One of Israel's first tests in the wilderness was whether or not they would trust God. That meant believing, following and obeying him. They were hungry and he gave them just enough bread to get through each day, including the sabbath. We often believe that God is only working when he gives us excess, but what if he is giving you just enough today, tomorrow and the next day. It's a complete change in the way we view life but it's ramifications can be felt in our relationships, our outlook, our finances and more.

The Crossing of the Reed (not Red) Sea is a story of God's gentle leading of a traumatized group of people as well as a test to see if they would follow, if they would trust and if they would obey. Those would all be necessary components to survive the next season in their nation's life as they traveled to the promised land. We have our own tests to demonstrate what's in our hearts just as they had theirs.

The 10th strike was. devastating restorative act for Egypt after the attack on the Israelite children. Everyone who chose to reject the ways of Egypt and embrace Yahweh would be saved. God wanted them to remember their rescue and celebrate it throughout their lives.

After the 9 plagues, the final 'strike' was initiated against Pharaoh and all of Egypt. The first born of every family that did not slaughter a lamb and spread it's blood around their door was killed. How could a loving God do this and is there more to the story?

The first 9 plagues are more than just increasing arguments for Pharaoh to let the Hebrew slaves go. 3 triads demonstrate the power of Yahweh over all of creation and all of the gods of Egypt. YHWH is making his name known among the Egyptians. There is much we can learn about God and life during this intense time in Israel's life.

This week, we found that even though God had chosen Moses, he still had to give all of himself to this new God that had revealed Himself to him. Moses and Aaron then share God's plan of deliverance with the Hebrew slaves and everything is going great...until it isn't...just like our lives. There's much to learn in Part 5 of "Exodus: Hard Choices".

Moses, like many of us, faltered when called to do something that seemed unimaginable. Standing up to Pharaoh and leading the Hebrew slaves out of Egypt seemed too big for him, even though he was standing in front of the burning bush. The big part of the story wasn't Moses's 5 excuses, though, it was the name that God revealed to him.

The story of the Exodus is the origin story of the Jews, however, if we get too focused on Moses and Israelites, we can miss the bigger story of God showing himself to the nations as the "God of gods".

The church is more than just a collection of activities and programs for it's members, it's meant to be a blessing to the community around it. While the nation of Israel was in exile, Jeremiah prophesied that they should seek the prosperity of the cities that they were in. This call is as relevant to us today as it was then.

We are meant to mimic the life and priorities of Jesus through holy and ethical living but our ethics must be a response to our own experiences with Jesus rather than weapons we fashion out of rules that never actually touch our own hearts.