Generations after Joseph and his brothers had died, their family and descendants still lived in Egypt, and they were called the Hebrews. The family had grown and multiplied, and there were thousands of family members. It was in these years later that Moses was born to a Hebrew family. .
The new Pharaoh, who did not know Joseph at all, was afraid of the Hebrews since they were becoming such a large family, and he forgot what Joseph had done for his country. So he ordered that the Hebrews be enslaved.
After that he ordered that all of the male children of the Hebrews should be killed once they were born. But the women delivering the children, women called midwives, did not follow these instructions. Eventually, the new Pharaoh had his armies enter the homes of the enslaved Hebrews and kill all the male children.
Moses' mother was afraid for her son, so when he was still very small, still a chubby baby, she hid him in a basket and let him float down the river. She thought this would be a better chance fort bus survival than keeping him hidden at home.
Strangely enough, the daughter if the Pharaoh, who was a young woman, found Moses and fell in love with him because he was still a baby. She took him on to her house and raised him as her son.
Soon Moses grew into a man. But even though he was raised with Egyptians, he still knew that he was a Hebrew because of how he looked. One day he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew badly and Moses' anger grew out of control - he killed the Egyptian because of it. Then Moses fled into the desert, where he lived for many years out of fear and guilt.
Then one day when he was working in the desert he saw a bush that was on fire! He panicked, until he realized that somehow the bush was not being burnt - it was not being destroyed by the fire. He walked over to the bush and heard the voice of God the Father speak to him:
"Moses! Moses! Do not come near! Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.I am the God of your father, he continued, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
The Lord then told Moses to tell the leaders of the Hebrews to go to the Pharaoh in Egypt, and that he, God the Father, would be with him. Even though Moses was afraid that he couldn't speak in front of the Pharaoh because he spoke poorly, the Lord reminded Moses of the promise he made with Abraham, Jacob, Isaac, to give them freedom in the land of Canaan. That God the Father had heard the prayers of His people in Egypt and would answer them. He promised He would be with Moses, and when Moses asked for a name to tell the people who sent him, God replied, "I am who am."
Moses did convince his people to go to the Pharaoh and request a day of prayer in the desert, but the Pharaoh refused and in his anger decided to double the work load of the Hebrews, calling them lazy for wanting to worship. Moses complained to the Lord that following God's commands had only made life harder for the Hebrews, but the Lord said to Moses:
I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God; and you will know that I, the LORD, am your God who has freed you from the burdens of the Egyptians.
Connection & Reflection: Moses is not a perfect person - he grows up angry about his family being enslaved and eventually takes someone's life because of it - although he feels very guilty after. He even has a speech impediment - but the Lord still wants to have him lead the Hebrews out of slavery, just as Jesus will lead his children out of the slavery of sin. Moses still has trouble trusting the Lord, especially after the Lord's first instructions seem to fail. Despite all these difficulties, Moses still follows the instructions the Lord gives him.
Prayer: Lord, help us to not be afraid of the life that you are calling us each to live. Even when we have fears, help us to not be afraid of talking to you about them so that you can comfort and encourage us. Jesus, give us the ability to follow through with the plan you have for us and not to give in to our anger and frustration.
Conclude with your favorite family prayer or an Our Father, Hail Mary & Glory Be.
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