Join Me On the Journey

I don’t think that many of us can understand what it’s like to be a slave. In Exodus, the Israelites were in bondage for years when Moses first came to tell them that God was going to bring them out. Let’s take a peek at how they reacted to Moses’ message:

And the people believed: and when they heard that the LORD had visited the children of Israel, and that he had looked upon their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshiped. Exo. 4:31 (KJV)

The Israelites listened to the message that Moses had from God and they worshiped Him.

Pharaoh wasn’t as impressed with God’s message. Instead of letting the Israelites take a break and go into the wilderness to worship God, he decided that they must have too much time on their hands. They were making bricks with mud and straw and until that time, the straw had been provided them. Pharaoh decreed that not only must they continue to make the same number of bricks, they must now gather the straw themselves.

After that, in Exodus 6:9, we see an entirely different reaction to Moses’ words.

And Moses spake so unto the children of Israel: but they hearkened not unto Moses for anguish of spirit, and for cruel bondage. (KJV)

The word here translated “for anguish of” means grief, or much discouraged, shortness or impatience. In other words, they didn’t listen to what Moses had to say because they were so grieved and discouraged that they no longer even wanted to hear what he had to say.

Have you ever been there? Have you ever been so discouraged and grieved that you didn’t want to hear the Good News of God’s grace…of the gifts that He longs to give…of the wonders of life when you follow Him. Have you ever been so discouraged that you grew impatient with people who were trying to tell you about God’s goodness? or who were living with the blessings of God evident in their lives?

I’ve been there. It’s not a happy place. I will never go back again.

When bad things happen in your life, sometimes, you can slide into this mentality. You may not want to hear positive messages because it hurts too much. Perhaps you’ve come to the place where you think, “If I don’t expect anything good to happen, then I won’t be disappointed when I’m right.”

It’s so hard to leave that place once you’ve lived there for a time. As miserable as it is there, it is safe. You know what to expect. Reaching beyond that place is fraught with risk.

But, if you are truly ready to leave that place, you must draw a line in the sand. You must fight to pull yourself out of that quagmire.

It doesn’t seem like it will work. And it will take a time to see things differently…much longer than you feel comfortable with.

But, I promise you, life is so much better after you leave that place.

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