The "Midian Years"

Acts 7:20-34
²⁰At this time Moses was born, and he was beautiful before God. For three months he was brought up in his father's house; ²¹and when he was abandoned, Pharaoh's daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son. ²²So Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in his words and deeds.

23 'When he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his relatives, the Israelites.²⁴When he saw one of them being wronged, he defended the oppressed man and avenged him by striking down the Egyptian. ²⁵He supposed that his kinsfolk would understand that God through him was rescuing them, but they did not understand. ²⁶The next day he came to some of them as they were quarrelling and tried to reconcile them, saying, "Men, you are brothers; why do you wrong each other?" ²⁷But the man who was wronging his neighbour pushed Moses aside, saying, "Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? ²⁸Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?" ²⁹When he heard this, Moses fled and became a resident alien in the land of Midian. There he became the father of two sons.

30 'Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in the flame of a burning bush. ³¹When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight; and as he approached to look, there came the voice of the Lord: ³²"I am the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." Moses began to tremble and did not dare to look. ³³Then the Lord said to him, "Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. ³⁴I have surely seen the mistreatment of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to rescue them. Come now, I will send you to Egypt."

How many acts does your life have? I just got back from California...beautiful weather, beautiful people, fine Mexican food. I went to high school and graduate school in southern CA; I have my favorite places and several old friends still live there. It definately occupies a special place in my history, a large piece in the makeup of my personality.

Before California there were many other places. All of them hold pieces to my identity. Interestingly enough, (though many folks from each of these places are still friends and would probably beg to differ) I remember being a different person in each of these places. Certainly my occupation (student, minister, grad student, publisher) played a real role in my differing identities; but, even more so, I think it was my particular place in life that afforded me different perspectives and goals. At some places I wanted to succeed, and some I wanted to party; in some areas I was building relationships, others I was eschewing them.

When I talk with people about the Old Testament, I find that Moses' time in Midian is often forgotten. The scene in Exodus, where Moses flees punishment from Pharaoh by hiding out in Midian, is given something of a different weight when it is revealed, in Acts, that Moses actually spent 40 years in Midian...a huge part of his adult life. Numbers/ages can be somewhat problematic in the Old Testament; but, regardless of the specific number of years, a third of Moses' life was spent in Midian. There he got married, raised two children, and was a responsible member of an important household.

Moses had come to a somewhat powerful realization, as a young adult, that he should help his people (the Hebrews)and turn his back on the powerful Egyptian royal family that had given him sanctuary.. As a part of this new-found idealism, he slew an Egyptian supervisor who was threatening a Hebrew slave. After this "courageous" act, Moses expected to be treated like a hero amongst the Hebrews...instead he was ratted out to the Egyptians. The certainty of his ideology was beaten out of Moses at the very beginning of his adulthood. He was taught that he was no savior...no special person. The people just weren't interested in his high ideas. Moses, rejected as a leader, went to Midian to grow up.

After what many would consider a full adult life, Moses had to be somewhat content; he was respected and economically solid in a new land. He raised two children and still had the love of his wife. From a society standpoint, Moses was doing pretty well; but, we have to wonder if Moses had flashbacks. Did he remember those dreams that he had about being a leader...about making a difference? Did he think "If I had it to do over again, I would have...." Did Moses feel like a disappointment?

Later in his life, Moses would be chosen by God to lead His people out of Egypt. Suffice it to say that Moses was not looking for this "opportunity." After trying to convince God that He was making a mistake, Moses finally whines, "please send someone else."

Whatever regrets Moses had had, whatever lump in his stomach he carried from his rejection earlier in life, all of it had eventually become complacency. Moses had become who he was, and did not see himself becoming any more. Moses was comfortable with his life in Midian.

Eventually Moses left Midian, and his family, and did as the Lord demanded. He became the greatest leader in Jewish history. It was a drastic change from a life that seemed to be fairly settled.

There are times I can't help but feel that I am living in Midian. I have a wonderful, blessed, comfortable life. The passions of my youth have dulled with maturity, and although I still have purpose in my life and work for causes that are greater than myself, I tend to concentrate more on my worldly responsibilities. I'm not sure I would be ready for a grand adventure tomorrow...maybe someone else would be better....someone a little younger.

The challenge for all of us in our "Midian years" is to know that God's purpose for us may not fit into a steady timeline....gaps to us are not necessarily as unreasonable to Him. The opportunity is that we do not have to feel shackled to all those failed opportunities that did not go as we had planned. God provides purpose and mission to each of us, and He provides it in His own good time.

A good meditation as we mow lawns and shovel snow out here in Midian....