Instead of "How Are You?” Ask This

Imagine you’re catching up with an old friend, but not just any friend, a close friend you loved like a sister. You’re swapping stories of places you’ve travelled, what your kids have been up to, maybe even how you’ve been seeing God work in your life. Sharing about God’s provisions, the miracles He’s done in your life and in the lives of those around you. This is exactly what’s happening in Exodus 18. Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law comes to visit him in the wilderness. But their conversation was far from ordinary, in fact, Jethro was coming to visit because he had heard about God freeing His people from the oppression of the powerful Egyptians. Nobody got by the Egyptians, so he had to “get the tea!”

Their conversation sounded something like this, 

“When I went to Pharaoh the first time, he not only said no, but he made us work 10x harder! People grumbled, and I thought I was finished as a leader. But then, God spoke to me. He promised He’d deliver us, and then He started sending these terrors on Pharaoh’s people. He turned all the water into blood, he covered the land with frogs, gnats, even had them eat up all their crops. Then came the big one, God wiped every Egyptian firstborn from the face of the earth. Pharaoh was terrified of the Lord and sent us out after that. So we got out of there in a hurry.

But let me tell you, it didn’t stop! The Egyptians pursued us, and the Lord opened the sea for us to walk through on DRY land!! I couldn’t believe it, we all made it across and once the Egyptians were the only ones left crossing, the Lord swallowed them up into the waters. 

Not to mention having no food out here. People complained and grumbled because of their hunger, God heard us and now He drops this bread-like thing for breakfast every morning. We’ve started calling it manna. 

It’s all just amazing to me, He is keeping His promises, He delivers us from every hardship, and continues to guide us to where to go next. This is the one true God!”

This brief moment where friends are catching up really challenges me to look for God’s deliverance in my own life. When I’m talking to friends, hanging out with new families, even simple interactions with the community. I have a dear friend who often says, “I don’t want to hear your story, I want to hear your God story.” Because the God story is often WAY cooler than my new nutrition habits or the vacations I hoped I could take but never did.  

The more we talk about the things God is doing in our life, the more others begin to look for the deliverance God might be bringing them too. Jethro was not necessarily a follower of the one true God, he was a priest, but manifesting through “all the gods.” Jethro was what we would consider today as, “open-minded.” In Exodus 18:10 Jethro responds to Moses’ God stories by saying, “Blessed be the Lord who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians. . .  Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods, because in this affair they dealt arrogantly with the people. (ESV) [because he rescued his people from the oppression of the proud Egyptians. - NLT]

Jethro’s response to his good friend’s God stories is to immediately worship God and call out to the Lord in full belief that He is Lord. After this, they feast in the presence of the Lord, imagine a good old’ fashioned pot-luck! 

Sharing how God delivers you can shape someone else’s faith. Look for where God has “wowed” you, and share those stories! One way I like to keep track of these is through my prayer journal. It amazes me how much I ask for, and over time, God is faithful to provide exactly what I need and cry out for. A few times a year, I flip back through all my prayers, glancing at their titles, and every time, I see how God answers. It’s not always the answer I want, but He does answer, He does deliver and He provides exactly what I need. 

Ask about your friend's God stories!

I don’t want to know your story, I want to know your God story.