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29 Moses came down from Mount Sinai. As he came down from the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant in his hand, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. 30 When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, the skin of his face was shining, and they were afraid to come near him. 31 But Moses called to them; and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses spoke with them. 32 Afterward all the Israelites came near, and he gave them in commandment all that the Lord had spoken with him on Mount Sinai. 33 When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil on his face; 34 but whenever Moses went in before the Lord to speak with him, he would take the veil off, until he came out; and when he came out, and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, 35 the Israelites would see the face of Moses, that the skin of his face was shining; and Moses would put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with him. (Exodus 34:29-35 NRSV)
Happy Wednesday to you, ConCafe Family! And may this day be a day of wondrous blessings for you, Friend! May we continue to pray for one another; for the needs shared with us, and for those of our personal needs with which we have entrusted to God.
This is the passage that Paul talked about in his second letter to the church in Corinth. Part of Moses' job description called for him to be a man of prayer and regular trips up to Mount Sinai. On this particular day, Moses descends from the mountain with the two tablets where the covenant were written the Ten Commandments. So intense was his time with God, that Moses's face changed. As you could expect, he was not aware of the change that came over his face "because he had been talking with God." As he makes his way down to where the assembly was gathered, the shine off his face frightened the congregation, and they were afraid to come near to Moses. Yet, Moses called and they reluctantly come toward him. There Moses was able to share with them what God had given to them. When he finished his discourse, he veiled his face, only removing it when it was time to talk to God, then when he talked to the people, he would place the veil again. And this continued in that way.
As I got to thinking about Moses' intense and powerful time with God, his face radiated that glory of God, and I thought about our first baby when she was exposed to the glory of chocolate. We have several cute pictures of her encounter with chocolate and how her face radiated that glory of chocolate. We have one photo of her inside a round laundry basket that served also as her favorite buggy to ride in around the living room as Daddy would pull her around. And we have pictures of our other babies, and our grandbabies as they have discovered the glories of popsicles and snowcones, where the lips and tongues also radiated the enjoyment those babies had in their encounter with the delicacies of chocolate and sugary ice cream treats. We humans are not used to being directly exposed to the sacred on a regular basis. The closest we usually get is when we pray, receive Communion, or open our hearts as we sing or listen to a sermon or presentation on God and we feel the touch of God on our hearts and spirits. We are a skiddish bunch prone to running or hiding from something that hints of the divine; but still, the possibility of our radiating the glory of God is within our reach if we would allow God to approach us and share with us His love and message. Many a retreat has brought back souls whose lives were touched by God and they radiated that in their responses and their testimonies to the church on the following Sunday of what they experienced in the presence of God. Many a life was touched second or third-hand by those faithful souls who shared their excitement of coming to know Jesus in new, never-before experiences. There is nothing wrong with experiencing the grace and love of God in ways that affect your smiles, your kindness in words, and thoughtful actions of charity and compassion.
We need more of them I believe; and at the very least, we need more openness to the possibilities that God can and will encounter us and maybe just transform us to greater things. This past weekend many of our children and youth were absent from church because they were at a Confirmation retreat. I know that was a means of God's grace to touch lives and bring new hope to hearts and homes like never before. It is through such encounters that new servants and servant-leaders of the Lord are called into leadership of the Church. Are you ready? Or, as the beautiful hymn asked, "Are Your Able?"
PRAYER: Come, loving God, to our hearts and to the hearts of our little ones. Radiate newness of love and life in them in ways that will bless them, us, and others. In Christ Jesus we pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Radiate love to those who seem to be lacking some today!
Receive my blessings of joy and peace,
Pastor Eradio Valverde
