THREE REQUESTS OF GOD
- Key Verse
- "Now therefore, I pray You, if I have found favor in Your sight, let me know Your ways that I may know You, so that I may find favor in Your sight. Consider too, that this nation is Your people." And He said, "My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest." (Exodus 33:13-14)
READ THE CHAPTER
Central Truth
Seek to know God by spending time with Him. There you will find rest from your worries, burdens, and difficulties in life.
Reflections
In the fall of 2011, I had the opportunity to travel to Uganda. When I was initially asked, I was SO excited. Then, I began to process the task ahead in light of other previously committed obligations. Suddenly, I was overwhelmed by the responsibility. At family camp that summer, I heard a pastor teach on Exodus 33. I realized I needed to surrender my emotions to God and seek Him like Moses.
Moses had an incredible task ahead just as our lives can hold. I love the picture of Moses going to the Lord "as a man speaks with his friend" (verse 11). Moses requests three things of the Lord in this chapter. I want to know You (verse 13), I want Your presence to go with us (verses 15-16), and I want to see Your glory (verse 18). What a great model of faith! Further, God did everything that Moses asked and was pleased with him.
Knowing God and His truth is the foundation of wisdom and the beginning of peace (Proverbs 9:10). God taught me so much about dependence on Him in 2011, and I was able to rest in the fact that the Uganda trip was His work. I strive continually to mark my days with dependence on Him. However, I am often arrogant and self-confident. I move forward without consideration of the Lord. It reminds me of something our pastor said this summer, "If dependence (on God) is the goal, then weakness is the advantage." Moses depended on God with the task set before him.
When we face difficult or challenging times, it is easy to want to do it on our own. Yet, God wants us to rest in Him. He tells Moses that not only is He going to go with him, but He will give him rest (verse 14). Jesus, God in the flesh, also promises rest in Matthew 11:28-30. He desires for us to rest in Him.
Enjoy your time with the Lord today "as a man speaks to his friend." And, find rest in Him!
Discussion Questions
1. Are there things in life you pursue that need to be surrendered to the Lord?
2. How would you currently describe your relationship with the Lord? Is He a friend? Or an acquaintance?
3. What can you do to know more of God?
MEMORY VERSES
Exodus 19:5-6
Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.
Lucina
May 24, 2013 06:27 AM
Michel, I loved reading about your experience in going to Uganda today, especially since I just returned myself! What struck me in Exodus 33 was that by talking to God, Moses literally changed Hid mind. From God declaring He would NOT go with the Israelites (v. 3) to God saying He would do so (v. 17). That is astounding when you think about it. I was struck with the fact that my prayers are often too small (and self focused). So today, I'm asking God to help me see what He sees and do what it is He wants me to do.
Karen
May 24, 2013 07:27 AM
Loved this, Michele! 'Surrender and seek'...God is teaching me that if I truly surrender my agenda and seek His face like Moses, He will reveal Himself to me...maybe not completely and all at once, b/c He knows it would be more than I could handle, but exactly and perfectly in the way that is best b/c He loves me! (vs. 21-23) Oh what a loving and compassionate God we serve!
Sue Bohlin
May 24, 2013 09:43 AM
Hi Michele! Greetings from another boy mom! :-) Loved the "three things" you highlighted in today's chapter. I also loved verse 20, where Yahweh tells Moses, "You cannot see My face, for no one can see Me and live." We are far too small, puny and limited to bear the full manifestation of God's glory. When our Marine nephew died in a firefight in Iraq, his mother mourned his loss deeply. She kept asking the Lord to give her some comfort about being separated from her beloved son. The Lord told her that Kevin was experiencing such a degree and depth of joy in heaven that his earthly body could not possibly have contained it. Then He gave her a glimpse of his full-of-glory smile. Just his smile, not the rest of his face. And it deeply comforted her. I recently learned that when God answered D.L. Moody's prayers for spiritual power, "God revealed Himself to me, and I had such an experience of His love that I had to ask Him to stay His hand" lest he die. Oh, our God is SO much bigger and more glorious than we can imagine!
HopeH
May 24, 2013 10:07 AM
profound statement by Pastor Todd: "If dependence (on God) is the goal, then weakness is the advantage." This seems to be the season of my life in which I am being striped of of my self-sufficiency and self-reliance. I am learning to yield, surrender and submit to the Great I am. There are several things that stood out to me in today's passage. In verse 11 it shows us the capacity for us to engage in person relationship with the Lord. the Lord spoke face to face with Moses as a man speaks to his friend. Also verse 19 stood out to me: Exodus 33:19 ESV 19 And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. God I think demonstrates grace to all and grants us each what we need to engage in relationship with Him.
Aleks
May 24, 2013 11:26 AM
Michelle, thank you for writing this devo. Spoke to my heart today! Grateful for you!
Kasi
May 25, 2013 10:19 AM
This seems to be such a pivotal chapter for Moses and the Israelites. After the idol worshiping incident, it appears God is saying, "Make a choice"- they can go on to the land since it was promised to them and they can go without the Lord (as Moses's people-not God's v. 1) or they can go WITH God. They begin the process of choosing God by removing their physical adornments, but it seems that it was mainly Moses' intercession that changed things. He sought God by leaving the camp and setting up a meeting place of his own, as the people mainly watched. He goes further by pleading to know specifically who would go with them on the journey and essentially giving the people back to God (v.13). He asks God to make him His leader but says 'If you aren't with us and ultimately glorified in this endeavor, don't send us.' Or what good is the stuff, if we don't have you? Then, when God promises to be with them, Moses keeps going and asks for MORE of God- asking to experience His glory. Each time I read this chapter, I'm more blown away by what an advocate for the people Moses was and how he radically sought God here. I also love how Joshua was quietly inserted in this chapter having a front row seat to much of Moses' encounter with God. Love the foreshadowing!