Today’s Reading: Psalm 90
Lord, through all the generations you have been our home! – Psalm 90:1
Consider the man of God who first prayed these words. Moses, who was taken from his home and hidden in a basket (Exodus 2:3), called God “home”. A few years later, he was taken from the arms of his mother once more to live in the palace and become the son of Pharaoh’s daughter (Exodus 2:10). As a young adult, Moses stood up for the mistreatment of his people, after which Pharaoh tried to kill him. So once more Moses left the home he knew and fled to the land of Midian. God gave him a wife and two sons, and the Midianites became his family.
GOD GAVE MOSES A FAMILY OF HIS OWN — A PLACE TO CALL HOME.
But one day God called Moses back “home”. He had seen the affliction of His people and He chose to use Moses to rescue the Israelites from the bondage they were experiencing. He had heard the cries of His children, including Moses. He knew the heart of the man who did not have the consistent security of “home” and promised to go with him as he stepped into God’s story (Exodus 4:12).
Moses was not the perfect leader. He experienced doubt, lacked self-confidence, and battled fear, even to the point where it affected his speech. But God knew Moses’ struggles and chose him anyhow. The God of the Universe displayed His strength, showed His power, and exhibited His omnipresence to Moses as He called him to leadership.
MOSES FELT ILL-EQUIPPED FOR WHAT GOD WAS ASKING HIM TO DO.
But Moses pleaded with the Lord, “O Lord, I’m not very good with words. I never have been, and I’m not now, even though you have spoken to me. I get tongue-tied, and my words get tangled.”
Then the Lord asked Moses, “Who makes a person’s mouth? Who decides whether people speak or do not speak, hear or do not hear, see or do not see? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go! I will be with you as you speak, and I will instruct you in what to say.” – Exodus 4:9-12
This orphan came to realize that God had been the consistent presence in his life, and that God would equip him for the task before him. He found his “home” in his God, as he penned these words:
Before the mountains were born,
before you gave birth to the earth and the world,
from beginning to end, you are God.
You turn people back to dust, saying,
“Return to dust, you mortals!”
For you, a thousand years are as a passing day,
as brief as a few night hours.
You sweep people away like dreams that disappear.
They are like grass that springs up in the morning.
In the morning it blooms and flourishes,
but by evening it is dry and withered. – Psalm 90:2-6
As Moses looked back over his life, he recognized the holiness of our God and compared it to the sinfulness of humanity. He saw the grace of a God who allows us a short time on earth before He takes us “home”.
We wither beneath your anger;
we are overwhelmed by your fury.
You spread out our sins before you—
our secret sins—and you see them all.
We live our lives beneath your wrath,
ending our years with a groan.
Seventy years are given to us!
Some even live to eighty.
But even the best years are filled with pain and trouble;
soon they disappear, and we fly away.
Who can comprehend the power of your anger?
Your wrath is as awesome as the fear you deserve.
Teach us to realize the brevity of life,
so that we may grow in wisdom. – Psalm 90:7-12
THIS WORLD IS NOT OUR ETERNAL HOME.
Let’s make this prayer of Moses our own. Let’s soak in the satisfaction we can only find in our God, and let’s rest in the purpose that can only be found in the eyes of our Creator. May each of us experience the approval of God, and may He make our efforts successful as we respond in obedience to the call He has placed on our lives.
Satisfy us each morning with your unfailing love,
so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives.
Give us gladness in proportion to our former misery!
Replace the evil years with good.
Let us, your servants, see you work again;
let our children see your glory.
And may the Lord our God show us his approval
and make our efforts successful.
Yes, make our efforts successful! – Psalm 90:14-17