The Goodness of God: Respond or React

08 Aug The Goodness of God: Respond or React

August 4, 2024

The Goodness of God: Respond or React

We are still in our summer series, The Goodness of God. Today, we are going to look briefly at responding or reacting, depending on the situation. It can be beneficial or create a problem. To respond is to make a conscious decision. You step back, think about it, and mull it over before offering an answer or action. To react is emotional, the up and out. We don’t stop and ponder what to say or what to do. We go for it.

Respond or React

We can see this in the life of Moses in Exodus 17:1-7 and Numbers 20:1-13 (Read both accounts). In both instances, there was no water to drink, and the children of Israel were complaining.  Moses’s initial response was the same each time.  He and his brother Arron went before the Lord and asked what they should do.  The instructions in the first instance were,  “And the Lord said unto Moses, Go on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel; and thy rod, wherewith thou smote the river, take in thine hand, and go. Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.”  We will call this a response to a situation.

The second time, there was no water again Numbers 20:6-11 “So Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and they fell on their faces. And the glory of the Lord appeared to them. Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Take the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the congregation together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water…” The second occurrence happens years later, and for Moses, there had to be sufficient wear and tear on his patience with this group of people he was leading.  Read what he said in verse ten. “ And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock; and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?”  Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank.” Somewhere from his going before the Lord for instructions and standing before this seeming ungrateful crowd, Moses speaks unkindly to them and does not do or say what God instructed.   We will call this reacting to a situation.

As we said in our opening statement, reacting can get you in trouble sometimes, and for Moses, this was a big mistake. See, he was almost at the finish line of his assignment/journey. Check out verse 12: “Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.”

What we say and do is a product of what is in us

Every time I read this account; I tell myself those people made his flesh rise to a level of disobedience. Sometimes, underlying things in our character push us to react instead of responding correctly.  It could be stress, tiredness, leadership issues, or, as I learned from an article by Steven J. Cole, 2018, that Moses had an anger management problem. From that article, he quotes, “Chuck Swindoll (Moses [Thomas Nelson], pp. 305-311) argues that Moses had a lifelong anger problem that led him to this tragic failure at the end of his life.”  

We can all do some self-awareness and practice keeping our emotions in check. Let’s be clear: not all reacting is negative, like shouts of praise Psalms 28:7, resisting the devil James 4:7. Responding to an altar call Romans 10:9-10 or reacting to that blessing you’ve been waiting on when it arrives: proverbs 10:22 or even a present on a holiday.

Some people have it under control

There are great examples in the Bible where people responded well. Like Esther, who was told not to disclose her Jewish heritage, and when a crisis came and the Jews were threatened, she did not run into her husband, the king, but responded with fasting and prayer first. Or Joseph, who was sold into slavery, falsely accused, and ended up in prison, but we never read of a rash comment or action from him, just the statement “The Lord was with Joseph” or David not killing King Saul even though he was the one being unjustly pursued. We must just take the time like these people did, seek God, and follow through with obedience.

Help Us Lord Jesus!

Hear someone saying sometimes you just don’t have time to get before the Lord. I understand that. Oh, too well, that’s when we better have the love of God shed abroad in our hearts Romans 5:5.  Once, I got into a heated conversation with a client, and instead of saying the wrong thing, I just hung up.  The client called my boss, and my boss called me in and said Theresa Woodard. The client said you hung up on her. I told her I did. I explained that the conversation had gotten to the point that I knew I would regret anything that came out of my mouth beyond that point, and I wanted to protect my integrity and that of the company.  I also told her I would apologize and that she could assign someone else to the account if she felt that was best. She covered me like God covered Joseph when he ran away from Potiphar’s wife.

Each day, we have choices regarding how we respond or react to co-workers, family members, and the public, even when we receive an unfavorable report. We can give that person a piece of our mind, take criticism, justified or unjustified, and wait for a better time to discuss the situation or leave it alone. We can also take a step back and process new information we receive, whether good or bad, to ensure our response is appropriate. Making the right choice is always the best thing to do. We can all practice a little more on how we respond/react and make the necessary adjustments to govern ourselves in a way that pleases God and represents the kingdom properly.

Theresa Woodard