As the rain and snow

“Behold, Behemoth,
    which I made as I made you;
    he eats grass like an ox.
His strength in his loins,
    and his power in the muscles of his belly.
He makes his tail stiff like a cedar;
    the sinews of his thighs are knit together.
His bones are tubes of bronze,
    his limbs like bars of iron. 

“He is the first of the works of God.

“Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook
    or press down his tongue with a cord?
Can you put a rope in his nose
    or pierce his jaw with a hook?

“No one is so fierce that he dares to stir him up.
    Who then is he who can stand before me?
Who has first given to me, that I should repay him?
    Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine.

“Who can strip off his outer garment?
    Who would come near him with a bridle?
Who can open the doors of his face?
    Around his teeth is terror.
His back is made of rows of shields,
    shut up closely as with a seal.
One is so near to another
    that no air can come between them.
They clasp each other and cannot be separated.
His sneezings flash forth light,
    and his eyes are like the eyelids of the dawn.
Out of his mouth go flaming torches;
    sparks of fire leap forth.
Out of his nostrils comes forth smoke,
    as from a boiling pot and burning rushes.
In his neck abides strength,
    and terror dances before him.
The folds of his flesh stick together,
    firmly cast on him and immovable.

“He counts iron as straw,
    and bronze as rotten wood.
The arrow cannot make him flee;
    for him, sling stones are turned to stubble.
Clubs are counted as stubble;
    he laughs at the rattle of javelins.
His underparts are like sharp potsherds.
He makes the deep boil like a pot;
    he makes the sea like a pot of ointment.
Behind him he leaves a shining wake;
    one would think the deep to be white-haired.
On earth there is not his like,
    a creature without fear.
He is king over all the sons of pride.” Job 40:15-19; 41:1-2,10-11,13-20,22-23,27-34

God exquisitely fashioned, and owns, and reigns over, the behemoth and leviathan and every living thing. Every creature, every detail of muscle and shape, movement and function, expression and skin and breath, is created, known, and ordered by the Possessor and Ruler of all.

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” Colossians 1:15-17

We cannot breathe, that He has not given us breath. We cannot move, except that in Him we live and move and have our being. We cannot give, that He has not given first. This is our God– supreme in authority, perfect in knowledge, transcendent in love, worthy to be worshiped. He is trustworthy of our surrender, confidence, and faith. (Acts 17:28)

Gracious, most high God, You are great and good. May Your peace that rules me exhibit Your unfailing sovereignty to everyone I encounter.

“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.” Exodus 17:8-13

“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, ‘Because the people come to me to inquire of God; when they have a dispute, they come and I decide between one person and another, and I make them know the statutes of God and his laws.’ [Jethro] said to him, ‘What you are doing is not good. You will certainly wear yourselves out, for the thing is too heavy for you. You are not able to do it alone. I will give you advice, and God be with you! You shall represent the people before God… and you shall 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, hundreds, fifties, and tens. And let them judge the people. Every great matter they shall bring to you, but any small matter they shall decide themselves. So they will bear the burden with you. If you do this, God will direct you, you will be able to endure.’ So Moses listened and did all that he had said.” Exodus 18:13-24

Some are made to lead nations, some to lead armies. Some are mentors, some teach skills. Some serve with encouragement and mercy, some come alongside with strategy and advice. We are not made to battle in the Christian life alone.

When God calls us to specific roles, He expects us to step up. To lead by strategy or example, with boldness. To fight on the front lines, defending justice, truth, or individuals, with courage. To support in the background with prayer, practical helps, or insight, with ready zeal. And if to delegate, to enlist, implement advice, or obey orders, with willing humility. (Romans 12:3-8)

Where has God appointed me to serve, and how eagerly do I take on His assignments? Will I gratefully fulfill my function not above, or below, but alongside His team?

Father, fit me, fill me, to serve Your purposes. May I willingly and honorably do my part.

“He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: ‘Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: “God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.” But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.’” Luke 18:9-14

Picture two men, bodies facing the wall of the temple. The tidy Pharisee shifts his eyes askance to stare at the tax collector, derision steaming in his heart. As he intones his prescribed chant of superior puffery, he can’t keep his eyes off the others, the scum around him. Bloating with self-righteousness, gloating in his own esteem, he reminds God of all the good he has done, presenting his neatly-checked-off list– as if omniscient God does not already know. Nearby, a tax collector, convicted to the core as he bows before the invisible holy face of God, cries in desperation for mercy.

And whom did God justify? Whom does He always exalt? The humble. He who humbled Himself to death on a cross is He who receives and rewards those who do the same. He went before us to make the way of salvation that we could confess and extol His glorious name. (Philippians 2:3-11)

Do our eyes get stuck and muddied on what others have done, or done to us, and so we come to God with scales of comparison? Or do we focus on amassing our twinkly piles of good deeds to outweigh our slip-ups, and present to our Sovereign, who is actually not impressed? Would we instead bow humbly, and lift our eyes in trust to the Judge who sees not our sin because of His mercy that covers every penitent sinner? In faith to the One whose scales are perfect and blindfold is the perfect blood of Christ? Because of the finished work of Jesus, God the Righteous sees believers as covered, clean, clothed in His righteousness. He who owns the scales has taken on the weight of our sin and its penalty, borne our burden to the cross, and risen victoriously. (Isaiah 61:10; 2 Corinthians 5:21)

“My sin—oh, the bliss of this glorious thought—
My sin, not in part, but the whole,
Is nailed to His Cross, and I bear it no more;
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!”  ~ Horatio Gates Spafford (1828-1888)

Good Father, teach me all Your cross means for my sins, including the sin of comparing myself to others. Toward You, make me humble and repentant, emptied of self-righteousness and filled with faith in Your completed work on my behalf. Toward others, may I be generous with love, grace, and forgiveness, as You have been with me.

“God is our refuge and strength,
    a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way,
    though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam,
    though the mountains tremble at its swelling. 

“Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water because it was bitter. And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, ‘What shall we drink?’ And he cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they encamped there by the water. 

“They set out from Elim, and the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from Egypt. And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses, ‘Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.’ Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you.’ And Moses said, ‘Your grumbling is not against us but against the Lord.’ And Moses said , ‘Take a jar, and put an omer of manna in it, and place it before the Lord to be kept throughout your generations.’” Exodus 15:22-25,27; 16:1-4,8,33

As soon as the thrill of God’s miraculous dividing of the sea and deliverance of millions of Israelites from the feisty, dominant Egyptians had waned, focus turned inward and life became small again. The God whose awesome, unimaginable strength held back the waters for His people, whose breath dried the seabed beneath their feet and wheels, was now so small in their minds He was incapable of feeding them? Or was it that they forgot His majestic grandeur and failed to think of Him at all?

When life is all about me, how quickly I forget the goodness and power of God! I can be hasty to castigate Israel for so quickly grumbling– only three days after their supernatural escape– yet in moments, reduce my own attitude to grumble at any inconvenience, discomfort, delay. I can allow the poison of comparison, media negativity, personal rights to disgruntle my outlook, taint my speech, and squelch any gratitude in my heart.

Where do my eyes go when my going gets tough? Where does my mind travel? Do I spit the bitter water and growl for grumbling’s sake, instead of raising my sights and hope and trust to the One who is ready to answer?

How careful am I to store up God’s ‘manna,’ in a journal or my Bible, so I can readily recount His faithfulness? Whom am I telling of His deeds, that they might expectantly look to Him in need? Do I make a practice of writing letters or otherwise documenting for the next generation?

Father, keep my view of You large, and of myself small. Keep me glorying in Your magnificent splendor and greatness, and thanking You for every good gift. May I decrease, and You increase– in my mind, my spoken word, and my countenance. (John 3:30; James 1:17)

“Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song to the Lord, saying,

“I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living! Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” “Our soul waits for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. For our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name. Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us, even as we hope in you.” “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning.” Psalm 27:13-14; 33:20-22; 130:5-6

“Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.” “They who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” “The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.” Isaiah 30:18; 40:30; Lamentations 3:25 

The air was humid, the green water fluid with a misty sky this morning, the liquid surface spotted with buoys that held pots beneath. Pots that hung, waiting for crabs to come. Waiting over hours, waiting through tides, waiting to be pulled up and harvested of their bounty. Waiting.

Waiting.

So much is learned as we lean on God’s strength, look for His goodness, take courage and gladness in our waiting. By His grace we persevere. Our trust is deepened, our hope is inspired, our expectancy builds, our faith matures.

What pots spot my mind’s landscape? Where do nagging ‘unresolveds’ punctuate my life hum and disrupt my peace? Do I perceive all as calm and well in control, and plod on, thankful in all things– except for these annoying places God is asking me to wait? Do I allow myself to agitate and unsettle in the midst of spots, or accept them as reminders to delight in active, trusting, expectant waiting?

“Be still, my soul: the Lord is on your side;
bear patiently the cross of grief or pain;
leave to your God to order and provide;
in ev’ry change he faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul: your best, your heav’nly Friend
through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

Be still, my soul: your God will undertake
to guide the future as he has the past.
Your hope, your confidence let nothing shake;
all now mysterious shall be bright at last.
Be still, my soul: the waves and winds still know
his voice who ruled them while he dwelt below.”  ~Kathrina von Schlegel (1865)

Our Lord may set us on the deeps, isolated, waiting, waiting, through moments and days, even seasons. Fog of confusion, curiosity at His silence, ‘no catch’ might prevail, yet still He orders that we wait. Longings go unanswered, dreams are unfilled, conditions worsen, distances grow farther rather than our hoped-for closer, but we wait. And all the while He rules. He presides over the long hours of our waiting, and prepares His treasures for His perfect time.

Lord, teach me patience in the waiting spots of life. With You is always joy and hope.

“As he drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant. They told him, ‘Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.’ And he cried out, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ And those who were in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ He said, ‘Lord, let me recover my sight.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Recover your sight; your faith has made you well.’ And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.” Luke 18:35-43

Being a beggar, the blind man appealed first to Jesus’s mercy for the opportunity to speak. And mercy opened the door. Once Jesus stopped, He drew out from this desperate man what he really wanted Him to do for him. He wanted to see.

We come into communion with Jesus on the basis of mercy, and once there, we can seek His good, pleasing and perfect will. What exactly do we want Jesus to do for us? Are we thoughtful long enough to consider what He might do in our spirits, our minds, our hearts? How might He intervene in our marriages, work, relationships, future? If we truly want these things, do we take the time to ask? When and where? (Romans 12:1-2)

Do we believe He can do all things, and is on our side? He wants us to grow, to be sanctified, to be strong and resist the world’s temptation and the devil’s schemes, to be miserable in and convicted of sin. He is able to make His grace abound to us as we deal with difficult people, and wrestle with painful lessons. He provides courage for battle, and comfort for grief. He offers wisdom in great measure, and is able to do beyond what we ask or imagine. We can ask for mercy, help, more fruit of the Spirit, insight, hope, guidance. What do we lack? His sources are unlimited! (Romans 8:31-32; 2 Corinthians 1:3-4; 9:8; Ephesians 3:20; Hebrews 4:15-16)

“Thou art coming to a King, large petitions with thee bring, for His grace and power are such none can ever ask too much.”  ~John Newton

And do we not come? Do we not ask? Get we tangled in misery and self-loathing and fail to seek His mercy? Turn we our eyes down and fail to look to His welcoming face? When we do ask, what drives us? Greed, pride, self-protection, to preserve an image, ease? Or do we seek to know Him and His glory? Ask God to reveal and purify motives! “You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.” (Exodus 9:27-30; 33:13,18; James 4:2-3)

Bountiful Lord, may I ever delight myself in You and commit my ways to You. Teach me to seek You and pray as You do, according to Your will, that every desire You fulfill will glorify You, the Giver. (Psalm 37:4-5; Romans 8:26-27)

“When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the mind of Pharaoh and his servants was changed toward the people, and they said, ‘What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?’ So he… pursued them, all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and overtook them encamped at the sea. When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And Moses said to the people, ‘Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.’

“The Lord said to Moses, ‘I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord.’ Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud [came] between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. The Egyptians pursued them into the midst of the sea. And in the morning watch the Lord threw the Egyptian forces into a panic... And [they]said, ‘Let us flee from before Israel, for the Lord fights for them against the Egyptians.’

“Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal course when the morning appeared. As the Egyptians fled into it, the Lord threw [them] into the midst of the sea… not one of them remained. Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians. Israel saw the great power that the Lord used, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord.” Exodus 14:5-6,9-10,13-14,17-25,27-31

The Israel millions began their exodus from Egypt bold, brave, defiant, but the vast Sea before and angry army behind paralyzed them with fear. Moses, observing their pivot, revives them. ‘Fear not, stand firm, be silent, see God!’

Do we panic, and manipulate to avoid the places of adversity, testing, impossibility? Do we eschew roadblocks, and forge elsewhere in our own strategies because God’s don’t make sense? Does our courage dissolve into fear when circumstances get tough? Do we lose sight of God when we see the Sea? At the edge of His directed hard place, will we stand still, silence our fretting, and expect Him to make a spectacular way of salvation? An easy, smooth route has nothing on a divided sea.

Father, keep me in step with You, wherever You lead. Train my eyes to see Your salvation in every impossible Sea, and advance in faith in the way You provide. And beholding Your magnificent power, may I exalt Your glory.

“At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the livestock. And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he and all his servants and all the Egyptians. And there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where someone was not dead. Then he summoned Moses and Aaron by night and said, ‘Up, go out from among my people, both you and the people of Israel; and go, serve the Lord, as you have said. Take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone, and bless me also!’

“The Egyptians were urgent with the people to send them out of the land in haste. For they said, ‘We shall all be dead.’ So the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading bowls being bound up in their cloaks on their shoulders. They had asked the Egyptians for silver and gold jewelry and for clothing. And the Lord had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. Thus they plundered the Egyptians.

“At the end of 430 years, on that very day, all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. It was a night of watching by the Lord, to bring them out of the land of Egypt; so this same night is a night of watching kept to the Lord by all the people of Israel throughout their generations.” Exodus 12:29-36,41-42

At the stroke of midnight (does anything good happen after midnight?) the angel of death struck the Egyptians, just as the Lord had announced through His servant Moses. Finally, with this tenth plague, Pharaoh was convinced to release the Israelites. And what a night it was.

Buzzing parents, groggy children and animals, fearful yet in wonder at the supernatural death for Egypt and protection for Israel because of the blood…. the blood, the smell of lambs’ blood over their doors permeated the warm night air with the wailing, the spoor of death lingered as they plundered, pushed, packed together, made haste to leave everything they’d ever known, memorializing in their minds the provision through the slaughter of the innocent.

We face such nights, not so much necessarily fleeing our homes, but death vigils over loved ones, extended longing for spiritual awakening, sleepless seasons of physical pain.

And our Lord watches. He is present, keeping guard over His own, active to deliver, to provide, to direct next steps into the unknown, to open His way out and onward.

When I’ve been forsaken, betrayed, afflicted with suffering, do I trust the loving watch of Jesus? In the misery of conviction, will I yield to God’s merciful, chastening hand? When anxious storms engulf and choke, will I look to the One who watches in peace, and rules? (Job 30:16-17; Psalm 32:4; Matthew 8:23-27; John 6:16-21)

When God calls “it’s time,” and leads me on, will I set aside fear, take up His provision, and make haste to obey and follow?

Father, every night of the soul is one of Your watching. You alone are worthy of absolute trust.