Saturday, December 3: Scripture – Exodus 33:17-23, New Living Translation
17 The Lord replied to Moses, “I will indeed do what you have asked, for I look favorably on you, and I know you by name.”
18 Moses responded, “Then show me your glorious presence.”
19 The Lord replied, “I will make all my goodness pass before you, and I will call out my name, Yahweh,[a] before you. For I will show mercy to anyone I choose, and I will show compassion to anyone I choose.
20 But you may not look directly at my face, for no one may see me and live.”
21 The Lord continued, “Look, stand near me on this rock.
22 As my glorious presence passes by, I will hide you in the crevice of the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by.
23 Then I will remove my hand and let you see me from behind. But my face will not be seen.”
As a Youth Director & past camp person, I have many ways of grabbing the attention of young people, and I’ve learned one of the best ways is to say a phrase and have them respond with a phrase. My favorite is, “God is good!” “All the time.” “All the time!” “God is good.” Knowing that God is good is such a vital part of what it means to be a Christian. In Exodus 33:18, Moses is praying to see God’s glory and God’s response is: I will make all my goodness pass before you. When I think of glory, I seldom think of goodness. I think of glory as being in awe or wonder, but when Moses asked God to “show me your glorious presence” – God didn’t show power or wrath against sin but showed goodness. In the promise to show Moses the glory of God, God also shows us that we must first understand the goodness of God. Let us remember to slow down and look for God’s glory and goodness in this busy holiday season.
Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for your glory among us. May we be in awe of your goodness and seek to find your glory in the everyday. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Kaiti Bryant