Episodes

  • Faithfulness To God Shows Up In How You Handle Everyday Responsibility

    Faithfulness To God Shows Up In How You Handle Everyday Responsibility
    Dec 15 2025
    Exodus 21:33–22:1533 “When a man opens a pit, or when a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, 34 the owner of the pit shall make restoration. He shall give money to its owner, and the dead beast shall be his.35 “When one man’s ox butts another’s, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and share its price, and the dead beast also they shall share. 36 Or if it is known that the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has not kept it in, he shall repay ox for ox, and the dead beast shall be his.22 “If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and kills it or sells it, he shall repay five oxen for an ox, and cfour sheep for a sheep. 2 1 If a thief is found dbreaking in and is struck so that he dies, there shall be no bloodguilt for him, 3 but if the sun has risen on him, there shall be bloodguilt for him. He2 shall surely pay. If he has nothing, then ehe shall be sold for his theft. 4 If the stolen beast fis found alive in his possession, whether it is an ox or a donkey or a sheep, ghe shall pay double.5 “If a man causes a field or vineyard to be grazed over, or lets his beast loose and it feeds in another man’s field, he shall make restitution from the best in his own field and in his own vineyard.6 “If fire breaks out and catches in thorns so that the stacked grain or the standing grain or the field is consumed, he who started the fire shall make full restitution.7 “If a man gives to his neighbor money or goods to keep safe, and it is stolen from the man’s house, then, if the thief is found, ghe shall pay double. 8 If the thief is not found, the owner of the house shall come near to God to show whether or not he has put his hand to his neighbor’s property. 9 For every breach of trust, whether it is for an ox, for a donkey, for a sheep, for a cloak, or for any kind of lost thing, of which one says, ‘This is it,’ the case of both parties shall come before God. The one whom God condemns shall pay double to his neighbor.10 “If a man gives to his neighbor a donkey or an ox or a sheep or any beast to keep safe, and it dies or is injured or is driven away, without anyone seeing it, 11 han oath by the Lord shall be between them both to see whether or not he has put his hand to his neighbor’s property. The owner shall accept the oath, and he shall not make restitution. 12 But if iit is stolen from him, he shall make restitution to its owner. 13 If it is torn by beasts, let him bring it as evidence. He shall not make restitution for what has been torn.14 “If a man borrows anything of his neighbor, and it is injured or dies, the owner not being with it, he shall make full restitution. 15 If the owner was with it, he shall not make restitution; if it was hired, it came for its hiring fee.It is easy to think that faith is mostly about the big moments. The dramatic sins. The public failures. The obvious acts of obedience. But as we move through this section of Exodus, God presses in on something far more ordinary. He shows us that faithfulness to Him is often revealed in the small, everyday responsibilities of life. In how we treat other people’s property. In how we respond when damage is done. In whether we take responsibility or look for someone else to blame. This passage reminds us that God cares deeply about the ordinary details of our lives, because those details reveal what our hearts are really like.These laws deal with situations that feel very normal. A pit left uncovered. An animal that wanders where it should not. Property that is damaged. Something borrowed that is lost or broken. None of this feels particularly spiritual at first glance. But that is precisely the point. God is shaping a people whose faith reaches into every corner of life. He is teaching them that love for neighbour is not an abstract idea. It is worked out in responsibility, honesty, and care.Again and again, the principle is simple. If your actions cause harm, you are responsible. If your negligence leads to loss, you are accountable. God refuses to allow people to shrug their shoulders and say, accidents happen. He is not creating a culture of blame, but a culture of ownership. A people who understand that their choices affect others. A people who are willing to make things right.This is deeply countercultural. We live in a world that is very good at deflecting responsibility. We minimise our part. We justify our behaviour. We explain why it was not really our fault. But God teaches His people a better way. When something goes wrong, the question is not how do I get out of this, but how do I love my neighbour in this moment.Notice too that God makes careful distinctions. There is a difference between theft and loss. Between deliberate harm and unavoidable accident. Between negligence and circumstances beyond control. God’s justice is thoughtful. It is measured. It takes intention seriously. This tells us something important about God. He is ...
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    9 mins
  • God’s Justice Is Kinder And More Compassionate Than We Expect

    God’s Justice Is Kinder And More Compassionate Than We Expect
    Dec 14 2025
    God’s Justice Is Kinder And More Compassionate Than We ExpectWhen people read the laws in Exodus, especially the ones that deal with slavery or harm or conflict, they often feel confused. Some even feel unsettled. But these laws were never random. They were never harsh for the sake of harshness. They were given to a people who had just come out of generations of brutal oppression. They had no courts. No legal structure. No shared understanding of justice. And what God gives them in Exodus 21 is no cold parliamentary legislation. It is a picture of a society shaped by His character. It is justice with compassion. Authority with limits. Power held in check by mercy. And if we listen closely, we discover that God’s heart is far kinder and more protective than we often think.Exodus 21:1–32 (ESV)Now these are the rules that you shall set before them. When you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve six years, and in the seventh he shall go out free, for nothing. If he comes in single, he shall go out single. If he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him. If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master’s, and he shall go out alone. But if the slave plainly says, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free, then his master shall bring him to God, and he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall bore his ear through with an awl, and he shall be his slave forever.When a man sells his daughter as a slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do. If she does not please her master, who has designated her for himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has broken faith with her. If he designates her for his son, he shall deal with her as with a daughter. If he takes another wife to himself, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, or her marital rights. And if he does not do these three things for her, she shall go out for nothing, without payment of money.Whoever strikes a man so that he dies shall be put to death. But if he did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will appoint for you a place to which he may flee. But if a man wilfully attacks another to kill him by cunning, you shall take him from my altar, that he may die.Whoever strikes his father or his mother shall be put to death.Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death.Whoever curses his father or his mother shall be put to death.When men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist and the man does not die but takes to his bed, then if the man rises again and walks outdoors with his staff, he who struck him shall be clear, only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall have him thoroughly healed.When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave dies under his hand, he shall be avenged. But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the slave is his money.When men strive together and hit a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, the one who hit her shall surely be fined, as the woman’s husband shall impose on him, and he shall pay as the judges determine. But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys it, he shall let the slave go free because of his eye. If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free because of his tooth.When an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox shall be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten, but the owner of the ox shall not be liable. But if the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has been warned but has not kept it in, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned, and its owner also shall be put to death. If a ransom is imposed on him, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is imposed on him. If it gores a son or a daughter, he shall be dealt with according to this same rule. If the ox gores a slave, male or female, the owner shall give to their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.When we hear the word slave, we immediately think of the horrors of modern slavery or the transatlantic slave trade. But what God describes here is something very different. This is a system meant to protect the poor. To give stability to those who had lost everything. To keep the vulnerable alive in a world without social safety nets. And right at the heart of it is something that shocks us. God builds freedom into the system. Six years of work. Then release. No debt. No ongoing obligation. No strings attached. It is mercy written into law. If only the banks worked...
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    11 mins
  • God Wants Worship That Comes From Your Heart And Not Your Performance

    God Wants Worship That Comes From Your Heart And Not Your Performance
    Dec 11 2025
    There are times when we make worship more complicated than it needs to be. We worry about the right words, the right appearance, the right atmosphere. We start thinking God is impressed by our polish or our presentation. But in this short passage at the end of Exodus 20, God pulls His people back to the basics. He shows them that true worship is not about show. It is not about performance. It is not about our ability to impress Him. True worship is about coming to Him as people who know they have been rescued. People who know their need. People who come with honesty and gratitude. And maybe that is exactly what you need to hear today.Exodus 20:22–26 (ESV)And the Lord said to Moses, Thus you shall say to the people of Israel, You have seen for yourselves that I have talked with you from heaven. You shall not make gods of silver to be with me, nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold. An altar of earth you shall make for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. In every place where I cause my name to be remembered I will come to you and bless you. If you make me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stones, for if you wield your tool on it you profane it. And you shall not go up by steps to my altar, that your nakedness be not exposed on it.God begins with a reminder. You have seen for yourselves that I have talked with you from heaven. In other words, God says, you do not worship a distant God. You worship a God who speaks. A God who reveals Himself. A God who draws near. Worship is never us trying to climb up to God. Worship is always God coming down to His people.And because of that, God warns them again. Do not make gods of silver or gold. Do not try to create something to stand beside Me. The temptation for Israel is the same temptation we feel in our hearts. To create something physical. Something impressive. Something visible. Something we can control. But God will not be placed beside our idols. He knows that whatever competes with Him will eventually enslave us. True worship begins with letting God be God.Then God gives a surprising instruction. Make an altar of earth. Not of polished stone. Not of carved blocks. Not of impressive craftsmanship. Just earth. Dirt. Something ordinary. Something humble. Something that reminds you that you come to God not because of what you can build but because of what He has done. And if you use stone, He says, do not shape it. Do not cut it. Do not decorate it. Because the moment we begin chiseling the stone, the moment we try to make the altar impressive, the focus moves from who God is, to how skillful we are. Worship becomes performance.And then God says something even stranger. Do not build steps leading up to the altar. Why. Because climbing lifted robes would expose the worshipper. God is telling His people something simple. Come before Me with dignity. Come before Me without show. Come before Me without trying to elevate yourself. Worship is not about rising above others. Worship is about humbly standing before a holy God who loves you.All through this passage God is stripping away the things we add to worship. He is taking away the idols. The decorations. The performance. He is removing anything that might draw our attention away from Him and back toward ourselves. And He replaces all of it with something breathtaking. In every place where I cause My name to be remembered I will come to you and bless you. That is the heart of worship. Not our ability to climb up to God, but God choosing to come down to us.And of course, this reaches its fullness in Jesus. Jesus is the place where God causes His name to be remembered. Jesus is the altar where the final sacrifice was offered. Jesus is the One who removes every barrier. Jesus is the One who brings blessing from heaven to earth. Through Him, our worship is not about what we bring but about what He has already done. We come to God not with impressive stones or perfect steps but with humble hearts that rest in Christ.So maybe your next step today is to let God simplify your worship. To stop trying to impress Him. To stop thinking your performance is what matters. Maybe it is simply to remember that worship is about God coming near to you. And that He delights to meet you when you come with honesty and gratitude. Even if all you bring is the equivalent of an altar made of dirt.PrayerFather, teach us to worship You with humility and honesty. Strip away our idols and our desire to perform. Help us remember that You are the God who comes near. Thank You for Jesus, the true altar and the place where Your name is remembered. Draw our hearts back to You in simple and joyful worship. In Jesus name, Amen. Get full access to Reformed Devotionals Daily at reformeddevotional.substack.com/subscribe
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    7 mins
  • The restrictions that set you free

    The restrictions that set you free
    Dec 10 2025
    When people think about God’s laws, they often picture limits. Restrictions. Heavy burdens. A list of things you cannot do. But Exodus 20 pushes us to rethink that. Because before God gives a single command, He reminds His people who He is and what He has already done for them. He has rescued them. He has carried them. He has brought them out of slavery. And the commands that follow are not shackles. They are invitations into real freedom. They show us how life actually works when God is at the centre. And maybe you need that reminder today.Exodus 20:1–21 (ESV)And God spoke all these words, saying, I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.You shall have no other gods before me.You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.You shall not murder.You shall not commit adultery.You shall not steal.You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, You speak to us, and we will listen, but do not let God speak to us, lest we die. Moses said to the people, Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin. The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.Before God gives His people the law, He reminds them them of who he is and what He has done for them. I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt. In other words, He says, I saved you before you did anything. I redeemed you before you kept a single command. I loved you before you even knew how to live. Obedience was never the doorway into God’s favour. It was always the response to it.And so God begins with the first command. You shall have no other gods before me. God knows there is no life to be found in anything else. Idols promise a lot, but they take more than they give. They leave you empty. They demand everything from you and give nothing back. God calls us to Himself because He alone is the source of life.The second command builds on this. Do not make an image of Me. God refuses to be reduced or reshaped into something manageable. We do not get to remake Him according to our preferences. We do not get to tame Him. He is who He is. And His jealousy here is not petty. It is the jealousy of a God who loves His people too much to let them wander into spiritual slavery again.The third command reminds us that God’s name is weighty. We do not use it carelessly. We do not attach it to lies or empty promises. When we speak of God, we speak of the One who made us, who sustains us, who rescued us. Reverence is right.Then comes the Sabbath. One of the most countercultural commands. The world tells you to work endlessly. To produce. To hustle. But God tells His people to stop. To rest. To remember that He is the One who provides. The Sabbath teaches us that we are not machines. We are children. And children rest because their Father is strong enough to hold their world together.The commands that follow shape our life together. Honour your parents. Value life. Be faithful in marriage. Respect the property of others. Speak truthfully. Refuse envy. At first glance, they might seem like ordinary things, but they are not. They describe a community shaped by the character of God. A people who reflect His ways in the world. These commands are not random. They flow out of who God is. And because of that, they show us who we are meant to be. They describe what it means for a human being to flourish....
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    9 mins
  • God Brings You Close To Show You How Holy He Really Is

    God Brings You Close To Show You How Holy He Really Is
    Dec 9 2025
    There are moments in the Christian life where you feel drawn in by God. You feel His kindness. His nearness. His grace. But then, almost in the same breath, you also feel the weight of His holiness. The gap between who He is and who you are becomes painfully clear. And it is easy to wonder how both of those things can be true at the same time. Exodus 19 is one of those moments. God brings His people close. He reminds them of His love. He invites them into something beautiful. But He also shows them His holiness in a way that leaves no doubt that He is not like us. And this is good for us to hear.Exodus 19 (ESV)On the third new moon after the people of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. They set out from Rephidim and came into the wilderness of Sinai, and they encamped in the wilderness. There Israel encamped before the mountain, while Moses went up to God. The Lord called to him out of the mountain, saying, Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel, You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all 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 people of Israel.So Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words that the Lord had commanded him. All the people answered together and said, All that the Lord has spoken we will do. And Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord. And the Lord said to Moses, Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you forever.When Moses told the words of the people to the Lord, the Lord said to Moses, Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments and be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. And you shall set limits for the people all around, saying, Take care not to go up into the mountain or touch the edge of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall be put to death. No hand shall touch him, but he shall be stoned or shot. Whether beast or man, he shall not live. When the trumpet sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and consecrated the people. And they washed their garments. And he said to the people, Be ready for the third day. Do not go near a woman.On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. The Lord came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.And the Lord said to Moses, Go down and warn the people, lest they break through to the Lord to look and many of them perish. Also let the priests who come near to the Lord consecrate themselves, lest the Lord break out against them. And Moses said to the Lord, The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai, for you yourself warned us, saying, Set limits around the mountain and consecrate it. And the Lord said to him, Go down, and come up bringing Aaron with you. But do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the Lord, lest he break out against them. So Moses went down to the people and told them.When God speaks to Israel at Sinai, He does something amazing. Before He gives a single command, before He lays out a single law, He reminds them of His love. You yourselves have seen what I did for you. You saw how I bore you on eagles wings and brought you to myself. Before God calls His people to obey, He calls them to remember. Remember My goodness. Remember My rescue. Remember My kindness. Every act of obedience begins with the memory of grace.And then God gives them a breathtaking promise. If they will walk with Him, they will be His treasured possession. A kingdom of priests. A holy nation. Think about that for a moment. God does not simply rescue Israel from slavery. He rescues them for something. He rescues them to belong to Him. To be a people who carry His name into the world. This is not a small thing. This is identity. This is purpose. This is dignity.But then the tone shifts. God invites them near, but He also draws a boundary. Set limits for the ...
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    9 mins
  • What If Carrying Everything Yourself Is Not Actually Faithfulness: Exodus 18

    What If Carrying Everything Yourself Is Not Actually Faithfulness: Exodus 18
    Dec 8 2025
    Quick note here at the start - most people are interacting with these only via the podcast stream, or via the text. So there really doesn’t seem to be much point in making the video versions, and they require quite a bit more work. So I have decided to keep going on the podcast and the text versions, but to drop my video podcast.There are seasons in life where you realise, often slowly, that you have taken on more than any one person can carry. You care for others. You try to solve problems. You try to hold everything together. And you keep going because you believe that this is what faithfulness looks like. But somewhere along the way the weight becomes too heavy and you do not even notice how tired you have become. Exodus 18 speaks right into that place. It shows us what happens when someone who truly loves God tries to shoulder more than God ever asked him to. And maybe this is the reminder you need today.Exodus 18 (ESV)Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses father in law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel his people, how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt. Now Jethro, Moses father in law, had taken Zipporah, Moses wife, after he had sent her home, along with her two sons. The name of the one was Gershom, for he said, I have been a sojourner in a foreign land, and the name of the other, Eliezer, for he said, The God of my father was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh. Jethro, Moses father in law, came with his sons and his wife to Moses in the wilderness where he was encamped at the mountain of God. And when he sent word to Moses, I, your father in law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons with her, Moses went out to meet his father in law and bowed down and kissed him. And they asked each other of their welfare and went into the tent.Then Moses told his father in law all that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had come upon them in the way, and how the Lord had delivered them. And Jethro rejoiced for all the good that the Lord had done to Israel, in that he had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians. Jethro said, Blessed be the Lord, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh and has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods, because in this affair they dealt arrogantly with the people. And Jethro, Moses father in law, brought a burnt offering and sacrifices to God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses father in law before God.The next day Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood around Moses from morning till evening. When Moses father in law saw all that he was doing for the people, he said, What is this that you are doing for the people. Why do you sit alone, and all the people stand around you from morning till evening. And Moses said to his father in law, Because the people come to me to inquire of God. When they have a dispute, they come to me and I decide between one person and another, and I make them know the statutes of God and his laws.Moses father in law said to him, What you are doing is not good. You and the people with you will certainly wear yourselves out, for the thing is too heavy for you. You are not able to do it alone. Now obey my voice, I will give you advice, and God be with you. You shall represent the people before God and bring their cases to God, and you shall warn them about the statutes and the laws, and make them know the way in which they must walk and what they must do. Moreover, look for able men from all the people, men who fear God, who are trustworthy and hate a bribe, and place such men over the people as chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens. And let them judge the people at all times. Every great matter they shall bring to you, but any small matter they shall decide themselves. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you. If you do this, God will direct you, you will be able to endure, and all this people also will go to their place in peace.So Moses listened to the voice of his father in law and did all that he had said. Moses chose able men out of all Israel and made them heads over the people, chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens. And they judged the people at all times. Any hard case they brought to Moses, but any small matter they decided themselves. Then Moses let his father in law depart, and he went away to his own country.When Jethro arrives, Moses recounts everything God has done. The plagues. The Red Sea. The hardship. The deliverance. And Jethro rejoices. He praises God. It is a beautiful moment of shared faith. But the very next day paints a different picture. Moses sits from morning until evening listening to every dispute, every complaint, every burden. And Jethro sees something Moses can no longer see...
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    9 mins
  • What If Your Strength Runs Out Before the Battle Does: Exodus 17:8–16

    What If Your Strength Runs Out Before the Battle Does: Exodus 17:8–16
    Dec 7 2025
    There are seasons where the fight goes on longer than you thought it would. You believed you could hold yourself together. You believed you could endure. You believed you had enough strength. Then the hours turn into days and the days into months, and you feel yourself slipping. Your arms get tired. Your resolve weakens. Your heart sinks. Exodus 17 shows us a moment exactly like this. It teaches us that God never intended His people to fight alone. He gives us community not as an optional extra but as a way that His strength reaches us when our own strength runs out.Exodus 17:8–16 (ESV)Then Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim. So Moses said to Joshua, Choose for us men, and go out and fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand. So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought with Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses hands grew weary, so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. And Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the sword.Then the Lord said to Moses, Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The Lord is my banner, saying, A hand upon the throne of the Lord. The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.This is the first battle Israel faces after leaving Egypt. They have not trained as soldiers. They do not know how to fight. They have no military experience. Yet Amalek attacks them. The wilderness is not empty. It is full of real dangers. And here Israel learns that God does not merely save them from something. He saves them into a life where trust is needed at every turn.Moses sends Joshua to lead the battle while he goes to the top of the hill with the staff of God in his hand. The staff is the sign of God’s power. It struck the Nile. It parted the sea. It symbolises the God who fights for His people. And as long as Moses holds up his hand, Israel prevails. But when his hand sinks, Amalek begins to win. The point is not that Moses is doing magic. The point is that Israel wins only as they depend on God. The raised hands are a posture of dependence.But Moses gets tired. His arms grow heavy. He cannot hold them up forever. And this is where the beauty of this passage shines. Aaron and Hur come beside him. They put a stone under him so he can sit. Then they hold up his hands, one on each side. Together they keep his arms steady until sunset. And because of this, Israel wins the battle.There is something deeply human here. Even the strongest servants of God grow tired. Even faithful leaders become weary. Even people of great faith reach their limits. God never designed you to hold your arms up forever on your own. He gives brothers and sisters to hold you up when you can no longer hold yourself up.Some battles in life are not won by individual strength. They are won by community dependence. They are won when others pray for you, when others lift you up, when others carry you through. God uses the hands of your friends to steady your own. And this is not weakness. This is faith lived out in community. God designed His people to hold one another up.After the victory the Lord tells Moses to write it down. Israel must remember that their triumph came from the Lord. Moses builds an altar and calls it The Lord is my banner. A banner was the rallying point in battle. The standard under which an army marched. Moses is saying that God Himself is the one under whom they fight and through whom they prevail. Their strength does not come from their swords or their numbers or their bravery. It comes from the presence of God in their midst.This story also foreshadows something greater. One day another man would stand on a hill with His hands outstretched. Not in fatigue but in willing sacrifice. And in that moment the true victory would be won. Not against Amalek but against sin and death. Jesus is the one who holds His arms out so that victory might come to His people. He is the one who fights for us when we cannot fight for ourselves.So this passage puts a question to your heart. Where are your arms tired. Where have you reached the end of your endurance. Who has God placed beside you to hold you up. And perhaps even more importantly, whose arms are you meant to hold up. The Christian life is not a solo battle. It is a shared one. And God meets His people in their weakness through the hands of those He has placed around them.PrayerFather, help us to recognise our need for one another. Strengthen us when our arms grow tired. Surround us with people who will hold us up in ...
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    7 mins
  • What Do You Do When You Feel Let Down By God: Exodus 17:1–7

    What Do You Do When You Feel Let Down By God: Exodus 17:1–7
    Dec 4 2025
    There are moments in life where your expectations of God clash with your experience of God. You thought He would come through sooner. You thought He would answer differently. You thought obedience would lead to relief, not pressure. And when reality does not match what you hoped for, something inside you begins to harden. Exodus 17 shows us that this temptation is not new. Israel does not simply thirst in the wilderness. They begin to question the very character of God. And the heartbreaking thing is that this comes after miracle upon miracle. Yet this is how the human heart works. Pressure reveals what is really inside us.Exodus 17:1–7 (ESV)All the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, Give us water to drink. And Moses said to them, Why do you quarrel with me. Why do you test the Lord. But the people thirsted there for water, and the people grumbled against Moses and said, Why did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst. So Moses cried to the Lord, What shall I do with this people. They are almost ready to stone me.And the Lord said to Moses, Pass on before the people, taking with you some of the elders of Israel, and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb, and you shall strike the rock, and water shall come out of it, and the people will drink. And Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of the people of Israel, and because they tested the Lord by saying, Is the Lord among us or not.Israel faces another crisis. They have no water. Hunger was bad enough. Now thirst grips them. And instead of remembering the God who turned bitter water sweet and who rained down manna each morning, they quarrel with Moses. They demand water. They blame him for their suffering. They accuse him of leading them into the wilderness to die. Their fear makes them irrational. Their thirst makes them bitter.Yet beneath their complaint is a deeper issue. Moses names it when he asks why they are testing the Lord. Their real question is revealed at the end of the passage. They want to know if the Lord is with them or not. This is the heart of every spiritual crisis. When life dries up, we begin to suspect God has left us. When prayers seem unanswered, we wonder if He sees us. When the path is difficult, we assume He is punishing us. The root of their anger is unbelief.Moses feels the weight of their hostility. He cries out to God. He thinks they might kill him. This is how quickly a grateful heart can become a dangerous one. Three chapters ago they were singing on the shore. Now they are ready to stone the man God used to save them. This is what fear does. It transforms people. It makes them forget mercy. It makes them cruel.But God responds in a surprising way. He does not shut them down. He does not send judgment. He tells Moses to take the staff with which he struck the Nile and go before the people. And then comes one of the most astonishing sentences in the whole chapter. God says, I will stand before you on the rock. The Holy One stands before sinful people and invites Moses to strike the rock. Out comes water. Life from a place of death. Hope from a place of hardness.This moment becomes one of the defining images of grace in the Bible. The place is named Massah and Meribah. Testing and quarreling. Yet even there God gives water. Even there He remains faithful. Even there He meets His people in their fear. And this is meant to teach us something about His heart. God does not abandon His people in their unbelief. He provides for them while exposing the unbelief that lives inside them.When you feel let down by God, it is rarely because He has failed you. It is because your expectations were shaped by something other than His promises. Israel assumed that following God meant immediate comfort. But God is after something greater than comfort. He is forming trust. He is strengthening faith. And often that means He lets life get dry enough that we finally cry out to Him. Not in bitterness but in need.The New Testament tells us that this rock pointed forward to something far greater. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10 that the rock was Christ. He is the one who was struck so that living water might flow. He is the one who stands before His people in grace even when they fail. He is the one who satisfies the thirst of a restless soul.So this passage puts a question to us. When life is a Rephidim moment, when you stand in a dry place with no water in sight, what do you do. Do you quarrel and accuse. Or do you cry out like Moses. Do you shake your fist or do you trust that God stands before you on the ...
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    7 mins