He took care of her

401 he took care of herMost of us have been reading the Bible for a long time, often for many years. It feels good to read the familiar verses and wrap themselves in them as if they were a warm blanket. It may happen that our familiarity causes us to overlook things. When we read them with alert eyes and from a new angle, the Holy Ghost can help us recognize more and possibly also remember things we have forgotten.

When I was reading the book of Acts again, I came across a passage in chapter 13, verse 18, which many of us have read without paying much attention to it: "And for forty years he endured it in the desert" (Luther 1984). In the Luther Bible of 1912 it was said: “he tolerated her way” or translated from an old King James Version into German it means “he suffered from her behavior”.

So, as far as I remember, I had always read - and heard - that God had to endure the wailing and lamenting Israelites as if they had been a great burden for him. But then I read the reference in 5. Mose 1,31: "Then you saw that the Lord your God carried you as a man carries his son, all the way that you walked until you came to this place." In the new translation of the Bible it is called Luther 2017 it: "And for forty years he carried her in the wilderness" (Acts 13,18:). The MacDonald Commentary states that "he cared for their needs".

I got a light. Of course he had taken care of them - they had food, water and shoes that did not wear out. Although I knew that God did not starve her, I never realized how close and intimate he was to her life. It was so encouraging to read that God carried His people as a Father carries His Son. I can not remember ever reading that like this!

Sometimes we can feel that God is hard for us to bear or that he is sorry to accept our and our ongoing problems. Our prayers seem to be the same again and again, and our sins keep coming back. Even if we sometimes nag and behave like ungrateful Israelites, God always cares for us, no matter how much we moan; On the other hand, I'm sure he would prefer us to thank him instead of complaining.

Christians, both in full-time ministry and out (although all Christians are called to ministry in some way), can tire and burn out. One can begin to view one's siblings as unbearable Israelites, which may tempt one to take on their "annoying" problems and suffer through them. To endure means tolerating something you don't like or accepting something that is bad. But God doesn't see us that way!

We are all God's children and need respectful, compassionate and loving care. With God's love flowing through us, we can love our neighbors instead of just enduring them. If necessary, we will even be able to carry someone whose powers are no longer sufficient on the way. Let us remember that God not only cared for his people in the wilderness, but carried them on his loving arms. He carries us on and never stops loving and caring, even when we complain and forget to be grateful.

by Tammy Tkach