And He said, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Exodus 33:14
Moses certainly had an event-filled life. Starting out with his birth during a time when babies like him were ordered by the government to be killed. He was saved from death as an infant by God-fearing parents (as well as a God-fearing midwife!) but could not remain with his family, so he was set afloat in a little boat only to be found and adopted into the royal Egyptian family as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.
Nursed by his mother and taught the ways of his people, the children of Israel, he grew up to be a Hebrew living in the Egyptian palace! Eventually, he trades the delicacies of royalty for the back side of a desert. It is here that he has his first encounter with the Lord. That’s when he comes face to face, if you will, with the burning bush.
No doubt, up to this point, Moses had experienced very little rest for his soul. All the while he lived as a part of Pharaoh’s family, he saw the injustice being done to God’s people; his people, yet there was nothing he could do to alleviate their suffering. Then, when he had endured forty years of Egyptian life, he finally does stand up for his people and kills an Egyptian, he flees for his very life to the wilderness. It is here that the Lord meets with him and gives him his life’s work. He has spent forty years in the wilderness so now he is eighty years old. Now that he has met with the Lord and has his mission in life, you would hope he finally finds a little rest, but that’s not to be.
There are confrontations with Pharaoh over the release of God’s people from slavery and Pharaoh’s constant refusal to bend to the will of God until the final plague. Then, there is the exodus from Egypt of over two million Israelites including the women and children along with all of the animals and possessions they brought. There was very little preparation time for this journey. Add to that (as if that isn’t already more than enough trouble for one person to endure) the fact that the people Moses is helping are constantly causing him trouble; complaining and accusing him and just generally being difficult. This would go on for the remaining forty years of his life.
Hopefully, after that brief reminder of the trouble that filled Moses’ life, literally from birth to death, you can see the significance of our verse for today. What if you could live in a world that is full of turmoil and trouble and still find a place to rest? That is exactly what you have in your relationship with the Lord.
This world never provided Moses even a moment’s peace and rest, yet he had the presence of God with him continually through all of the trials of life. No matter what you face in this life, the Lord has promised to never leave you nor forsake you. Like Moses, you always have available to you a place of rest — the presence of God.
You may not be spared the storms of life, for this life has no peace or rest to offer, but you can find peace and rest in the midst of every storm. And remember, you are never alone in your storm, for the Lord is always with you and He has promised, “I will give you rest.”
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