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By Mike Caton

Exodus 18:8, “Moses told his father-in-law about everything the LORD had done to Pharaoh and the Egyptians for Israel’s sake and about all the hardships they had met along the way and how the LORD had saved them.”

It says in verse 1 that Jethro heard of everything God had done for Moses and his people Israel, and how he had brought Israel out of Egypt. So, when they went into the tent, did Moses tell Jethro the same thing? If you look at verse 8 and then at verse 1, it seems they cover much the same ground. We all like to talk about the same things over and over, especially the good things. We like to tell stories where we are the hero, or where God is the hero, but he used us in a big way. But think about this for another minute.

Have you ever heard a story about someone else, whether it is good or bad, but then you get to talk directly to the person themselves? What do you tend to notice about the two stories? There are always, always differences. And often times this is not done with any malicious intent. People get confused on the details, maybe they embellish what happened a little, maybe they leave out something they didn’t think was important, maybe they couldn’t hear or understand the one who told them, maybe another person told them the same story but was a little different. The more ears a story goes into and the more mouths it comes out of, the different the story can become. Moses wanted Jethro to know exactly what had happened. And to be sure, Moses knew some details that the storytellers didn’t. And so, these two men would have a lot to talk about.

A couple of lessons here. Be wary of the stories you hear others tell. They might have the best of intentions and tell the story as best they can, but sometimes important parts are left out. We need to be careful about the things we hear and believe. And second, and this is especially true when it comes to God’s word, go to the source and get the facts for yourself. Don’t just take my word for it, or your preacher’s, or some author, and especially not everything you read on Facebook, go and see what the Bible says for yourself. My favorite group of people in the Bible would have to be the Berean Jews. Acts 17:11 tells us, “Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.”

Father, help me to be like the Bereans. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Mike Caton is the preacher at Mount Olive Church of Christ in Belhaven. He volunteers at the Ponzer Fire Department and works full time with Hyde County EMS. If you would like to receive daily devotions in your inbox, email mikecaton@centurylink.net.

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