DAY 1: Faith

Where is God when there is trouble?

Then the Lord said, "I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt…. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them..."


Often when we think of God we think of clouds in heaven in some far off, unreachable place. Indeed, it is easy to think that God is distant and far away when we think of all of the hunger, poverty, and terrible things that exist in the world. It is easy to wonder where a God of love is in the middle of all this.

The text from Exodus reminds us that God does not just stay off in some far off heaven. God hears the cries of his people who were slaves in Egypt and it stirs God to action. It says that God has "come down" to meet with Moses and to rescue God's people.

The Bible gives witness over and over again to how God hears the cry of people in suffering and comes down to be with them. As Christians, we believe that God has come down most dramatically in the person of Jesus Christ to rescue all people from the slavery of sin. Through the eyes of God's grace and love then, we, like Moses, discover a God who is here and listening to the cries of suffering people, and wanting us to do the same.


How can I be an instrument of God's grace to someone who is suffering?


Prayer:
Loving God, thank you for hearing our cries and being with us where we are. Amen


Action step:
Ask your pastor or youth minister for the name of someone in your congregation that could use a visit. Take time to listen, talk, and pray with them.

contributed by Pastor Erik and Desta Goehner