The Louder Song: Listening for Hope in the Midst of Pain, Anxiety, Grief, Doubt, and LamentSample

One day, my husband and I took our three boys to an amusement park. For a few moments, one of our sons became separated from us. When we backtracked to find him, the poor, precious kid was standing in the middle of the pathway, sobbing, scared, and wondering if mommy and daddy were coming to rescue him. 

We ran towards him as fast as our legs would carry us, and scooped him in our arms, speaking words of love and comfort over him. We’ve never lost him again. 

Many of us have felt like my son—we’re standing in our path, alone, anxious, afraid, and abandoned, wondering when God will ever step into scoop us up in His arms. 

In today’s reading, we’re back in the life of Moses, because it’s important for us to look at the way God introduces Himself to Moses the first time they met. 

God says, I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and God of Jacob.

Think about this: Most gods in the ancient world were identified as gods of elements or emotions (the god of the sun, the goddess of love, etc.). But the God of the Bible stands out. Though He certainly is the God of Creation and the God of Love, when Yahweh introduces Himself for the first time to Moses (before He even refers to Himself as the I AM), God introduces Himself as the God of His people. 

This is the name by which He’ll be remembered throughout the generations—the God of Jacob, God of Isaac, God of Abraham, the God of Moses. 

In other words, God was saying to Moses—and is saying to you today—son, daughter, I am yours. 

God is about to call Moses to do some really hard things—stand up against pure embodied evil, rescue his people. But God first takes the time to remind Moses of who he is; to remind him that he is not alone.

In our hardship, when God calls us into difficult things, we can stand firm knowing that we aren’t alone. In Jesus, we have been adopted into God’s family. Therefore, we have access to God’s Spirit, God’s intimacy, God’s presence, and God’s power. 

In other words, God, the perfect parent, is reaching down into your pain, scooping you up into His arms, and lavishing His love on you. May you sense His perfect love with you today.