Really I hit a funny scripture section – Exodus 17 – Moses ended up holding his arms up allowing his people to fight and win over the Amalekite army, because  when he lowered his arms, they started losing against the Amalekites. Really? God resorted to demonstrating His power to the grumbling and grumbling wandering people by a game of Moses Simon-says? Actually this game which is no game looks like “God says – Moses – says – Moses does” and what is more funny to the point of being comical (but it wasn’t) is that others had to come in and hold up Moses’s arms for him. Really? Is that like adjusting the antenna on the TV’s on the roof or stringing up metal wire and tinfoil to help get in a  distant radio signal? Kinda crazy huh? 

God was and is a God who demonstrates His love and His power. Not only God wanted His people to be blessed, He wanted His people to be taught respect and to know His rule. Really.

Can we be like Moses and listen and act? Can we be a supporter to the mission and do what it takes to help God’s message come thru to the people? Can we at least show that we respect God and listen to His commands? Do we realize that even though we are asked to do something specific, it is God who causes the victory?
God chose His chosen people and He also knew the people who would go against His chosen. Moses received God’s signal and sent it forth – Moses and the law were taught for thousands of years – and still today. Moses had to endure the grumbling of the people (imagine the grumbling that God still endures today). Moses  heard the 10 Commandments directly from God – and Moses knew that the people needed to uphold the law. We all do. People need help to uphold the law. We all do. Moses needed help to hold his arms up too – those men, Aaron and Hur, helped hold up God’s law and they were side by side that battle day to support the mission of Joshua. Could we keep our arms up? Could we be Moses and/or Moses’s helpers? I have seen people do many sweet and long-serving actions for people they love.

We have also seen so much that God has done for us. Would God raise His hands until the battle was won? Ahhhhhhh….  of course He did – He held up until He said “It is Finished.” 

Really.

Really Amen.

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Exodus 17:8-16

The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.” So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword. Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven.” Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. He said, “Because hands were lifted up against the throne of the Lord, the Lord will be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation.”