The Blessing
Waiting, Rewards and the Presence of the Lord
Dear Expectant Reader,
Our Huskies are on high alert whenever they notice:
a suitcase,
a backpack,
and a Hydro Flask.
They recognize the tell-tale signs of a vacation, which means separation from us is imminent.
As I’m just returning from a vacation myself, I also happen to be reading in Numbers 6 and 10. The Israelites weren’t really on a vacation, so to speak; however, they had left their home in Egypt and were en route to the Promised Land. It’s highly likely they felt that separation from their God might also be imminent.
Would you give me a brief moment to explain myself?
Setting the Scene
May I set the scene for you?
Would you trust me to briefly close your eyes?
Imagine Mount Sinai - a large, imposing mountain in the distance, and a massive cloud hovering over it, a visual symbol of the Lord’s presence.
Now insert yourself into the scene as an Israelite.
The moment becomes more intimate and likely carries a wide range of emotions.
As an Israelite, it’s fresh in your mind that Moses has gone up Mount Sinai, to receive the Ten Commandments. Forty days is a long time to wait to see him again. You pause in your daily routine, wondering when he’ll come back down the mountain. You might feel nervous, or perhaps even worried for him.
Then he comes down.
You can almost see the smoke coming from his ears. His eyes burn with anger, and his hands shake as he cradles two stone tablets. You take a deep breath, trying to absorb the intensity of his emotion.
Before you can fully process what’s happening, the tablets are shattered at his feet.
What could have made him so angry?
And then it hits you; the golden calf you’ve been worshiping in his absence.
It didn’t seem so bad at the time. You thought Moses had deserted you. You needed something to believe in, something to worship, something to try and calm your frazzled nerves after leaving Egypt.
Before you know it, Moses gathers the broken pieces and grinds them with a mortar. He commands you to drink the bitter gold water.
Something is terribly wrong.
Your emotions rise as you wonder what will happen next.
You bow your head to compose yourself. When you lift it again, you see Moses’ back as he ascends the mountain once more.
A Pause in the Story
I hope that through this retelling, you felt what the Israelites may have felt. I wanted us to settle into the story together.
This must have been an incredibly emotional time, one filled with uncertainty, worry, and anxiety. Perhaps you felt some of that as well.
Let me offer you a moment of relief.
A pause away from the tension of their circumstances.
To ease your mind, a timeline may help.
The Israelites had already been in the wilderness for nearly a year since their dramatic exit from Egypt. Can you imagine what that year might have felt like? I imagine it held a whole smorgasbord of emotions.
It was here, in this context in Numbers, that I felt a gentle nudge to notice the waiting.
Like the Israelites, we are often called to wait.
The Weight of Waiting
I’ve personally discovered that seasons of waiting can be difficult. None of us are strangers to waiting.
Sometimes, in those seasons, we fall prey to poor decisions. We do things we know aren’t good for us. We may feel forgotten, which can lead us to act out simply to be noticed.
Like the Israelites, have you ever done something you weren’t proud of while waiting?
Or let go of a belief because it felt like it was “taking too long”?
I can think of moments in my own life when I shifted toward believing God wasn’t good, or even more intimately, that my prayers didn’t matter.
Those are just two examples of struggles I’ve faced in the past and still feel the Lord gently pruning in me today.
The Reward Hidden in the Wait
It was at this point in the Israelites’ story that I felt that familiar nudge again; this time to notice the rewards of waiting.
As I continued reading, I came across Numbers 6:24–26 - verses I recognize from the worship song “The Blessing” by Kari Jobe and Cody Carnes.
For those unfamiliar, I’ll share it with you:
Numbers 6:24–26
“The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you.
The Lord turn His face toward you
and give you peace.”
Because I’d been prompted to look for rewards, I noticed a few things I’d love to explore with you.
Will you put on your scholar hat with me?
A bit nerdy, I know 📖 but I love looking up the meaning of words, even familiar ones, to see what treasures might be hidden in their definitions.
Mining the Words
Two words stood out to me immediately: make and turn.
My go-to- Dictionary.com defines make as “to bring into existence by shaping or changing material,” with synonyms like fashion and create.
Without context, definitions can feel hollow, so I began asking what the Holy Spirit might be inviting me to notice.
Was the blessing suggesting that the Lord would shape or fashion His face so it could shine on His people? That His presence could be seen and revealed?
If so, that realization alone felt like a gift.
It was as if the Holy Spirit was whispering, I am near.
Let’s sit with that gem for a moment.
As I kept digging, I noticed the phrase, “shine on and be gracious to you.”
Gracious means “pleasantly kind, benevolent, and courteous.”
Not only is the Lord making His face available to us, He’s also revealing the nature of His heart toward us.
These kinds of revelations excite me, and I hope they excite you too.
If you’re willing, I’d like to keep my nerdy hat on just a bit longer and explore the word turn.
Turn means “to cause to move around… for the purpose of opening.”
If we place that meaning into the phrase “turn His face toward you and give you peace,” I wonder if the blessing is revealing that when God turns toward His people, He opens the fountains of peace.
Peace in unfamiliar and uncharted territory.
What a treasure.
One we’ll save for another day.
I think we’ve struck gold here.
Would you agree?
Presence That Moves With Us
If you can stay with me a little longer, there’s one final revelation I’d love to share.
As I’m reading through the One Year Chronological Bible, Numbers 10:1–10 follows immediately after the blessing in Numbers 6.
Once again, I felt that gentle nudge, this time highlighting presence and movement as a continuation of the blessing.
Moses receives instructions about how the Israelites will know when it’s time to move: the sound of a trumpet.
Think of the trumpet as synonymous with the Lord’s presence.
The trumpet would sound when they were to move, when they were called to battle, and when they rejoiced and presented offerings.
As I placed myself in the shoes of an Israelite, something became clear:
The Lord’s presence was continual.
His presence rested with them in the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night.
His presence moved with them as they journeyed.
His presence was among them in battle and in celebration.
His presence was part of the blessing.
Gathering the Treasures
To gather these truths together, imagine them as gems strung on a necklace:
We will be called to wait for the Lord.
There are rewards woven into the waiting.
One reward was The Blessing, spoken over the Israelites and available to us today.
The Lord’s continual presence; past, present, and future, is the ultimate reward.
This necklace is beautiful because it was formed through intentional searching; through mining the Word together.
A Final Encouragement
My final encouragement is this:
The Lord is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
His presence remains with His children.
His heart toward us is gracious and full of peace.
Because of this, we can rest; knowing we are seen, watched attentively and affectionately, and gently guided forward, even into battle.
Dear Reader, thank you for walking with me today. I hope you don’t feel overwhelmed, weary, or heavy. My prayer is that you felt like a true companion in this discovery; and that you’ll carry some of these treasures with you.
Allow me to leave you with The Blessing once more.
The Blessing
Numbers 6:24–26
“The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you.
The Lord turn His face toward you
and give you peace.”
Lovingly,
Miss Kristin Lyn
Scriptures to Sit With
1 Peter 5:7 (AMPC)
Cast the whole of your care—all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all—on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully.
Hebrews 13:8
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
Joshua 1:9
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.
Psalm 16:11
You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
Reflection Questions
In your own life, where have you seen rewards emerge as you waited on God?
Do you sense the truths of The Blessing at work in your life today?
All Scripture references are from the New International Version (NIV) unless otherwise noted.