Exodus 32,:15-34

The commandments of God to the Israelites are not a religious incantation to be repeated now and again to get eternal life.  Nor are they a set of Hebrew rules relevant only to ancient times.  Rather they are a set of core values that reflect our Creator’s directions for a long and abundant life. Moses received the key ten commandments from the Lord on Mt. Sinai. When he descended from his retreat with the Lord, ready and willing to teach his people to live into a true and lasting relationship with God and with each other, he discovered that in his absence, and in their impatience, the Israelites had been sucked into serious sin of all kinds. Moses responded with fury. The stone tablets that had been written so painstakingly on the mountain crashed to the ground. Then he boldly melted and ground into powder the golden calf of the people’s craftiness and forced them to drink this vestige of their rebellion. Finally he shouted for everyone on the Lord’s side to gather around him, separating those who recognized the purity and richness of God’s ways from those who preferred the profanities of sin. Am I willing, like Moses, to boldly receive, proclaim and defend the commandments of the Lord? Lord God, help me to proclaim your commandments.   


The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.  (Psalm 19:7 )


An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered.
G.K. Chesterton
                                                                                                                
www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca   Soli gloriam dei.

Sirach 44:1-15

It is not so much piety as it is humility that makes a person godly, that is, able to be aligned with the nature of God. In this way, by being godly, we can live into the inheritance we have as beloved sons and daughters of the Creator.  Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility, and self-control – these are the characteristics of a ‘godly’ person.  Am I willing, no matter what it takes, to be shaped by the Master Artist, our Creator, to become a godly person, in the image and likeness of God?  Holy Spirit of God, shape me to be a godly person.


To be near God is my happiness, to place my hope in God the Lord.  (Psalm 72)


Why should we defend ourselves when we are misunderstood and misjudged? Let us leave that aside.  Let us not say anything. O blessed silence, which gives so much peace to the soul! 
St. Therese of Lisieux 
                                                                                                                
www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca   Soli gloriam dei.
 

Exodus 11:10 – 12:14
Lord God, help me mindfully prepare for today’s journey …
It was a huge undertaking, the removal of thousands of Hebrews -men, women and children - from the oppression of the Egyptians.  Not least of all challenges was the coordinating of preparations so that everyone could leave without notice under the cover of night.  But the Israelites were prepared. Moses’ and Aaron’s witness, manifested by nine phenomenal plagues and their powerful call to trust in God, made the Israelites realize that it was now or never – and that it would be wise to decisively follow the Lord’s notice of preparation for the journey.  What works of God have I witnessed that have taught me to pay attention?  What wise preparations, for what journey, am I being called to make – today? Lord God, help me mindfully prepare for today’s journey. 


I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.  (Psalm 116)


Take care of your body as if you were going to live forever, and take care of your soul as if you were going to die tomorrow.
St. Augustine of Hippo  
                                                                                                                
www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca   Soli gloriam dei.

Exodus 14:5-18

Like the Israelites who looked back and saw Pharoah’s army pursing them, I so often focus on troubles rather than the mercy of God.  Thinking that now, in this or that crisis, it’s all up to me to save myself, I too, like the Hebrews complain and say that I prefer slavery to the freedom God is preparing for me through the challenges at hand. God’s remedy for this trembling over troubles?  “You have only to keep still and move forward, and ask the Lord to fight for you…”  As I lean into God’s mercy, like the Israelites I am (constantly) astounded by the silent goodness, protection and life-giving glory of God. What troubles am I worried about?  To what stillness and to what steps forward am I being called? Lord God, help me keep still and go forward as I trust in your mercy. 


I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.  (Psalm 116)


Truth suffers, but never dies
St. Teresa of Avila  
                                                                                                                
www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca   Soli gloriam dei.

Exodus 3:1-20
 
With the first Covenant, God had promised Abraham, Isaac and Jacob something beyond mere freedom. He continued that conversation with Moses when he appeared to him in the burning bush. The Lord had promised the Israelites relationship with the great I AM. He was reminded that it was holy (whole-ly) relationship with God that is the over-arching outcome of obedience (alignment) to Creator God. In this way, the great sign of God’s presence with Moses, which would give him the power to free the Israelites from their Egyptian oppressors, would not be the wonders of the plagues, but the restoration of the Israelites’ love of God. When Moses’ act of obedience (the Exodus) to Father God was complete, the Israelites would worship God in Moses’ presence on Mt Horeb, the very mountain where God started the whole Exodus of the Hebrews by appearing to Moses in a burning bush.  Am I willing to trust, and live into, the whole relationship of love with God that I am being called to, no matter what hurdles I have to overcome? Holy Spirit of God, help me trust the outcome of obedience to you.


Let the oppressed see the salvation of God and be glad; you who seek God, let your hearts revive.   (Psalm 69)


It is the Lord who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the Pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy.
David, son of Jesse. Psalm 103  
                                                                                                                
www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca  
Soli gloriam dei.