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In Exodus 3:5, God tells Moses to take of his sandals, for the place where he was standing was holy ground. Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God. Sometimes, especially when I pray in public, I feel the same way. Just thinking of who God is and what He has done intimidates me speechless! At these times, I tend to recite scripture as prayers because my own words seem so weak and unworthy. But one of the best things I learned in college was about having a relationship with Jesus. Just the name ‘Jesus’ comforts and warms me within. (As the song says, ‘there’s just something about that name’.) I didn’t realize growing up that Jesus came because in our sinful flesh, we are weak and unworthy to go to God. That is why the Old Testament had so many rituals which we no longer need today. God sent his Son to take our place, rather, to take on our sins so we could be cleansed and declared holy before Him. I am so thankful for that! When I was a kid, (wait a minute… I still do this today!) and I had to tell/ask my dad something important, I’d go to mom and get her to ask him… I knew she was ‘tight’ with dad and he wouldn’t yell at her. Plus, he wanted to please her so he would tell her ‘yes’ before he would me. Sometimes, when mom didn’t agree with my request or I did something bad, she’d say, “Oh no, Shelly… YOU tell him!” She was a buffer between me and dad because she knew his limits. I see Jesus like this. So easy to talk to, so forgiving and gracious, loving… But with God, I become intimidated, insecure, and inadequate. God knew we would feel this way. He sent Jesus to be with us, to love and comfort us. And when Jesus was preparing the disciples for his departure, he promised not to leave them alone and sent his Spirit to be with them. That amazes me. Romans 8:26,27 tells us that even when we do not know the words to say, the Spirit intercedes for us, not only by putting words to what we cannot express, but he does it in accordance with God’s will! And after all of these years, not once has He told me, “Oh no, Shelly… YOU tell him!”

"The Way" from Kevin Pauley

The Second Sin

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