Read Exodus 3:1-22, especially verse 14.

Moses had been raised in Pharaoh’s palace and yet he was working as a humble shepherd in the desert when God seriously intervened in his life. For 430 years the Hebrews had been enslaved in Egypt and no doubt Moses, like the rest of his people, had been crying out to God for deliverance.

What He would not have anticipated is that God meant to use him to make it happen. In fact, his whole life had been ordered by God to prepare him to have the favour to access Pharaoh’s presence. Yet He doubted the call and his abilities to fulfil the task.

Just as in the days of Noah and Moses, God has a plan to use us, His children, to bring refuge, deliverance and salvation to the communities where we live. Moses was so locked-in to the daily task of caring for the sheep that he could not see who he was in God’s eyes or the enormity of who the God, who simply described Himself as “I Am Who I Am”, was either. He needed a shift in perspective because, without it, he would not be able to arise and shine in the way God intended him to do.

... we can choose to be confined or consumed by our daily situations and personal storms, or we can choose instead to allow the Holy Spirit to lift us up to gain Father’s wider (and often longer-term) perspective.

This is equally true for us today. As precious children of God we have choices: we can choose to be confined or consumed by our daily situations and personal storms, or we can choose instead to allow the Holy Spirit to lift us up to gain Father’s wider (and often longer-term) perspective. This is not some form of Christian escapism; actually, it is the complete opposite. Father God knows the hairs on our head, the people we have to deal with, the problems we face and our very serious worries; and He longs to be included in it all so that we might experience the strength, warmth and comfort of the reality of His embrace.

Many years ago, when I first began to learn Hebrew, I well remember the modest thrill I got in translating a sentence into English and realising that when God applied the words ‘I Am’ to Himself, He really was using the verb ‘to be’! His name, that is written in Mazoretic text as hwhy (Y/H/W/H) and was pronounced in the time of Moses as something like Yahweh, means ‘I am’ or ‘I will be’! In calling Himself ‘I AM’ God is actually saying:

‘I am or will be here for you — always. Wherever you go, through whatever you face, I will always be with you. In times of blessing or in times of difficulty you will never be alone — I am now and will always be your constant I AM.’

I am now and will always be your constant I AM.

Additional reading: Psalm 7; Isaiah 55:9.

Prayer Time:

• How did David’s perspective of God change in Psalm 7?
• What is God teaching you about Himself?
• What is He showing you about yourself?

Spend a longer time with God today. Identify one particular need or situation and consciously bring it before Him. As you worship, allow Him to lift you up over it.

Other devotionals in this series can be accessed here