Bringing the feminine into the Tabernacle

I was finishing up the book of Exodus this morning and struggling through that whole litany of items made for the Tabernacle. Each item is described in detail 3 times -- how the Lord described it to Moses, how the men made it, and then what it was like when finished and presented to Moses and then God. I found something interesting right in the middle, though -- something I'd not noticed before even though I've read it several times before. That is the Basin for Washing. The instructions from God (Exodus 38:8) call for it to be made from the "mirrors of the women who served at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting." Now this puzzles me. Are the mirrors to reflect the feminine presence into the tent? Or are they to reflect the women's images back outside, so that there is no feminine presence? It's a mystery. It's the only article made from something else - everything else is made custom and new. But this washing basin is specifically made from something belonging to women who serve God. It's the only mention of women serving in or near the Tent. What did those women do? Cook? Clean? Butcher? Sew? Read? Speak?
God brought the women into his Tabernacle in a symbolic way related to cleansing and light. I just don't understand more than that, and maybe I'm not meant to!
Comments? Thoughts? What does this passage say to you?

Bible online

http://www.biblegateway.com/

Bible Gateway is a great online resource. I use it often when I am away from my Bible (at work, on the road, etc.).

Being Jeremiah

Wow, it must have been tough to be Jeremiah the prophet. Charged by God to warn the people of Judah and Israel of their coming fall, he was spurned, beaten, spit on and ignored. The people hated him for what he said to them - words that came from God. Warnings that God was sending the Babylonians to conquer them and take them captive, dragging them from their land into exile. It's a message that no one wanted to hear. Jeremiah complains "I am ridiculed all day long; everyone mocks me. Whenever I speak, I cry out proclaiming violence and destruction. So the word of the Lord has brought me insult and reproach all day long." (Jeremiah 20:7). Then he continues on, saying that even when he doesn't want to carry on, he simply must. He's compelled to continue. "I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot." (Jeremiah 20:9).

It's not just that God was asking Jeremiah to prophesy - he demanded it. Jeremiah talks about God's word burning in his heart "like a fire" and knowing that, no matter the cost, he had to do what was asked of him.

We have all kinds of sayings to describe Jeremiah's situation: the bearer of bad tidings, don't kill the messenger, etc. Jeremiah wasn't very popular and at one point he wished that he had never been born. It all reminded me that sometimes it isn't easy, or popular, to do what God requires of us. But when our hearts are burning like a fire, and we hear the voice inside us urging us on, then it's a good time to listen and obey. God writes things on my heart and gives me the words I need to share them with others. He urges me to do this. Not as a preacher, but as a writer. Whatever I bring to the party is a gift from God anyway, so I am merely giving back to him what is already his.

Today, God impressed on me the lesson of Jeremiah. Sometimes it won't be popular or easy to do what God has asked. Sometimes you will be hated for it, or ignored. But God promises us all that if we will do what he commands us, his hope and his peace and his love will sustain us - even through the difficult times ahead.