By David ReayTuesday 16 Dec 2014LifeWords DevotionalsFaithReading Time: 0 minutes
Transcript:
Read Numbers 12:1-2
1 While they were at Hazeroth,Miriam and Aaron criticized Moses because he had married a Cushite woman. 2 They said,”Has the Lord spoken only through Moses? Hasn’t he spoken through us,too?” But the Lord heard them. (NLT)
In times of war,soldiers can be killed through ‘friendly fire’. Their own side mistakes them for enemies and so attacks them. Combatants may expect to be attacked by the enemy,but being wounded by your own side is very hard to take.
We are so often wounded most deeply by those ‘on our side’. Family members or friends may hurt us either inadvertently or deliberately. Strangers don’t have the capacity to hurt us the way those close to us do. It is so hard to have one’s face turned to confront the enemy when your so-called allies are nipping at your heels.
Moses was betrayed by those closest to him. Having seen off an obvious enemy in Pharaoh and his chariots,he spends much of the rest of his life dealing with those who were supposed to be his supporters,those who ought to have been grateful to him. Even his own family betrayed him and spoke against him.
When this happens,we must be careful not to overreact,to fight fire with fire,to hit back. We may have to confront these people who wound us,but in the end we dare not succumb to bitter cynicism. We give such situations to the God who understands betrayal and hurt. We ask him to sustain us in our fight against the enemy even as our friends and family may fight against us.
Blessings
David Reay