Read: Exodus 25:10–22

Then you shall make a mercy seat of pure gold; two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its width….You shall put the mercy seat on the top of the ark;…There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the covenant, I will deliver to you all my commands for the Israelites. Exodus 25:17, 21a, 22

When God instructed Moses to have the Israelites build the Ark of the Covenant, God commanded that a seat be placed on top of the Ark. The “mercy seat” was the location where God would meet with the Hebrew people to give them direction. For generations, the Israelites would bring the Ark of the Covenant with them wherever they went. When they went into battle, the Ark of the Covenant—a box with a seat on top—would travel with them. While this must have looked like foolishness to Israel’s adversaries, it was profound and powerful symbolism to the Hebrew people. God traveled with them. God moved with and among the Israelites. From the Ark of the Covenant, God gave direction and instruction to the Hebrews. In a very real way, God was in the driver’s seat!

Is God a passenger in your life or the driver?

Lord, I charge off in any direction I choose. This allows me to feel in control. But deep down, control is not what I crave. I long for you. I desire Your direction. I want You in the driver seat of my life. Please, Lord, take the wheel…I offer it to You. In Jesusname, I pray. AMEN.