Friday, February 21, 2020

An Unusual Child

Title Image:  Pixabay.com   Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©
Friday, February 21, 2020

It was by faith that Moses’ parents hid him for three months when he was born.  They saw that God had given them an unusual child, and they were not afraid to disobey the king’s command.  It was by faith that Moses, when he grew up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.  He chose to share the oppression of God’s people instead of enjoying the fleeting pleasures of sin.  He thought it was better to suffer for the sake of Christ than to own the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to his great reward.  It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger.  He kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible.  It was by faith that Moses commanded the people of Israel to keep the Passover and to sprinkle blood on the doorposts so that the angel of death would not kill their firstborn sons.  Hebrews 11:23-28[1]

There was something about their child that was unusual, and it affected the way Moses’ parents acted.  Unusual is the last word we want to hear from the doctor that delivers our child, but Moses’ parents understood that meant a sense of the divine had entered their lives.  They were filled with faith to protect his young life even if the king ordered otherwise.  And that attitude turned into the atmosphere of Moses’ life, a life of service that defied the rule of earthly kings and pharaohs and followed the still, small voice from above.
Faith hardly makes for an easy life.  Following the unseen into the unknown means swimming upstream in even the everyday routine of life.  For most people that is a challenge.  It’s not easy by any stretch; I find it exhausting!
I hate the unknown.  I’m a person who loves to have things planned, laid-out in an orderly, sensible, scheduled track that’s simple to follow…just do the next thing.  But faith is different than my preferences.  My go-to example is Abraham.  God called him to begin the journey without so much as a call to Triple-A for a map, let alone a GPS on his phone.  It was C’mon, Abe…I’m gonna show you this place.  And Abraham did it!  He notified the wife and family and all the servants to gather up all the stuff of his household, saddle up and hit the road, without so much as a word about where the road would lead.
We had a similar experience in 1980; we didn’t have a burning bush experience or any camels, but we packed up two pre-teens and a toddler, two cars and a U-Haul with every bit of our worldly goods.  We moved nearly 600 miles to seminary.  I had quit my job, and we had no idea how we’d earn a living while going through school.  We didn’t know a single person in Louisiana, and we hadn’t ever been west of Florida or so far from family.  It was fearful, full of I-don’t-knows, lots of doubt, and the adventure of a lifetime!  There were a lot of tears, some because of homesickness and fear of what bill would go unpaid that month, and some because we saw so many ways God blessed our lives. 
Now, 40 years later, it is easier to see with the eyes of hindsight some of the things I’d probably do differently…but that’s not faith…that’s sight and human thinking.  The fact that we followed the unseen God into our unknown futureTHAT was faith!  That was us being like Moses, unusual children of the Most High God.
For You Today
You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

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[1] For another post on Hebrews 11:23-28 see God's Mountain; Moses' Faith 

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