Moses’ Snake and David’s Bear
Moses’ Snake
Do you remember the time that Moses ran from a snake? Moses didn’t run from just any snake, he ran from a snake that was sent from God. Here is the scene: At the burning bush, Moses tries to avoid the responsibility that God gives to him so God sends him a sign. He commanded Moses to throw his staff (kind of like a large stick) onto the ground. “So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent.” “And Moses ran from it.” (Exodus 4:3-4).
As our story continues, God told Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail.” Amazingly, “he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand.” Don’t miss the sequence. He ran. God told him to pick the snake up. He stopped running and picked up the snake. After he picked it up, “it became a staff in his hand.”
I don’t mind picking up a snake if God will turn it into a stick before I pick it up. Sometimes, however, God challenges us to pick up the snake and trust that He will fix it after it is in our hand.
David’s Bear
As a child, David killed a bear. Later, when he was trying to convince King Saul that the could kill the giant Goliath, he explained it to King Saul this way, “a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, I went out after it and struck it, and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it.” (1 Sam 17:34-35).
Look at that courage, David grabbed the bear by the beard and killed it.
So what does all this mean to us? In our story, bears and snakes stand for all those scary times we have to face. When we face them, we need to remember that God can kill our snakes and bears. He is with us when we worship on Sunday morning, but he is also with us when we face snakes and bears.
Lonnie Davis
HeartWord – Isaiah 41:10
“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”