Mom to MomSýnishorn

Courage in Action

One of the greatest race car drivers of all time is the famed Mario Andretti. The only driver to ever win the Daytona 500, Indianapolis 500, and the Formula One World Championship; he is a legend in his own time.

In an interview with Sports History Magazine, the champ was asked to explain what makes a talented race car driver, with the interviewer asking, "Is it fearlessness, reaction, judgment, strategy?”

Andretti’s Answer

‌“All of the above, plus burning desire and confidence. I say burning desire because of the risk involved. If you want something so badly, you have a burning desire to do it, then you aren’t distracted by fear or risk or anything else.”

When we consider what it takes to become a bold and kingdom-changing mom, we might wonder if it’s fearlessness, reaction, judgment, strategy?

In Jochebed’s life, she demonstrates all of these things - but surely, at the heart of it all was also a burning desire and confident faith undistracted by fear or risk -or anything else.

READ

Exodus 2:3–4 NLT

But when she could no longer hide him, she got a basket made of papyrus reeds and waterproofed it with tar and pitch. She put the baby in the basket and laid it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile River. The baby’s sister then stood at a distance, watching to see what would happen to him.

It would be ridiculous to believe that Jochebed had no fears about putting her infant into a crocodile-infested river in nothing more than a little straw basket.

Yet she did not let herself get distracted by that fear. She clearly had a plan that, in hindsight, we can see must have been guided by God. She could not have known exactly how the plan would unfold, but she was ready to act when she saw God move.

But she had to move first. God was giving her the chance to take a courageous step of faith.‌​

Exodus 2:4–9 NLT

The baby’s sister then stood at a distance, watching to see what would happen to him. Soon Pharaoh’s daughter came down to bathe in the river, and her attendants walked along the riverbank. When the princess saw the basket among the reeds, she sent her maid to get it for her. When the princess opened it, she saw the baby. The little boy was crying, and she felt sorry for him. “This must be one of the Hebrew children,” she said.

Then the baby’s sister approached the princess. “Should I go and find one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?” she asked. “Yes, do!” the princess replied. So the girl went and called the baby’s mother. “Take this baby and nurse him for me,” the princess told the baby’s mother. “I will pay you for your help.” So the woman took her baby home and nursed him.

‌‌No amount of planning on Jochebed's part made those incredible circumstances occur. God was at work! She let her child go, trusted God, and took precautions as she could - but wow! God was the One who orchestrated putting Moses right back into her arms.

REFLECT

‌Consider this statement:

There is a time to pray and a time to act, and there is a time to act and a time to pray.

• ‌How do you see both of these dynamics in Jochebed's and Miriam’s lives?
• Why is waiting for God to guide, lead, or respond so difficult?
• How is courage needed to wait?
• In what circumstance are you waiting right now?‌
• When is a time when you have waited and prayed and felt God moving you to act?