Inquiring of the Lord

February 7 – Today’s Readings – Exodus 31-33 and Psalms 37

Don’t you love the account of “the tent of meeting”, where Moses would go to meet with God and the people would come wanting to “inquire of the Lord”? It is wonder that Moses’ young aid, Joshua would then remain in the tent – presumably because he had become “addicted” to the presence of the Lord and couldn’t get enough of it. It’s this kind of hunger and love for the Father that the Holy Spirit has now given to us all. God has placed this thirst in us by His Spirit so that we too yearn to constantly be at the tent of meeting – constantly having an ear open to God and listening for His instructions in every situation.

We really can’t move on from here without taking some time to reflect upon the infamous “calf” situation. What struck me when reading the account this time around was that the people did have a desire for the “spiritual”. Their religious efforts were misguided however and if you look at the outcome of this particular religious ceremony it was not unlike one that you might see on the National Geographic Channel where some tribe, somewhere, is being observed. The combination of a god bless + alcohol + wild lewd dancing + frenzied “out of control” behavior is fairly common even in today’s religions (or culture as some would call it). I recently viewed two videos depicting this very thing, one about Haitian voodoo and the other about Pseudo-Catholicism in the Andes.

Inevitably we need to ask the question “do we have any golden calves in our society today”? I think the answer is fairly obvious – just have a look at what is worshiped and you will find your answer. You and I must seek to never get caught up in the same insanity that the world runs after. Do you remember the last time the Edmonton Oilers made a run for the Stanley Cup? (Most of my readers weren’t even born yet!) The normally quiet city of Edmonton was a madhouse of idol worship. What about when all the transient workers came seeking their fortunes in Fort McMurray during the boom years – making $12,000 or more per month and spending most of their money on cocaine and other substances they snorted up their noses.

One last thought – although there is a lot more we could talk about – when Moses got close to God, he requested to see “His glory”. God’s response was very interesting. He said, “I will proclaim my name, The Lord, in your presence.” I find this as true today as it was then – hidden within the names of God we find the glory of God. Remember when we did a brief review of the Lord’s Prayer and stopped to focus a bit on some of the names of God? This is what I’m talking about – the names of God reveal the glorious attributes of the Father. Within His name we find the answers to all the questions and desires of the human heart. Please continue to show us your Glory Lord!

Questions:

1. Comment on how you experience the “Tent of Meeting” in your life.

2. Comment on other “Golden Calves” in our world.

3. Discuss other aspects of the “Glory of God”.