Exodus 33:7–11
King James Version
"And Moses took the tabernacle, and pitched it without the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the Tabernacle of the congregation. And it came to pass, that every one which sought the LORD went out unto the tabernacle of the congregation, which was without the camp." — Exodus 33:7
"And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle." — Exodus 33:11
New American Standard Bible 1995
"Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, a good distance from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting. And everyone who sought the LORD would go out to the tent of meeting which was outside the camp." — Exodus 33:7
"Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses returned to the camp, his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent." — Exodus 33:11
English Standard Version
"Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, far off from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting. And everyone who sought the LORD would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the camp." — Exodus 33:7
"Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses turned again into the camp, his young assistant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent." — Exodus 33:11
My calendar fills up fast every week. A roasting session at URA on Monday. Meeting the team at The Gateway on Friday. Bible study at Changi on Saturday. Now that OUE has opened, there's even more. Every meeting has a time and a place, and I turn up, early if I can. If I have to miss one, I call to apologise.
But my meeting with God? In the past, and too often still, it has no time and no place. I squeeze Him in on the MRT between stations, or at night when I'm already half asleep. When I feel dry, I hear myself say, "Sorry, Lord, busy lately." I would never brush off a client so easily.
Here is the honest truth. In my old life, I never missed an appointment with my addiction. I knew exactly when and where. I made time for it, made money for it and made excuses to everyone else, but never to it. It owned my calendar. Only when I came through Crossroads and Teen Challenge did I learn that a man can be just as faithful to God as he once was to his chains.
Moses understood this. He was leading a whole nation through the desert, and he didn't wait for a free moment. He took the tent and pitched it outside the camp, away from the noise and the grumbling. He gave the meeting a place. There the Lord spoke to him "face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend." God spoke to him as a friend, not as a boss to a worker.
These days my tent is a stone table under an old tree in the park near my home. I go early, when the sky is still grey and the air is cool before the Singapore heat arrives. I bring my water bottle, my Bible and nothing else. It's not fancy, but it's our place, God's and mine.
At the Academy we teach Restarters to clock in on time, because showing up builds trust. I'm learning the same is true with God. Friendship grows in fixed hours, not in leftover minutes. Even at Changi, where the men have almost no privacy, some still find their tent: a corner of the cell and a whispered prayer before the lights come on.
So let me ask you. When is your meeting with God? Where is it? Has He become the appointment you keep postponing? What has quietly taken His place in your calendar?
Pause now. Name your time and your place. Tell the people at home, "This half hour is for God." Then go and pitch your tent. The Friend who spoke with Moses is already waiting there for you.
Prayer
Thank You, heavenly Father, that time with You is a delightful opportunity to love You and enrich my life with Your presence. Forgive me for the many times I gave You my leftovers and called it busyness. Teach me to keep my appointment with You as faithfully as I once kept appointments with the things that held me captive. Give me a fixed time and a quiet place, and meet me there as a friend. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Soli Deo Gloria
"But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly." — Matthew 6:6 (KJV)
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