Lenten Journey: God gave His life for us

"Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a Levite woman. The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was a fine baby, she hid him three months. When she could hide him no longer she got a papyrus basket for him, and plastered it with bitumen and pitch; she put the child in it and placed it among the reeds on the bank of the river. His sister stood at a distance, to see what would happen to him." Exodus 2:1-4

When I was growing up, one of my favorite Bible stories was the story of Moses being hidden in a basket, placed on the river and being found by Pharaoh's daughter. But I never paid much attention to the sister that stood at a distance guarding her little brother. Today, we will be joined on our journey by Miriam. She was Moses' older sister and another courageous woman from the Old Testament.

Moses was born at a time when Pharaoh had ordered the drowning of all male Hebrew babies. His mother saved him by placing him inside a basket and hiding him among the reeds at the edge of the river. But his older sister went one step further. She followed and watched over him, shaping his future.

When Moses was found by Pharaoh's own daughter, Miriam approached her and cleverly offered the real mother of the baby as a wet-nurse for the baby. What a courageous woman. And how much love she showed towards her baby brother. She was unselfish, protective and brave. This action guaranteed that she would always be part of her brother's life. He lived in the palace and she lived in the slave quarters, but she didn't care because she loved her brother and she had saved his life.

This is the kind of love that God feels for us. He loves us so much that He sent us His only Son to save us. As we approach Good Friday let's meditate on that. Who is the person that we love the most? Would we be willing to risk our life for him or her? We are that person to God. He gave His life for us.