St. Bronislava Catholic Church Youth Ministry

Book of Exodus

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The Book of Exodus

Freedom! God sets you free - not free to do anything you feel like doing-free to live a happy and meaningful life. The Israelites' road map of Exodus 20 can be your road map as well. You don't have to keep trying things in order to discover what's good and what's bad. Your map tells you.

The book of Exodus tells how God stepped in with stunning miracles to free the Israelites. Exodus contains the Ten Commandments, God's road map to the good life. The Exodus moves on to record, in striking detail, the Israelites' decision at times to follow that road map and at other times to ignore it.

Did you know?

	Moses, the son of a Hebrew slave, was raised as an Egyptian prince.
	Moses was 80 years old when he led Israel out of Egypt.
	God sent ten plagues to punish Egypt for persecuting his people and to show that Egypt's gods were powerless.
	Mount Sinai is 7,500 feet high.
	Moses wrote this book about 1,440 B.C.

Look it up!

	What is slavery like (Exodus 1:14)?
	Are you the only one who sometimes finds it hard to obey God (Exodus 4:10,13)?
	Road map? What road map (Exodus 20:1-17)?
	What happens when you know something is right but choose to do wrong (Exodus 32)?

Grab your Bible and Can YOU Relate?!

Can you Relate? EXODUS 1:15-17

Do you ever feel like it's hard to be friends with other teens, especially when they ask you to do something you know is wrong? The midwives in Egypt had a similar problem. The king had ordered them to kill any boy baby born to an Israelite. No question about that being wrong, and no question that it would be dangerous to disobey. What happened? "The midwives feared God and did no do what the king of Egypt had told them to do" (Exodus 1:17). The next time someone tries to get you to do something wrong, think about the midwives of Egypt and do what's right.

Can you Relate? EXODUS 5:22-6:8

Do you ever get discouraged? You study hard for a science test and still get a D? You clean your room, and your mom still finds 103 things you need to do before it passes inspection? Is it worth it to even try? Does anyone care? Moses felt that way. He told Egypt's king to let God's people go, but the king just made them work harder. And that made the Israelites angry with Moses. Nothing was working out like it was supposed to. God had a word for Moses: "I will free you . . . I will take you as my own" (Exodus 6:6-7). If you belong to God, he's on your side. He'll bring you through discouraging times to a better tomorrow.

Can you Relate? EXODUS 8:15

When you say, "I'll do my homework at six," do you keep your word? Or when you promise to be home at ten, are you there? True, these are little things. But they're important because they're issues of character. And character is shaped day by day, choice by choice. Egypt's king was a young man at the time of the exodus. The land of Egypt suffered plague after plague because its king kept refusing to do what he said he would. Oh, God probably won't send plagues your way if you don't keep every promise you make. But you can be sure he doesn't want you to be like Egypt's untrustworthy king.

Can you Relate? EXODUS 9:13-21

How do you know if someone really believes in God? Not by what they say, but by what they do. When Moses announced a hailstorm, the Egyptians who believed in God rushed to get their flocks and herds inside (Exodus 9:20-21). This is a pretty good test to apply to yourself as well as to others. Are you eager to obey God's commands? Do you make choices by asking yourself what's right, what will please the Lord? There's no wiser way to live your life, as the people of Egypt found out. The animals of the believing Egyptians survived. The Egyptians who didn't believe God lost all they owned.

Can you Relate? EXODUS 12:14-16

Some occasions are so important you celebrate them every year. Birthdays. Marriages. Christmas. Did you know that God ordered the Israelites to celebrate a special holiday? He told them to celebrate every year their release from slavery. What has God done for you that's worth remembering and celebrating? Some people celebrate the day they accepted Christ as Savior, a "spiritual birthday." Some record answers to prayer and look back over that record at least once a year. God is good, and it's good to celebrate the things he does for you.

Can you Relate? EXODUS 18:17-19

Advice is often hard to take. Dad wants to show you how to bowl. Mom says she knows a better way to study. Your older brother says your sweater is out of style. Hey, whose life is it, anyway? Check out how Moses reacted when his father-in-law Jethro offered advice. Jethro started out in the worst way possible: he said, "What you are doing is not good" (Exodus 18:17). Talk about criticism! But Moses listened. He didn't get hostile. Instead he realized that Jethro was right, and he followed his advice. If one of the Bible's truly great men, Moses, can take advice without feeling attacked or getting hostile, maybe you can too.

Can you Relate? EXODUS 23:4-5

You find the lost term paper of a classmate who hates you--and give it back to him. You say nice things about the girl who's spreading terrible rumors about you. To most people that's crazy. They say you ought to tear up the term paper and get even with that nasty girl. But you don't because you're following a pattern established in Exodus 23:4-5. Why does God tell you to do good to people who don't like you? Maybe because God wants you to be like him, not like those around you who like to hurt you. And maybe because they best way to get rid of an enemy is to make him or her your friend.

Can you Relate? EXODUS 31:1-11

Ken gets all A's. You don't. Shelly is a good speaker. You're not. Karen has a good voice. You can't sing a note. Kind of makes you think you'll never amount to much, doesn't it? Of course, you work harder at school than Ken. You may not be a good speaker, but you can fix just about anything on a car. This passage speaks about Bezalel. God gave him talent in all kinds of crafts - from metal work to jewelry design. Bezalel used his talent for God. Any talent you have is a gift from God. He can use your talent. He can use you.

Can you Relate? EXODUS 34:14

Jealously is one of those "bad" emotions, isn't it? Why then does the bible say, "the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God"? The Hebrew word here describes an intense love. In human beings jealousy usually is selfish. God's jealousy is different. God's jealousy is intense love, a love so strong that he want only what is best for you. That's why God gets so upset when you sin. He loves you too much to just stand by and see you mess up your life. His intense love makes him jealous of anything in your life that pulls you away from him and the wonderful things he has planned for you.

Can you Relate? EXODUS 39:42-43

Have you ever finished a job and then stood back and looked at it with pride and satisfaction? When the Israelites finished building the tabernacle, Exodus says they did all the work "just as the Lord had commanded" and "Moses inspected the work." Can you imagine the people standing there as Moses looked over their work, proud and happy that they'd done such a good job? Life is pretty similar. You want to be able to look back at the choices you've made and feel great satisfaction. You want to watch with pride as God inspects your life and says you've lived it "just as the Lord commanded."