Waiting Quietly, Alone
January 2024
Reading the Book of Exodus 32:17-24 NKJV
“And when Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is a noise of war in the camp.” But he said: “It is not the noise of the shout of victory, Nor the noise of the cry of defeat, But the sound of singing I hear.” So it was, as soon as he came near the camp, that he saw the calf and the dancing.
So Moses’ anger became hot, and he cast the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain. Then he took the calf which they had made, burned it in the fire, and ground it to powder; and he scattered it on the water and made the children of Israel drink it.
And Moses said to Aaron, “What did this people do to you that you have brought so great a sin upon them?”
So Aaron said, “Do not let the anger of my Lord become hot. You know the people, that they are set on evil. For they said to me, ‘Make us gods that shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ And I said to them, ‘Whoever has any gold, let them break it off.’ So they gave it to me, and I cast it into the fire, and this calf came out.””
Can you believe what lame and ridiculous excuses people give when confronted with the obvious truth? Even leaders. Or, maybe, especially leaders.
Be Like Joshua
However, I considered Joshua. He waited patiently outside the camp for forty days and forty nights that Moses spent in Mount Sinai. He did not join in the restlessness and revelry of the masses.
On the other hand, Aaron, the High Priest, fashioned an idol of gold when the masses demanded it. To think that God had led them out of Egypt after 400 years of slavery, parted the Red Sea and defeated the mighty Egyptian army with great miracles and wonders just weeks before! All they had to do was to wait while Moses went up to meet God for further instructions to get them to their Promised Land.
Obviously, Aaron, the religious leader, feared men more than God, and the people preferred singing and dancing than quiet reverence and gratitude for God.
As I mused about this, I realised that God has taken us out of the revelry and noise of the masses for many years now.
Thank you, Lord. We are quite accustomed to being alone and to enjoy solitude with You. I am thankful for this remnant in COBS who, like Joshua, are prepared to wait patiently, quietly, on You, even if alone.
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