The Cloud With No Voice

“When Moses went up on the mountain,

a cloud covered it.”

Exodous 24:15

I wonder what was going through Moses’ mind as he climbed Mount Sinai.

A sea of people below……..

people he had led into the desert.

“Follow me,” he had told them.

And now they were free from slavery but still very much afraid.

And hungry.

And tired.

And confused.

The desert?

You led us into the desert?

I’m sure Moses laid awake in his tent many nights wondering what in the world the next day would hold…………

as he heard the sounds of people all around him  –

sleeping, whispering, crying.

He was the reason they had been moved

from slavery to the desert.

Breaking free is never easy.

And there’s nothing easy about the wilderness.

God now called Moses to climb a mountain……alone,

leaving all the men and women and children down below.

Trust is rarely learned while leaning on someone, and I’m wondering if this was also part of God’s master plan.

This alone time for the Israelites had to be frightening.

So close to God and yet not quite feeling His presence.

They surely felt it.

The distance.

The “do not come too close”- “do not touch” relationship with God was all they had at this point.

The power of God had to be respected before it could be adored.

And they were learning respect the hard way.

But so was Moses.

“and the glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai. For six days the cloud covered the mountain, and on the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from within the cloud.”

Exodus 24:16

Why did God cover the mountain with His glory for six days before speaking?

Did Moses need to feel the gap too?

Did he need to be reminded of the chasm between himself and the Creator of the Universe?

Did he need to remember what it felt like to wonder exactly where God was………..

so he could tell the people,

“I’ve been there.  

I’ve questioned and doubted too.  

But in His time, God showed up,

and He’ll show up for you too.”

My life continues to be a sea of waves filled with times of questioning God’s presence followed by overwhelming moments of knowing He is right here…………………covering my own little Mount Sinai with His glory.

I know He calls me up…………..to the very top…………..every single day.

But sometimes I wonder where He is when I get there.

So what do I do in those times of questioning???

How do I handle the cloud with no voice???

Sadly, I sometimes want to walk back down…………

down to the wilderness.

It’s easier to stand in the desert surrounded by others who are wondering too.

But when I stay up in the glory of God even when He’s silent something happens as I wait………………..

in the silence.

I begin to hear Him………….not audibly………….but in my heart.

He speaks through things like stuffed sheep and perfume and Facebook posts that weren’t even meant for me.

That’s how He works.

He loves to speak into silence.

______________________________

Elijah learned the lesson too.

He longed to hear God speak in a mighty wind.

Don’t we all want to hear Him in mighty ways?

But it wasn’t until Elijah was still enough to hear a whisper that God began to speak.

Still enough to hear a whisper.

I’m thinking God made Moses wait for a reason.

Maybe it took six days for Moses’ mind and heart to be still enough to truly hear…………….

the voice of God.

I’ve learned in my life that I can be near the glory of the Lord yet live way too loudly to know it.

And I’m such a better human being when I don’t live loudly.

It’s almost February and the waves of 2016 have been just like the waves of every other year……………..

Feel His presence

Miss it

Feel His presence

Miss it

Breaking free is never easy.

And there’s nothing easy about the wilderness.

This morning, I feel the wave of God’s presence so strongly, though, and I feel as if He’s reminding me that until the day my faith becomes sight I’d better get use to the wilderness…………….

Because life on this planet is never going to be easy or perfect or desert-free.

I press on.

I fight the good fight.

I climb my mountain.

Every day.

And all those words, “press, fight, climb,” imply effort.

So, today, I’m thankful.

I’m thankful for the wondering and the wandering,

because it always leads me back to Him.

I am a sheep.

And thank goodness, I have a patient, loving, faithful Shepherd.

So do you.

Follow Him.

Even when you can’t quite see Him or hear Him,

He is there.

Emmanuel.

God with us.

He’s whispering,

“Follow me.  Just remember………………..breaking free is never easy.  And there’s nothing easy about the wilderness.”

Keep climbing.

Keep trusting.

Keep waiting.

That’s how you handle a cloud with no voice.