Show Me Your Glory

 Have you ever been on the outside of a critical conversation? Maybe it happened when you were just a kid, and you wanted to overhear what your parents were discussing. Perhaps it was on your job that you wished you could hear what management was talking about.  That happened to the Israelites. Moses went to meet with God at the tent of meeting where he could talk things over with God. As Moses left, the Israelites stood by their tents and watched to see what would happen. They eagerly watched God’s glory come down in a pillar of cloud. As soon as they saw that, they knew their mediator was meeting with God.

Moses was a great intercessor and a model of what Christ is for us to the Father. Moses interceded for the lives of his people after they sinned by making the golden calf, which they worshiped. How insane was that? Nevertheless, Moses prayed that God would not abandon his people and his purpose for them. They were distinguished by God’s presence, and if they lost that, they would lose everything (Exodus 33:16). The same goes for us. God answered and gave Israel his presence because of Moses.

Moses loved God and wanted to see more of his glory. He said, “Now show me your glory” (Exodus 33:18). It was an audacious request, but Moses had already seen some of God’s glory.

He caught his first glimpse at the burning bush and another glance with the seventy elders who saw God. Moses was covered with glory when he came down from the mountaintop. He saw God’s glory yet again at the tent of meeting, where the pillar of cloud descended from Heaven. However, Moses wanted more.  Surprisingly, God said yes! The Lord said, “There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.” Ex 33:21-23).

God’s goodness would pass by, but it would be just a glimpse. If Moses were to see a complete revelation of God, it would be so overwhelming that it would destroy him. Moses, like us, was finite, and God is infinite. God was willing to show as much of himself as Moses could bear.

Recently, we had a power failure that blew out most of the electrical power in the building and set the fire alarm off. I figured out that it was a squirrel that set things off. When I went outside and saw the dead squirrel, I called the Power Company, and the power was restored a couple of hours later. I thought about that squirrel jumping around on that pole with all that power under its feet. I often see them up there. They have no idea how close to death they are at any second. It was this way for Moses—this would be too much power unless he was shielded.

Moses was not allowed to look God in the face but only to see, as it were, a fleeting glimpse of God’s glory. Two things come to mind: Moses’s desire to see more of God’s glory and God’s willingness to show him. I hope we can experience some of what Moses experienced and see more of God’s glory.

The Cat And The Bedpost

 One of the greatest challenges Christians face today is keeping their relationship with the Lord Jesus fresh. With the pressures of family, work, and culture, it is easy to allow our relationship to grow stale.

The following story illustrates how the meaning and power of prayer can slowly be lost if we do not maintain a vital and close relationship with the one to whom we are praying. It also illustrates how prayer can become meaningless if we do not seriously believe that prayer is a spiritual weapon and that we are to pray in all kinds of ways on all occasions. George Wood used to tell this story, which sheds some light on the subject.

David Watermulder, a devout Christian with a cat, spent several minutes each day in his bedroom praying and meditating. He read a portion of scripture and a devotional book, followed by a period of silent meditation and prayer. As time went on, his prayers became more prolonged and more intense.

He came to cherish this quiet time in his bedroom, but his cat liked it too. She would cozy up to him, purring loudly, and rub her furry body against him. This interrupted the man’s prayer time, so he put a collar around the cat’s neck and tied her to the bedpost whenever he wanted to be undisturbed while at prayer. This didn’t upset the cat, allowing the man to pray without interruption.

Over the years, the daughter of this devout Christian had noted how much his devotional time had meant to him. When she began establishing some routines and patterns with her family, she decided to do as her father did. Dutifully, she tied her cat to the bedpost and then proceeded to her devotions. But time moved faster in her generation, and she couldn’t spend as much time in prayer as her father did.

The day came when her son grew up, and he wanted to ensure that he preserved some of the family traditions that had meant so much to his mother and grandfather. But the pace of life had quickened all the more, and there was no time for meditation, bible reading, and prayer. However, to carry on with the religious tradition, he tied the family cat to the bedpost daily while dressing.