Exodus 33:14-15 God said, “My presence will go with you. I’ll see the journey to the end.” Moses said, “If your presence doesn’t take the lead here, call this trip off right now.

The people of God had been in Egypt for a long time and had learned the customs of the Egyptians. Can one blame them for building a golden calf to worship, if that is all they understood about gods?

Naturally, this brought great dishonour to God’s name. God does not need a physical dwelling in a calf. He is so different from the other gods. God was naturally very upset about the matter and did not want to move with this sinful people who did not understand anything about Him.

In response, Moses started an intense conversation with God. He reminded Him that it was He Himself who called him from the bramble bush. It was God’s idea to deliver the people from the land of oppression.

At that time, Moses became unsure about the way forward and therefore he turned to God. It’s as if Moses was drawing a line in the sand, saying if God did not move, he would just stay where he was. Without God, he didn’t feel able to do anything.

Moses understood that despite the land’s outward appeal, a place of ‘milk and honey’ characterised by prosperity and provision, it meant nothing without God’s presence to guide them.

Moses understood something about how life in intimacy with God works. If God is not part of it, it’s not worth anything. If God withdraws Himself and isn’t part of your life, life ultimately means nothing. Just a speck of dust in the wind.

Fortunately, we can know for sure that God will never withdraw Himself from us. Not even like He wanted to do when the Israelites made wrong decisions. No matter what we’ve done. That is what Jesus put in place for us.

Moses teaches us that when something bothers us, when we don’t understand something, when things don’t work out as we planned, we can put it all before God. God is faithful and will help us to get rid of the uncertainties. That is God’s guarantee for you. All fuelled by the love He has for you.

Prayer
Father, thank you that Your door is always open to me. Thank you for listening and for inviting me to walk alongside You in the plans You are unfolding…

Questions
Is God’s presence more important to me than my circumstances or success?
What do I do when I feel God is silent or distant?
Am I willing to stand still rather than move forward without God?

Do this now
Today, think about something you want to achieve or change, and ask yourself: “Am I really involving God in this, or am I trying to do it on my own?”
Tell God in prayer that you don’t want to move forward without His presence.
Make time today to simply be with Him, not to get something, but to be with Him.