Exodus 18:8–11: “And Moses told his father-in-law all that the LORD had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had come upon them on the way, and how the LORD had delivered them. Then Jethro rejoiced for all the good which the LORD had done for Israel, whom He had delivered out of the hand of the Egyptians. And Jethro said, ‘Blessed be the LORD, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh, and who has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. Now I know that the LORD is greater than all the gods; for in the very thing in which they behaved proudly, He was above them.'”
November 22nd, 2022 by Pastor Ed in devotionalWe have here the account of Moses sharing with his father-in-law all that God had done to rescue them from Egypt. It is not an easy thing to share God with your family since they usually know you better than anyone else. Not only did Moses witness to his father-in-law about all that God had done, he had also shared about God through the names of his sons. He named his first son Gershom, meaning, “I was a stranger in a foreign land.” Moses knew he did not belong in Egypt and that it was not to be his permanent home. He named his second son Eliezer, meaning, “the God of my father is my helper, who rescued me from Pharaoh.”
Jethro rejoiced when he heard and saw what God had done for Moses, his daughter, and his grandchildren, which led him to a new knowledge of just who this God of the Hebrews was. That’s exactly what is supposed to happen when we share with our family, those we love and are closest too, who God is and what He has done in our lives. Often, however, it does not go quite as well as it did with Moses and Jethro. How we need more of God’s grace to just keep going back to those family members and sharing God’s love with them until they come to salvation.
“LORD, we especially lift up our extended family members who do not know You today. Give us opportunity, clear words, and courage to share with them once again what an awesome God You have been and are.”