of us, welcome. It will take faith and freedom to face our future. Our ‘new normal’ is rather like the Hebrew’s Exodus from Egypt. The ‘I am’ God who had heard their agonised cries of slavery and seen their suffering, sought to set them free. Through his servant Moses, God had indeed liberated his people from the Egyptian tyranny.
Their new freedom however, soon became a very frightening place to be. Although God, through mighty miracles, had made himself abundantly evident to them, they still longed to go back to Egypt where, at least, they said, they had had food and water and familiarity. However, the Hebrews were called to freedom and the ridiculous yearning to go back to a place that would lead them into probable genocide and definite slavery seems to us totally nonsensical. The fear of the future provoked an illogical nostalgia.
If we aren’t very careful our future as God’s people will be much the same; if we yearn to go back to the familiar patterns that, whilst not abusive or enslaving, were not causing us to grow, that then would surely seem just as nonsensical.
So, what if this new freedom is where God is taking us? What if this ‘new normal’ is indeed a place flowing with milk and honey and we refused to go because we were simply more frightened of the future? What if this freedom future was truly a glimpse of the promised land, then surely, we should confidently walk on with God however frightening? Yes we should treasure our past but we must faithfully trust that our freedom giving God has indeed got a wonderful plan especially marked out for us?
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11
Prayer:
Liberator God, thank you that you have set us free! Cause us, your people to follow you into the unknown with faith and freedom, knowing you are for us and not against us. You want to bless us and cause us to grow. However, Lord we feel afraid, uncertain, our future seems insecure, please direct our paths, open our ears and hearts to your quiet voice and help us be obedient and faithful to your instructions. We ask these things in the name of our wonderful Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.
Reflection and Prayer © 2020 Andy Melvin.
Image © Sweet Publishing / FreeBibleimages.org.
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