WHY Did Moses Cross the Red Sea?

Originally posted: April 20th, 2008

The big story coming out of my “Moses” letters is about the people of Zimbabwe as a whole, and their struggle to “make bricks without straw,” to survive without the means to do it. But the little story that triggered the big story was about our friend Moses, who was deported to Zimbabwe a little less than two months ago. The last time I saw Moses, he was in chains, guilty of living in Botswana illegally while trying to earn enough money to survive and to support his elderly parents back home.

This past Thursday night, Moses sent Mark a message saying that he had returned to Botswana. This morning he was at church. What a joy to see him again! And it was just like old times having him here for lunch along with the regulars. It was very windy and cool today, so Kg and I sat inside and ate, while the guys ate out on the veranda. When Moses came in for seconds, Kg asked him to sit with us, and he did. It was then that I heard why he “crossed the Red Sea.”

I opened the conversation by asking Moses how his parents are doing. “My father is better now, but he almost died,” he said. “You’re kidding!” I exclaimed. “What happened?” “He was bitten by a snake,” said Moses. “He didn’t see the snake, but it was very poisonous, and when I arrived home, he was almost dead. The clinic in our village could do nothing for him, so I had them take him to the big hospital in Harare. The flesh around the bite was rotting away. Every day they would cut away the rotten flesh, until now it was down to the bone. They said he would die without the right medicine, but there was none in the hospital. The doctors wrote me a prescription and told me to go to all the pharmacies around, but none of them had it. Finally I contacted my sister in Capetown (South Africa), and she was able to get the medicine and send it to Harare. He was in the hospital for three more weeks after that, and then I took him home and took him to the clinic every day to get the dressing changed. But now he is much better!”

“Moses!” I exclaimed. “God sent you home just in time! Your dad would have died if you had not gotten deported! You got home just in time to save his life!” “Yes,” said Moses. “When my father saw me, he said ‘Who sent for you to come home?’” “No one,” said Moses. “I was arrested and deported.” “There is a reason why that happened,” said his father.

I cried when I saw Moses in chains, but the end of that sad story is this: And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28) God, help me believe that this will be the end of the big story, too.