Time! How much are you willing to give? (Exodus 32)
I know that this post is a bit long for some but I find it interesting that it speaks about our time and the importance of giving God our time. I encourage you to not dismiss it because it might be lengthy but to look at it as giving God a little bit more of your time today, my hope is that God will stir in your heart and you will be blessed for it.
In your life I want you to think about your closest and strongest friendship. Take a moment. Do you have that person in mind? How did that relationship get to the place where it can claim the title as closest relationship? Time spent with that person!!! Without spending time with others talking, and learning and sharing we would never be able to have deep meaningful relationships with others. We would never know much about the other person and likewise they wouldn't know much about us. Time also shows us how that person is there for us, to encourage us, help us, love us. If we didn't spend quality time with others we wouldn't have true relationships with purpose and impact. Now let me ask you, what level of relationship do you have with the Lord? I can tell you this, the amount of time you spend with the Lord each day will determine how deep or how shallow your relationship with Him is. The more time you spend reading your bible, studying God's word, praying, seeking and trusting God will deepen and strengthen your relationship with Him. The more we do these things the more we grow with and in God. The benefit to us is that when we have a deep, close personal relationship with God we are better equipped to handle the uncertainty of life, the pressures of this world, and we are better able to be there for others who need strength, guidance and prayers.
In Exodus 32 I see three levels of relationship with God and the impact it has on how those people face the uncertainty of life. The Israelite people had distanced themselves from God (Ex. 19-20). They did not feel as if they needed to nor did they want to draw near to God. Their relationship was really not a relationship as they spent little time drawing near to God. Aaron had a bit of a relationship with God. God had spoken to him (Ex. 4:27) and worked through him during the plagues of Egypt.
Aaron spent a lot of time with Moses learning about what God said but his relationship was not on the same personal level. He did not have the same investment of his time with God and his relationship didn't deepen the way it could have, It was a bit a shallow.
Moses spent the most time with God, from the burning bush, throughout the plagues, parting the Red Sea and now (for several chapters) he is not just spending time with God but he is completely enveloped in the presence of the Lord. He has a deep understanding of who his God is, how his God works, what his God is capable of, and the love his God displays.
When we read Exodus 32 we see how these different levels of relationship respond to uncertainty or struggles in life. For the Israelite people with little to no relationship they saw Moses trip to the mountain as a loss and they were unable to trust in a God who they didn't really know. They desired instead to take matters into their own hands and to head out with gods of their own design to guide, comfort, and bring them joy. It didn't end so well for them despite their attempts.
Aaron who's relationship was a bit more evident but still somewhat shallow, didn't fare much better. Rather than lean on what he had learned and experienced he was influenced by the voices of the world around him. He could have guided the people away from their sinful thoughts and desires and refocused them on the Lord but he didn't. He went along with the crowd and abandoned what little faith his shallow relationship had developed.
Then there is Moses. We find him in this story in the presence of God. He is deepening his relationship with his God when he learns of the sinful actions of those at the base of the mountain. He doesn't flee God immediately to go down and point a condemning finger and to ridicule the people and his brother for their lack of faith, their lack of relationship. He stays and talks to the God he has gotten close to. He prays for them and then he goes to them and confronts the sin and consequences and then he prays some more. Why? Because he knows his God. He has experienced Him and desires for God to give the people a chance to learn, to know and to experience the God he is so familiar with.
Do you see it? Do you see the benefit of spending time with the Lord and developing a deep and present relationship with Him? We all live a life with uncertainty, times of struggle, with voices of opposition, with opportunity to do it our way or God's way. How we choose to face those moments and the outcome to be had is dependent upon our relationship with God. The more time we spend in His presence the more we will see Him present when life just doesn't seem to be what we had thought. We talk all the time about how important it is for us to be reading God's word every day and praying, but not as a task that we check off our to do list. God doesn't want to be merely head knowledge but heart knowledge which means we experience Him and know Him deeply and intimately.
Read Exodus 32 again from a relationship perspective and based on the time you give the Lord each day which one does your relationship most resemble? Your answer will help you to see what direction your actions are headed towards based on your relationship. This is a visual for us, a window to look through and to see why we need to make our relationship with the Lord the most important thing. We need to be enveloped, like Moses, in the presence, grace and love of our God so that we can grow deeper and deeper in our relationship with Him.
Let us make a commitment to ourselves and others to give God more and more of our time, our hearts, and to continually desire to grow deeper in knowing God more each and every day. It is an investment in our lives as well as the lives of others. Give God your time and what you will receive in return will be priceless.
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