Don't Build Idols in The Waiting

Don't Build Idols in the Waiting! That's what I walked away with after reading Exodus 31 and 32 this morning.

   How quickly we forget. In chapter 31, God is still speaking. He's giving Moses instructions. He's declaring that he will bless people with the gifts and abilities to do the work that God has called them to do. And that's exciting, knowing he still does that today. He equips us for what he has called us to.

   And then chapter 32 happens. Moses has been gone 40 days. And the people say, We don't know what happened. Where has that guy Moses gone. They play dumb. How quickly they forg0t the Red Sea, the plagues, the manna, the fire by night.

   How quickly we forget what God just did when we can't see what He's doing right now.

And that's where things shift. They didn't wake up one morning deciding to rebel. They just got uncomfortable and impatient. The waiting stretches out. The mountain is quiet and their leader is gone. So they do what we all tend to do when we feel uncertain....

    They build something. Don't we do that? We get anxious so we find something to keep us busy. They melt down their gold and form a calf. Something visible, something immediate, something they can point to and say, At least we have this.

     And I wish I could say I don't understand that. But I do. Because I've been in seasons where God felt quiet. Where I thought something would've and should've happened by now. Where I started wondering if I heard Him wrong. And that's usually when I get busy.

Not always sinful busy, just anxious busy. I start making plans and pushing doors. Forcing outcomes. Trying to create something that feels like progress.

     Oh How quickly we forget. We forget that the same God who moved before is still moving now. We forget that silence doesn't mean he's absent. We forget that waiting isn't wasted time. God was still on the mountain. He was still speaking. They just couldn't hear him at the moment. Their impatience didn’t mean He had stopped. But it did reveal what there trust was in.

    Don't build idols in the waiting.

Idols aren't always golden statues. Sometimes they're rushed decisions. Sometimes they're control. Sometimes they're things we build just to calm our fear. The waiting exposes us. It shows whether we trust what we last saw God do or whether we need constant reassurance to believe He's still good.

     These last 2 weeks have been crazy for us personally. And there were moments where God was quiet and I started to feel a little shakey. But I had to remind myself over and over again that God was working behind the scenes and that he would make a way like he has time and time again. And he did!

    So if you're in a quiet season right now, and it feels longer than you expected, don't forget, Remember what He's already done. Remember who he has always been. Remember that just because you can't see movement doesn't mean He isn't working.

How quickly we forget.

But we don't have to.

And we don't have to build something shiny just because the mountain feels quiet. Don't build Idols in the waiting, Trust God!

Love Pastor Mandy 

Ark of Hope Ministry 

Daily reading Exodus 31-32