Not all at once!

Have you ever wondered why God doesn’t fix our problems all at once? I have! God certainly could if He just would! But why doesn’t He? Why does it seem like, most times, we must fight tooth and nail over the long haul to get anywhere? As I read through the dos and don’ts of Exodus this morning in my Bible reading plan, the following verses stood out to me.

“I will send my terror ahead of you and create panic among all the people whose lands you invade. I will make all your enemies turn and run. I will send terror ahead of you to drive out the Hivites, Canaanites, and Hittites. But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals would multiply and threaten you. I will drive them out a little at a time until your population has increased enough to take possession of the land.” (Exodus 23:27–30, NLT)

Not all at once, but a little at a time? So, is this deliberate on God’s part? Yes! Why? Simply put, the lack of adversity in our lives would create even more adversity. What is meant to be a blessing would become more of a problem. The land would have spoiled if the enemy had been driven out all at once.

How many times have we seen this play out in life? Someone comes into a lot of money all at once but is not ready for it. They end up spoiled by the blessing. We have no doubt seen this in children when an unwise parent gives them whatever they want when they want it. We are no different. So God’s approach is often little by little, not all at once. He allows many small victories over a long war.

Let’s rejoice that God, in great wisdom, allows us to struggle over time to spare us from trouble too great for us!

Dos and Dont’s

Have you ever read through the Old Testament? Long about Exodus and Leviticus, the Bible starts to get very detailed. This is where Bible reading can feel slow going. It’s stuff like, “If an ox gores a man or woman to death, it must be stoned, and the flesh cannot be eaten.” There are hundreds (it seems like) of these dos and don’ts! Seeing what God has for us in this detail can be challenging. In my chronological Bible reading plan, I have just entered this zone.

As I thought about the verses I was reading, civility came to mind. Civility is orderly behavior. Another thought that comes to mind is the consequences of actions. God is separating His people from the chaos of the wicked around them through the dos and don’ts of civility. God wants his people to be civilized! To help with civility, He introduces consequences of action. In other words, “If your ox is known to gore people and you fail to keep it under control, and it kills someone, the ox and the owner must both die.” The basics of civility are in the dos and don’ts and consequences of actions. How good of God to bring civility to chaos!

God wants to bring civility to the chaos in our lives! He has given us His Word. Obedience to His Word, even in the details of our lives, will make for a life different from the chaos of the wicked around us.

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.” (Titus 2:11–14, ESV)

Let us be civilized amid a chaotic, crooked, and perverse world! Why?

“Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world.” (1 Peter 2:12, NLT)

The Good Old Days?

I came across Israel’s nostalgic lament three verses into my Bible reading this morning. 

“If only the Lord had killed us back in Egypt,” they moaned. “There we sat around pots filled with meat and ate all the bread we wanted. But now you have brought us into this wilderness to starve us all to death.” (Exodus 16:3, NLT)

Nostalgia, the “good old days,” how things used to be, oh, how these are deceitful friends! Why? Because they don’t tell the whole story. The Egyptian diet is not the whole story; what about their slavery?

The truth is God’s goodness follows us all the time and in every decade and generation. “Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever” (Psalm 23:6, NLT) But times were better back then; they were simpler and happier. No, not really! God’s grace and goodness are as powerful now as they were then. “For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation.” (Psalm 100:5, NLT)

Does God still love us? Yes! Is God still helping us? Yes! Is God still showing Himself mighty in our lives? Yes! Does God still have a good plan and expected end for our lives? Yes! Can we still see God’s salvation in our day? Yes! Well, then, today and tomorrow are full of promise! And those good old days, don’t believe the hype. Let’s look for the new thing that God is doing today!

“For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.” (Isaiah 43:19, NLT)

The Waymaker!

As I read Exodus 13-15 in my chronological Bible reading plan, I saw myself in Israel. Ouch! The great Waymaker made a way and delivered Israel from centuries of cruel bondage. Israel saw the great plagues. They saw the hardness of Pharaoh melt into a puddle. They left with Egypt’s wealth in their pockets. They saw an ever-present miraculous cloud and pillar of fire. Yet, amid God’s fantastic waymaking, miraculous acts, there is faithless drama!

As Pharaoh approached, the people of Israel looked up and panicked when they saw the Egyptians overtaking them. They cried out to the Lord, and they said to Moses, “Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Weren’t there enough graves for us in Egypt? What have you done to us? Why did you make us leave Egypt? Didn’t we tell you this would happen while we were still in Egypt? We said, ‘Leave us alone! Let us be slaves to the Egyptians. It’s better to be a slave in Egypt than a corpse in the wilderness!’ (Exodus 14:10–12, NLT)

Ouch! That’s first-class drama, and that’s where I sometimes see myself! If we are honest, we all have a resident drama queen. We know how to panic when we see trouble. We know how to think the worst about God when He has done nothing but make a way for us. We know how to fear. Oh yes, the resident drama queen is alive and well. What was Moses’ answer to all of this?

But Moses told the people, “Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today. The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” (Exodus 14:13–14, NLT)

Be still, stay calm, and watch the Waymaker! The Waymaker is not done- there’s a Red Sea to part, an army to drown, and a song of praise yet to sing! Take some deep breaths, don’t panic, be still, stay calm. God is just getting started! May we see ourselves in the following verse…

“When the people of Israel saw the mighty power that the Lord had unleashed against the Egyptians, they were filled with awe before him. They put their faith in the Lord and in his servant Moses.” (Exodus 14:31, NLT)

God’s power vs. man’s heart!

I came across the plagues this morning in my chronological Bible reading plan. Wow! I have known about these plagues since I was a little kid, but each time I read them, it is as exciting to me as though I am a little kid- something amazing always stands out!

The Bible says that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart. The human heart is one tough cookie! The plagues are certainly an amazing demonstration of God’s power. Yet, God’s power to affect the human heart is astounding! This verse in Proverbs is fascinating to me. “The king’s heart is like a stream of water directed by the Lord; he guides it wherever he pleases.” (Proverbs 21:1, NLT) Another demonstration of this power is Ezra’s testimony. “Praise the Lord, the God of our ancestors, who made the king want to beautify the Temple of the Lord in Jerusalem!” (Ezra 7:27, NLT)

Over the years, I have seen some hardened hearts. I have seen those hearts crumble under the power of the Gospel. The power of the Gospel is greater than the stubbornness of man’s heart! Let’s be encouraged! We can pray to our God, who has the power to change hearts!

Are you dealing with some tough hearts in your life? Are you frustrated with your heart’s hardness? Don’t give up! God is greater than the hardness. Don’t be discouraged; ask God to change those hearts. He can!