Morning Musing: Exodus 34:21

“You are to labor six days but you must rest on the seventh day; you must even rest during plowing and harvesting times.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

The other day, some folks in my church were having a conversation before Bible study about the wonder of modern conveniences and the changes they have brought to our lives. Many of the things we consider among the most basic conveniences were introduced as ways to automate mundane tasks and give us more time for leisure. Instead, not knowing what to do with all our extra time, we filled it with either mindless banalities or else even more work. Rest and genuine, fulfilling recreation have seemed to escape us. And yet, one of the commands God came back to again and again with Israel was a call to rest regularly. And in their rest, they were to learn to trust. Let’s talk again about Sabbath and realizing there’s more to the world than just ourselves.

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Morning Musing: Exodus 33:1-6

“The Lord spoke to Moses: ‘Go up from here, you and the people you brought up from the land of Egypt, to the land I promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying: I will give it to your offspring. I will send an angel ahead of you and will drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hethites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go up with you because you are a stiff-necked people; otherwise, I might destroy you on the way.’ When the people heard this bad news, they mourned and didn’t put on their jewelry. For the Lord said to Moses, ‘Tell the Israelites: You are a stiff-necked people. If I went up with you for a single moment, I would destroy you. Now take off your jewelry, and I will decide what to do with you.’ So the Israelites remained stripped of their jewelry from Mount Horeb onward.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Have you ever wounded a relationship? The odds are pretty good that you have. We all seem to possess a remarkable ability to hurt the people around us even when we don’t mean to. In such situations, being forgiven is a wonderfully freeing thing. That extension of God’s grace is incredible to experience. But forgiveness is no the same as restoring the relationship. That takes something more. That takes repentance. And while forgiveness is a very good thing, an invitation into repentance is even better. Let’s talk about what we see happening in this next part of our story.

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