Ok, so it’s 6:00 in the morning and I can’t sleep, which is really aggravating because it is Saturday morning. But I have to share what’s on my heart this morning and what I have been laying awake thinking about. Please forgive me for the length. Once I got started, I couldn’t stop.
I would like to continue the saga of the ancient Israelites…
We left off at Exodus 2:24-25. Exodus tells us, “God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them.”
But the story doesn’t end there. As a matter of fact, that is just the beginning. It is the beginning of God’s love affair with the people of Israel. Before this, the focus had been on the Patriarchs. He had made a promise to them.
In Genesis chapter 12, God said to Abraham, “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great.” This promise was later confirmed to Isaac (Genesis 26) and to Jacob (Genesis 28).
This happened in Egypt while the Israelites were slaves. Pharaoh tried to diminish their numbers by killing the baby boys. They flourished anyway. God had a plan.
And God has a plan for me. And He has a plan for you. Even in the midst of our Egypt, God is working His plan for His greater glory.
This brings me to the point I wanted to make.
The Israelite’s situation did not immediately improve once Moses came back to Egypt. In fact, it got worse. In Chapter 5 of Exodus, Moses and Aaron go before the Pharaoh to ask for 3 days for the Israelites to go into the mountains to worship God. They were only asking for 3 days. But Pharaoh says no and calls them lazy. Since he thinks they are lazy, he decides to make them work harder.
Yes, you read that right, harder. He decides that they should have to make the same amount of bricks. But they will not be given the straw they need to make the bricks. Instead they will have to gather the straw themselves. Then when they cannot make the same amount in the same amount of time, he has them beaten.
You can imagine the response of the Israelites. They grumbled against the very people who came to help them, Moses and Aaron.
Ok, I know what you are thinking, “Alicia, where is the encouragement in that?” Bear with me, I’m getting there.
Moses and Aaron did what we should do in times of trouble, they went to God. This was God’s response in Genesis 6:6-8…
“Therefore, say to the Israelites: ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. And I will bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to give to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the Lord.’”
God’s plan wasn’t for the Israelites to just leave Egypt for 3 days. He had a greater plan in mind. He wanted to deliver the Israelites from Egypt. And when it was done, He wanted them to know, beyond a shadow of a doubt that He, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, was the one who had delivered them. But, he doesn’t just say the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He says “Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.” He very specifically says, “Your God”, not some impersonal god, but their own personal God.
He wants to be our personal God, as well. Not some far away impersonal god, but our God. He wants us to know Him beyond a shadow of a doubt. He wants us to know that we belong to Him and He belongs to us.
This is His ultimate plan as revealed in Revelation 21:3-4, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
Isn’t that a wonderful thought? One day there will be no more mourning or crying or pain.
So, what do we do in the meantime, when there is mourning and crying and pain? We trust in our Deliverer. We trust that He knows the greater plan. We trust His goodness and faithfulness. We trust His love.
It isn’t easy. Some days it is downright difficult. And yes, some days I groan and complain like the Israelites. But, like the Israelites had to be reminded of God’s promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, we have to remember God’s promises to us. Promises like Isaiah 43:1-3a…
“But now, this is what the Lord says– he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.’”
And we have to remember to go to God and not try to handle the problems on our own. Paul tells us in Philippians 4:6-7, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God, And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
That is my prayer for us today. May we remember God’s promises. May we remember His love. And may we remember to take it God when life seems overwhelming and more than we handle. He has a better plan and a better way. He will see us through.
If you have a few minutes, check out this video on YouTube. (I have seen blogs that actually have the video imbedded in it, but I can’t figure that out. If you know how to do that, would you please let me know.)
The song is Resurrection by Nicole Sponberg. It has been an inspiration to me during dark times. The video I picked highlights the words, which are beautiful. I especially love the line “Make something beautiful out of all this suffering”. And if you think about it, say a prayer for Nicole. At the end of May, she lost her beautiful baby boy of 10 weeks to SIDS(they think).
Have a beautiful & blessed Saturday! Maybe now, I can go back to bed and sleep.
