Friday, March 20, 2026

 



Exodus 2:1-22

It’s been a long while since I have read the story of Moses and was surprised by parts of it. In today’s reading, we learn of the clever plan Moses’ mother enacted to ensure he lived. When he was a few months old, she placed Moses in a reed basket to eventually be found and brought to the Pharaoh's daughter’s attention. Moses was returned to his mother so she could nurse and raise him in preparation for his return to the Pharaoh's daughter where he would live a life of privilege in the palace.  
 
Later we learn of Moses killing an Egyptian who struck a Hebrew slave. Moses hid the body in the sand, thinking he had not been seen. However, other Hebrews had witnessed what Moses had done. The next day, when Moses questioned a dispute between two Hebrews, one said to him, “Who made you commander and judge over us? Are you planning to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?”  In shock and fear of impending death by Pharaoh’s decree, Moses left all he had known to journey to the land of Midian where he was eventually married to one of the Priest of Midian’s daughters. He was blessed with sons but always considered himself a foreigner in that land.  
 
If you read further in Exodus, you will learn of God’s call to Moses to lead the Hebrews out of Egypt. I had forgotten how resistant Moses was in trying to avoid God’s plan for his life. I have always thought of Moses being one of the superheroes of the Old Testament, but at heart, he really was a weak and sinful man. Shockingly, even with his many refusals to do what God needed, God never abandoned Moses. In fact, God girded him with miraculous signs and abilities, and when Moses’ whining continued, God provided him with an eloquent assistant, Aaron who would support him in his frailty as Moses took up God’s work.
 
What does this unlikely story of crime, fear, and unwillingness to serve God, say to me in 2026? Well, I think that a version of this story can happen today in your life and mine.  God is aware of our sins. God is aware of our fears. God is aware of our reluctance to do His will. God sees beyond our excuses and whining. And yet, God continues to call us to repentance, to confront our fears with His support, and to equip us with the tools and time to follow His will. As we step out in faith to do ministry, God calms our whining and anxious hearts and supports us with His love and compassion. Thank-you to all who step out in faith, even when your heart is trembling, to daily follow God’s plan for you and the ministry he has set before you. May God be a beacon of light as you walk your Christian journey.

Blessings,
Carol Young


Because He Lives (Amen)  West Coast Choir

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Friday, February 27, 2026

Image
  Ezekiel 18:21-24, 30-32   But if the wicked turn away from all their sins that they have committed and keep all my statutes and do what is lawful and right, they shall surely live; they shall not die. . . .  Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, says the Lord God, and not rather that they should turn from their ways and live? But when the righteous turn away from their righteousness and commit iniquity and do the same abominable things that the wicked do, shall they live? None of the righteous deeds that they have done shall be remembered; for the treachery of which they are guilty and the sin they have committed, they shall die.   . . .   . . Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, all of you according to your ways, says the Lord God. Repent and turn from all your transgressions; otherwise iniquity will be your ruin. Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed against me, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spi...
Read more

Ash Wednesday

Image
  The Conversion of St. Augustine by Fra Angelico   Daily Lectionary for Ash Wednesday The Lord remembers that we are dust . Psalm 103   “I didn’t know you were supposed to be mean for Lent.” So said one of my children around the age of ten after an Ash Wednesday service. They found my going around telling people that they were going to die, and quite literally rubbing it in, a little cruel. And to an age with childlike delusions of its own morality and immortality, the unvarnished, universal and personal conviction of sin and sentence of death in the marking of this day must seem mean. We would rather pretend otherwise.    “You are dust.” It reminds me of the contemporary idiom, “You’re toast.” But this dreadfully honest diagnosis is the first step in our healing. And I would commend healing to you as a new and ancient way of thinking about Lent. A 6th Century Office Hymn for Lent is titled Now is the Healing Time Decreed .   Ash Wednesday, Penitence, Len...
Read more

Sunday, March 1, 2026

Image
Matthew 17:1-9 The Transfiguration As soon as I looked through the readings I was given for this reflection, I knew I would have to include the beautiful note my dad wrote to my mom in the front of the New Testament he gave to her on their wedding day in 1981. He quoted the verses I have chosen to reflect on today from the Gospel of Matthew: “Jesus then came up to them, touched them, and said, ‘Stand up, do not be afraid.’ And when they raised their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only.” My dad included a note saying, “The last two words are the ones which will bring you peace.”  I don’t know if our world is actually any worse than it has ever been, or if it just seems that way because most of us live in relative comfort and have time to worry and dwell on the thousands of tragedies we are bombarded with through the 24 hour news cycle and social media. But things certainly do feel heavy a lot of the time. Even if we eliminate the news and the outside world, we will continue to en...
Read more