Dear Parents, God led His people into the wilderness, but He did not leave them there alone. The Lord was with His people. He provided meat, bread, and water. He guided them to Mount Sinai, where He met with their leader, Moses. The Lord came down on the mountain in fire, and He spoke through thunder. The Israelites could not have ignored His presence. But when Moses went up on the mountain and did not return for several weeks, the Israelites felt abandoned. They appealed to Moses’ brother, Aaron: “Come, make gods for us who will go before us because this Moses, ...

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Dear Parents, Moses and the Israelites had experienced a harrowing journey from Egypt into the wilderness. They made their way toward Midian, a land familiar to Moses. As a young man, Moses had fled from Egypt to Midian after he killed an Egyptian. (See Ex. 2:11-15.) Exodus 2 describes Moses’ first interaction with Jethro (also referred to as Reuel, Ex. 2:18), the priest of Midian. Moses rescued Jethro’s seven daughters from some shepherds at a well and drew water for their sheep. Jethro invited Moses to dinner. Moses stayed with Jethro and married his daughter ...

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Dear Parents, The crossing of the Red Sea is an event in history that displays God’s grace, remembered for generations as God’s mighty redemptive act. God had clearly shown His power in Egypt through the plagues; now He was about to do something even greater. Instead of leading the Israelites into the wilderness, God instructed Moses to turn back so that the Egyptians would think they were lost. God purposefully hardened Pharaoh’s heart so that he would pursue the Israelites. Why? “Then I will receive glory by means of Pharaoh and all his army, and the ...

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Dear Parents, Moses was born into a culture that hated his people. If you remember, the Israelites—descendants of Israel (Jacob)—had set up their home in Egypt when a famine forced them to seek out food. They became so numerous that Pharaoh felt threatened and forced them into slavery. But their families still grew, and Pharaoh instituted an unimaginable method of population control: kill all of the baby boys. Moses’ story is a clear picture of God’s sovereignty. Not only was Moses’ life spared by the Egyptian princess, Moses’ mother was able to care for ...

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Dear Parents, We are taking a break from the chronological journey through the Bible to focus on Christmas. From the moment sin entered the world, its consequences were obvious. God’s people were separated from Him; they did not enjoy the intimate relationship with their Creator for which He had created them. People were affected by sickness and pain. Corruption spread quickly throughout the earth. The situation seemed hopeless, yet God did not leave His people without hope. It was into this hopelessness that God spoke. Hundreds of messages came through the prophets ...

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Dear Parents, Last week, kids learned that God had a plan for Joseph’s suffering. The land of Egypt enjoyed seven years of plenty before a famine struck, just as Pharaoh had dreamed. During that time, Joseph gathered all the excess food and stored it in the cities. The famine was severe in every land, so Joseph opened the storehouses and sold grain to everyone who needed it. Jacob and his family lived in Canaan, and Jacob sent his sons to Egypt for grain. Jacob still felt the sting of losing Joseph. He did not allow his youngest son, Benjamin, to go for fear of ...

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Dear Parents, This week, kids learned what happened after Joseph’s brothers sent him to Egypt. Jacob had recognized his favorite son’s bloody robe and concluded that his 17-year-old son had been torn apart by a vicious animal. He was devastated by the news of Joseph’s apparent death. No one could comfort Jacob. (Gen. 37:33-35) For the next 20 years, Jacob lived with the grief of losing a child. But Scripture shows us what Jacob couldn’t see: God was with Joseph, making him successful and blessing him in Egypt. Joseph worked for Potiphar, an official of ...

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