Essential 100

Week Four : Moses and the Exodus

16.    The Birth of Moses (Exodus 1:1—2:25)

How have the difficulties in your past prepared you for life today?

Do you have a mission in life?  If so, how would you describe it?

17.    The Burning Bush (Exodus 3:1—4:17)

What are some ways that people encounter God today?

Have you ever had a “burning bush” experience?  Explain.   

18.    The Ten Plagues (Exodus 6:28—11:10)

Some people today think natural disasters expressions of God’s judgment?  

What do you think?

How involved do you think is God in the world today?

19.    Passover and Exodus (Exodus 12:1-42)

What does this account of the original Passover and Exodus teach you about God?

Why do you suppose the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt has inspired people  throughout the ages?

20.    Crossing the Red Sea (Exodus 13:17—14:31)

What have been the defining moments in your life? How have they affected you?

Have you had any defining moments with God?  If so, what happened?  

Pastor's Meditation for the Week:

Burning Bush Time

Pastor Marianne and I were reflecting this week about the power of God’s word to evoke us and challenge us. One of the comments she made was that she was again impressed by the truth that God is not bound by human time. The Lord sees past, present, and future all at the same time. He has the bird’s eye view so to speak of the whole cycle of human history. That is so different from our limited human experience.

As we look at this week’s Scripture we see a people who have suffered for centuries in slavery. After 400 years God chooses to enter into human time. This is a long time by our standards but not to the Lord. God always enters into our experience at the right time and the right place and in the right way, even if it does not seem so to us. I am sure Moses must have had the same thoughts after his encounter with the Lord at the burning bush. Even during his conversation with the Lord he is trying to understand, not only God’s timing, but his place in God’s timing.

I think this happens to us all the time. Often the Lord doesn’t show up when we think he should. Then the Lord shows up when we least expect it, often in unusual places and in unusual ways. The great thing about the story of Moses and the burning bush is that Moses paid attention to the unusual. His imagination and curiosity were sparked enough to take the time to turn aside in the midst of his daily tasks as a shepherd to be open to wonder. The resultant encounter at the marvel of the burning bush changed his life and the life of the people of Israel and the whole human race forever. 

The challenge for us this week is to be open to turning aside in our busy time with the expectation that the Lord may very well enter into our time in some wonderful and marvelous way. I sure would hate to miss my burning bush time. How about you?  

Blessings in Christ, Pastor Jim