At the time of Moses' birth the Pharaoh was ordering all male Hebrew babies to be drowned in the
Moses' was a Hebrew boy. Shortly after his birth his mom made a decision that not only saved his life but changed the course of the Jewish nation forever.
The Birth of Moses - Exodus 2
1. "Now a man of the tribe of Levi married a Levite
woman, 2. and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she
saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months.
3. But when she could hide him no longer, she got a
papyrus basket[a] for him and coated it with tar and
pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along
the bank of the Nile . 4 His
sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him."
You know...my husband and I had a conversation about a week ago
and we were discussing a problem. I found myself saying "It's too big. It
has to be given to God." I heard
almost that exact same phrase at church that weekend. (That is pretty cool when
that happens, right?)
...The Pharaoh was killing Hebrew babies. That's a pretty big problem. Too big. Moses' mom couldn't fix it on her own.
Verse 3 - "But when she could hide him no longer, she got a
papyrus basket[a] for him and coated it with tar and
pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along
the bank of the Nile ."
She knew she couldn't manage the situation any longer on her
own. It was time to release the situation to the Lord.
Tar and pitch was used to cover the basket, to keep it afloat. I see this as symbolic for prayer and faith that God will receive our heart's request and take action. Sometimes though an issue is so dear to us that it is hard to let go. The devotional was discussing disappointment Moses' mother felt by having to give her son away, but something else stuck out. She defeated her problem by surrendering to God.
If Moses' mom had a white knuckle death grip on the basket,
trying to maintain control, what would have happened? Most likely the baby
would have been found and killed.
When we refuse to let go, we cannot expect God to take charge and bring the solution - release the blessing. However, she did let go. She put the basket in the water and took her hands completely off, letting God do His thing.
When we refuse to let go, we cannot expect God to take charge and bring the solution - release the blessing. However, she did let go. She put the basket in the water and took her hands completely off, letting God do His thing.
verse 5-6
"Then Pharaoh’s daughter went down to the Nile to bathe, and her attendants were walking along the
riverbank. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her female slave to
get it. 6 She opened it and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt
sorry for him. “This is one of the Hebrew babies,” she said.
Pharaoh's daughter found him and felt sorry for him? She later
decided to raise him as her own (verse
10).
Who saw THAT coming? Besides God I mean.
I told my son, Moses' mom couldn't have just strolled up
to the Pharaoh's daughter and said "Hey, you know I really, really don't want my baby to be killed, sooooo...want
to adopt a Jewish boy"? No. It had to be a God thing.
The best part for the mom, besides Moses' being spared death
of course... (Remember that Moses' sister kept watch to see what happened to
the baby.)
verses 7-10
7 Then his sister asked Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go
and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?”
8 “Yes, go,” she answered. So the girl went and got the
baby’s mother. 9 Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this baby and
nurse him for me, and I will pay you.” So the woman took the baby and nursed
him. 10 When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh’s daughter
and he became her son. She named him Moses,[b] saying, “I drew him out of the water.”
She got to care for him anyway! I love a happy ending.
It's more of a happy beginning, really.
It's more of a happy beginning, really.
That's how I am trying to visualize my problems now, big or
small. I will (attempt to, haha) put
them in a basket, peel my little fingers off, and push them through the water towards God's
receiving hand. (Add a healthy dose of faith and shameless and unceasing
prayer.)
To recap:
Put into basket - fingers off - pray - wait on Him.
To recap:
Put into basket - fingers off - pray - wait on Him.
