Today’s Reading, Exodus 30-32
Focal Scripture: Exodus 32:1 “When the people saw that Moses delayed in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said to him, “Come, make gods for us who will go before us because this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt — we don’t know what has happened to him!””
Our culture is very impatient. We expect everything at once. People want success immediately. Healthy lifestyle to be instant. Education and knowledge must be attainable without the work. Relationships must be perfect with no hard work. Our impatience not only hits our personal lives but also our spiritual lives. We expect to know God deeply without the effort.
In today’s reading we see that the Israelites got impatient because Moses took longer than expected to come down from the mountain. Because of this they wanted Aaron to make gods for them. They wanted someone to lead them. Because they didn’t get the immediate results they were looking for from Moses and God they tried to create their own divinity. Their impatience in waiting on the Lord revealed the condition of their heart and Aaron’s heart.
Before you get to upset with them understand we are all in the same position sometimes. When God doesn’t move on our timetable we go ahead of him and try to forge our own path. It could the job that you are praying over but instead of waiting patiently in prayer you jump in and realize it was a mistake. It could be a major life decision where it will impact your family. However, our impatience reveals what we worship and how we view God. How you might ask? Because when we act it reveals what our hearts want.
With the nation of Israel they wanted to be lead by a god. Instead of being lead by The Lord. They just witnessed a great demonstration of power and how the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is greater than man made idols. Instead of waiting patiently for him to reveal his next steps they reverted back to what they witnessed in Egypt. They exchanged the power of the true God for something they could tangibly see.
Our challenge is to root out our impatience and see what it reveals about us daily. Do we trust God or would we rather worship created gods? Our hearts should be to wait on the Lord. Trust his guidance and provision. Understanding he will reveal what we need right when we need it in our lives.
So the questions we must answer is this: Do we wait for the Lord to speak in our lives? Or do we create our own gods to soothe our minds? These are questions that must be answered. It will reveal our spiritual condition.
Tomorrow, I plan on reading Exodus 33-35
