By Joan Bay Klope

I have an admission: I’m more likely, when reading the Bible on my own, to turn to selections in the New Testament. The passages feel more relevant and personal and life altering — and these are the reasons we usually turn to the Bible, don’t you think?

But we can’t forget the Old Testament and my goal to read through the Bible in a year takes me into the Old, into the New, and into the Psalms, located fairly close to the middle of any Bible! Of late I’ve been reading in the book of Exodus and the stories contained within are filled with adventure, worry, surprises, miracles, and frustration: reactions I’ve witnessed of late each time I listen to political analysts or read Internet blogs relating to our national primaries. It’s a wild ride!

Recent readings have focused on the story of The Exodus; that well-known trek into the desert Moses made with his fellow Israelites. It’s a story involving the people of Israel who had not only been dominated by the powerful Egyptians but whose enslavement had caused great suffering and prevented them from worshipping God in freedom.

Lest you think this is dry reading, grab your Bible and flip to those early chapters in Exodus. You will discover that God went to great lengths, not only to convince the Egyptians that the Israelites should be released, but that He was a powerful God to be reckoned with and trusted.

To prove his point, God made His presence obvious. He sent to Pharaoh and his people a series of horrific plagues that included the Nile River turning into blood, frog, gnat, locust and fly infestations, the death of enormous numbers of livestock, outbreaks of boils on people and animals, hail storms, and unexplained darkness.

When Pharaoh continued to deny their release, God brought death upon every Egyptian firstborn, whether man or beast, during one long, terrible night. Only then did Pharaoh finally release Moses and his people.

Pretty powerful stuff. But rather than focusing on those astonishing plagues, it’s most interesting that Moses and his band of followers would be willing to head into a desert with no map and no plan, only a clear sense that God was with them.

I long to experience that same clear sense, a blessed assurance, that God is working and moving with the same intensity today in my life and in the lives of those around me. Not only do I long to see evidence but I want to embrace Moses’ attitude. I want to have a heart that is willing to try new things and go new places, even though I may feel unworthy, unprepared and untrusting.

I want God to build in me courage, knowing all the while that He may not reveal every step but will give me all I need in small doses. It begins by actively looking for evidence that He is present and working in our lives.

Have you ever suddenly experienced His presence at a moment when you felt insecure, unsure, and tentative? Have you suffered a loss so great you felt as though you might break; if it were not for those who showed up without invitation? Have you ever had one longed-for opportunity close, only to have another new adventure drop in your lap?

Author A. W. Tozer encourages us to “constantly practice the habit of inwardly gazing upon God.” He goes on to explain that “even when you are compelled to withdraw your conscious attention in order to engage in earthly affairs,” there can develop within you a “secret communion” always going on.

And that blessed secret communion? It is nothing strange or out of reach. It will be as wonderful as the name of a friend coming to mind, a prayer whispered with little forethought, the words of a treasured old song spontaneously springing froth as you commute. It may be experienced as a new revelation, a restlessness for something never considered before, or what used to be fulfilling may at once be perceived as routine and unchallenging.

God knows long before we do where in the desert He wants us to wander. May the joy of looking for Him be both a conscious and unconscious joy, and may we see God working in startling and new ways this week, simply because we are looking and anticipating His practical entry into our daily lives.