Leaving the dysfunction behind

James Cathcart July 12, 2024 4 1

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Exodus 2: 7-9 (NRSVA)

7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, ‘Shall I go and get you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?’ 8 Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Yes.’ So the girl went and called the child’s mother. 9 Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Take this child and nurse it for me, and I will give you your wages.’ So the woman took the child and nursed it.

Moses’s sister comes up with a daring plan to reunite her young brother and mother, suggesting that her mum could be a nursemaid for the child. It works, reuniting mother and son, but it’s only a fractured temporary solution. This is the last we hear of Moses’s mother. Did she remain close to Moses as he grew up? I hope so, but it’s not the dynamic any of them would have wanted.

As imperfect beings living in imperfect societies our lives are full of quick fixes and partial measures to see us through, we do our best with what we can. History is full of daring acts of compassion from desperate people. As we look to Get Packing with God and head into newness of life, what are the quick fixes and partial measures we want to leave behind as no longer needed? What can we now hand over to God and let go of as we look instead for the longterm, sustainable restoration of God?

Prayer:

Dear God,

Take the duct tape

and cardboard

that we have used to shore up the breaches

and help us properly fix and mend.

Take our temporary measures of cello-tape and string

sticky-tack and hope

and replace them with a garland for our brow

and a crown of beauty for our heads

so that we can stand proudly as reunited souls.

Amen.