Most people have heard of Moses.  The baby that was hidden in the basket.  The guy who split the Red Sea with his walking staff.  The man who brought the Ten Commandments down to the Israelites.  Moses' life and story are displayed throughout Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy!  All of these amazing life experiences can make us forget just who Moses started off as - hidden, lost, a murderer, on the run, uncertain.

Let's back up a bit...  Sometimes, I think we can focus on all of the excitement of the escape from Egypt with everything leading up to and after it and neglect who Moses actually was and what that tells us about who God is.  Moses was given a few big second chances.  The first one was when his mum and sister hid him in the river (Exodus 2:3).  Along came Pharaoh's daughter and Moses was not only saved from death but escalated to live in the palace as a prince.  I wonder if he thought about why he might have been saved and not another baby boy.

Fast forward to an adult Moses who murdered an Egyptian who had beat an Israelite slave. He was caught and fled to avoid his own death as punishment for what he had done.  He had another second chance to start afresh.  He lived in Midian and married a priest's daughter. They had a son and Moses named him Gershom which is the Hebrew word for 'foreigner'.  The fact that Moses named his first child after the way he feels is very telling; despite making a new life for himself, getting married and starting a family, he still felt like he didn't belong.

A little bit further on in the life of Moses we see him out tending his father-in-law's sheep. Maybe he was just sighing with boredom that day when he saw a bush on fire, but it wasn't burning up.  Upon further investigation of this strange sight, God calls Moses' name!  Things have just got a bit more interesting for this lost and on the run man.  God tells Moses he is sending him to Pharaoh to bring the Israelites out of Egypt.  I imagine that Moses was shocked that God was talking to him and even more confused about why God had chosen him for this important mission.  So, Moses begins to give some excuses... I'm sure we've all been there, we don't want to face someone or somewhere that we've run away from.  Maybe a friend we've argued with or a place where we remember feeling let down or disappointed.  So, it is understandable that Moses didn't want to go back and face either the Egyptians (after killing one of them) or the Israelites (after abandoning them).  But to every excuse Moses makes, God gives him a promise.  Maybe we could take these promises, as our own, from God too.
 
Promise 1:  God would be with Moses - He will get rid of any uncertainty Moses has about this journey.  God will equip Moses with his presence.  This is God's promise to us too.  The phrase, '...do not be afraid' is written 365 times throughout the Bible and it is often accompanied by the phrase, '...for I am with you'.  That is a reminder for every day of the year that God will never leave us.
 
Promise 2:  God would give Moses help - He doesn't expect Moses to take on this huge task alone.  God gives Moses his brother, Aaron to go with him.  Moses doubts himself and his ability as a speaker, which would be important when speaking with the Israelites and to the Egyptians, so God gives him Aaron, a talented speaker to go with him.  This is God's promise to us too.  He will never ask us to do something and not equip us.  It might be in the form of a person or something else, but when God asks us to do something or go somewhere, we can be sure He will help us every step of the way.
 
I'd recommend flicking through Exodus to Deuteronomy and just seeing how many important commands, information and knowledge God trusted Moses with, even after his rocky start to life.  God is in the business of second chances, we can see that with Moses and so many other people in the Bible.  Maybe you can see that in your own life, or maybe someday you will.  God reminds us through Moses that He will always be with us and will always help us.  I hope you find comfort in that today, wherever you are.


Words from one of my favourite Rend Collective songs are a perfect reminder of God's promises to us, they are: '...countless second chances we've been given at the Cross...'