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The Lord Hears In February, Ryan Osmun went for a hike at Zion National Park in Utah. While freeing a fellow hiker trapped in quicksand, Ryan’s own leg became stuck. It took twelve hours before park rangers could get to the scene and rescue him. In yesterday’s passage, Psalms 38–39, David described in vivid detail a difficult situation he...

The Birth of Hope Poet Emily Dickinson compared hope to a bird:  “Hope is the thing with feathers  That perches in the soul,  And sings the tune without the words,  And never stops at all,  And sweetest in the gale is heard;  And sore must be the storm  That could abash the little bird  That kept so many warm.”  Even in the midst of great...

Reluctant Obedience The words of the well-known spiritual, “Go Down, Moses,” describe the emotional anguish of the Israelites as they waited for deliverance: “When Israel was in Egypt’s land, Let my people go, Oppressed so hard they could not stand, Let my people go. Go down, Moses, way down in Egypt’s land, Tell old Pharaoh: Let my people...

Provision and Victory Have you ever been curious about the “manna” God provided the Israelites? What was it? What did it taste like? Many scholars have tried to give a natural explanation to this miraculous food. Was it algae that grew in the desert when there was dew? Was it the bark, twigs, leaves, or sap of tamarisk bushes or another plant?

Leadership Wisdom When a group of children were asked to draw a picture of a leader, their portraits were insightful. Emma, age 3, drew her teacher, Ms. Noreen, because “she teaches me.” Jack, age 6, drew a picture of himself leading a pack of turtles to safety. He said, “A leader is someone who makes sure that a place is safe.” We learn...

Making the Covenant What did God mean when He told the Israelites, “You are a holy nation”? Certainly, they had not been behaving like priests! Scholar Gordon J. Wenham notes that today’s verse effectively sums up the overarching promise of Exodus. “A collection of holy individuals makes a holy nation, which can serve as mediator between...

Personal Responsibility The State of the Bible 2018 report, commissioned by the American Bible Society and conducted by Barna Research, found that Americans could be divided into five categories: (1) Bible Centered daily readers (9%), (2) Bible Engaged weekly readers (17%), (3) Bible Friendly (15%); and (4) Bible Neutral (5%). The fifth category,...

Social Responsibility Musician and author Michael Card recently released both a book and an album on hesed, the Hebrew word for the Lord’s covenant faithfulness and love. As he wrote in the book: “Hesed is a defining characteristic of God. It is linked to his compassion and graciousness. It is expressed in his willingness to forgive wrongdoing...

Breaking the Covenant After Gideon’s victory over the Midianites, the Israelites asked him to become their king, but he refused, saying, “The Lord will rule over you.” He did, though, ask them to give him a share of the plunder. He turned the gold into an “ephod”—although it’s uncertain exactly what that was in this case, it was obviously...

It Is Finished! Philip Graham Ryken, the president of Wheaton College, wrote: “Art for God’s sake—this is what the tabernacle was all about. Every detail in that sacred building was for the praise of God’s glory. The altar and the atonement cover (also known as the mercy seat) testified to his grace. The table of the showbread proclaimed...