NOVEMBER: GOD'S PRESENCE
Read It: Exodus 13:21-22
Look Closer
Where is God? What does God look like? Why can’t I see God? We have all asked these questions! And frankly, there’s no satisfactory answer. God is so great and mysterious that we can really only speak of God in metaphor - which is hard for young children to understand! The Bible is rich in metaphors for God, though, and in this month’s story, we have one of the most concrete ways that God is experienced by the people. This passage is in the middle of the Exodus story - the story of God delivering the Hebrew people from bondage. When God sent Moses to lead the people out of slavery, the biggest obstacle wasn’t Pharaoh’s hard heart - it was the enslaved minds of the people. God essentially had to win them over and teach them to trust God. Now the people are taking the long way out of Egypt. In the next chapter, they will cross the Red Sea (or the Sea of Reeds). God appears in a special, elemental way to lead the people - as a pillar of cloud by day, fire by night.
In the cultures around them, gods were thought to be present in statues, things created by human hands, things that could be held and manipulated by humans. But God chose to be present in elements of nature. God is a free agent who can move however and wherever God pleases. This was a radical way for the people to understand and follow God.
God doesn’t always show up in the ways that we expect or want God to show up. And we can’t see or fully understand God. But if we pause and use our senses and open ourselves up to God, we can find glimpses and clues of God in the world around us. Children are uniquely gifted at this when given the language to name what they sense.
Spiral Deeper
Where is God? What does God look like? Why can’t I see God? We have all asked these questions! And frankly, there’s no satisfactory answer. God is so great and mysterious that we can really only speak of God in metaphor - which is hard for young children to understand! The Bible is rich in metaphors for God, though, and in this month’s story, we have one of the most concrete ways that God is experienced by the people. This passage is in the middle of the Exodus story - the story of God delivering the Hebrew people from bondage. When God sent Moses to lead the people out of slavery, the biggest obstacle wasn’t Pharaoh’s hard heart - it was the enslaved minds of the people. God essentially had to win them over and teach them to trust God. Now the people are taking the long way out of Egypt. In the next chapter, they will cross the Red Sea (or the Sea of Reeds). God appears in a special, elemental way to lead the people - as a pillar of cloud by day, fire by night.
In the cultures around them, gods were thought to be present in statues, things created by human hands, things that could be held and manipulated by humans. But God chose to be present in elements of nature. God is a free agent who can move however and wherever God pleases. This was a radical way for the people to understand and follow God.
God doesn’t always show up in the ways that we expect or want God to show up. And we can’t see or fully understand God. But if we pause and use our senses and open ourselves up to God, we can find glimpses and clues of God in the world around us. Children are uniquely gifted at this when given the language to name what they sense.
Spiral Deeper
- Where else does God appear in fire that doesn’t burn up? Think burning bush, the fiery furnace, Pentecost… Why do you think God chooses this form?
- Scholar Robert Alter notes that the pillars of cloud and fire counterpoint the signs and wonders that God performed in Egypt. Destruction came from the sky in several plagues, and now a cloud descends from the sky to lead the people. The second-to-last plague involved total darkness, and now a fiery pillar will light the way at night.
- If you read on in Exodus, you’ll notice that this presence of God continued throughout the next forty years in the wilderness. Every time the pillar moved, the people moved with it. Like many parts of those 40 years, this seems to be part of the work God was doing to create this covenant people. What do you think following this pillar did to shape the people?
- With our weather-proof houses and cars, we can become pretty separated from the natural world. But if we read the Bible closely, we see that the natural world was very close to the people of God. God often works through and in nature, and nature is understood to praise God. How is God present in the natural world around you?
Pray It
God, you are mysterious and big, and it’s hard to understand you. But you also are so close to us. Help us feel you and know you are here. And help us be free to follow where you lead us. Amen.
God, you are mysterious and big, and it’s hard to understand you. But you also are so close to us. Help us feel you and know you are here. And help us be free to follow where you lead us. Amen.
Do It
- Pillar of Fire: Build a bonfire, put a fire in a fire pit, or light a fireplace (and turn off the lights so you really see the glow). Gather around your fire and tell the story of God leading the people as a pillar of fire by night. Feel free to embellish! And imagine - do you think the people ever warmed themselves by God’s fire? Did they gather around it like you’re doing now? Sing a few songs together, or tell some stories.
- Pillar of Cloud: Create a pillar of cloud - this can be as simple as draping a person in a bedsheet, or as complicated as making clouds out of batting and attaching them to a yardstick. Designate one person to operate the cloud. Have all the other members of your household grab their camping gear - pillow, sleeping bag, and a backpack. Then let the pillar lead. Follow the pillar and set up camp, then when it moves, pack up and move with it. This will get a little silly and chaotic - but that’s the point! I’m sure the Israelites sometimes said, “What? Again? I just got comfortable!”
- Sensory Walk: Take a walk in nature. Before you walk, pray (something like, “God, open our senses up to you”). Give each sense a turn as you walk, pausing as you need to. For example, walk for three minutes, paying attention to what you smell. If you have bandwidth at the end to debrief, talk about what you sensed and where you noticed God’s creative work.
Explore It: Notes from Tami
God was a pillar of fire and a pillar of cloud…. Very young children take everything very literally. They don’t understand metaphors and only grasp symbolism when it relates one concrete object to another, for example, pretending a block is a telephone. God is much more abstract than that! While the older child will grasp concepts about God through our fun activities together, the very young will simply enjoy the time together. And that is worthwhile! Over time, they will build on those little nuggets.
I wonder, how do you picture God? And how do you think your child pictures God? It is difficult for all of us to picture One whom we can’t see or touch physically. Our understanding and terms of explaining God seem so limited. Casual conversations can be helpful. “Sometimes when I think of God, I think of a Mama holding and taking care of her baby… God is so creative; look at that beautiful sunset!...” We can’t see God, but we can know that God is ever with us.
One of my most constant prayers is thanking God for always being with me each moment, each day. Did you know that there are at least 278 Bible verses about God’s “I will never leave you!” Let them hear you thanking God for being with you and making God-talk comments a part of your daily life together. One of the best gifts we can give our children is to help them develop confidence in God’s love and continuous care for them - no matter what life throws at them.
God was a pillar of fire and a pillar of cloud…. Very young children take everything very literally. They don’t understand metaphors and only grasp symbolism when it relates one concrete object to another, for example, pretending a block is a telephone. God is much more abstract than that! While the older child will grasp concepts about God through our fun activities together, the very young will simply enjoy the time together. And that is worthwhile! Over time, they will build on those little nuggets.
I wonder, how do you picture God? And how do you think your child pictures God? It is difficult for all of us to picture One whom we can’t see or touch physically. Our understanding and terms of explaining God seem so limited. Casual conversations can be helpful. “Sometimes when I think of God, I think of a Mama holding and taking care of her baby… God is so creative; look at that beautiful sunset!...” We can’t see God, but we can know that God is ever with us.
One of my most constant prayers is thanking God for always being with me each moment, each day. Did you know that there are at least 278 Bible verses about God’s “I will never leave you!” Let them hear you thanking God for being with you and making God-talk comments a part of your daily life together. One of the best gifts we can give our children is to help them develop confidence in God’s love and continuous care for them - no matter what life throws at them.
