Exodus 26-28 Changing A Burden Into A Blessing

As I read all of the instructions Moses had been given by God for setting up the portable house of worship known as the Tabernacle, which the Israelites would use for years to come, a thought began to form in my mind.  They were being given instructions to make altars and stands and rings and utensils out of gold and silver and bronze.  But what was unique was that these were basically nomads in the wilderness.  God had brought them to the edge of the Promised Land and then turned them away because of their continued refusal to obey.  They hadn’t developed gold and silver mines and didn’t have a central bank with a vault where these valuables were stored.  Instead, the Egyptians had given them all their precious metals as jewelry just before they left Egypt. 

Hikers and backpackers don’t take anything that isn’t absolutely necessary for the trip, as the added weight can make for a miserable experience.  Yet this jewelry was baggage that the people were lugging around the desert!

Now God is instructing them to take that baggage and make something useful from it.  They were to shape it into something that honors Him and serves as a reminder of His watchcare over them.  Once it was completed, there would be heavier things to carry, and some things, like the Ark and the altar, would be large and unwieldy, but the people could know that they were now carrying around something with a holy purpose, not simply lugging around excess baggage.

Father, give me the strength to turn over an excess baggage that I carry around over to You.  Lighten my load, and make it useful to You instead.  Bless me by what results.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford