Because They Were Discouraged

The kids and I began reading Genesis after the summer, and now we have moved into Exodus. So many familiar accounts, and yet, there are details that I have forgotten or never noticed. Good examples and bad examples… people to learn from.

So, here we are in Genesis 6. Moses and Aaron followed God’s directions and told Pharaoh that the “I Am” said to let His people go, and Pharaoh responded by increasing their work load and beating the Israelite foremen when the people could not keep up. Moses told the Israelites how God was (still) going to take them for His own people, free them from the Egyptians, and give to them the land He promised to Abraham for his descendants. Verse 9 says, “…but they did not listen to him because of their discouragement and cruel bondage.”

There is something in this that just touched my heart. It’s like watching children give up on a race when they’ve almost reached the finish line, but they don’t realize how close they are, and they are physically and emotionally wrung out. They’re on survival mode. This thing they had cried out for and desperately wanted, this thing that they needed, they didn’t listen because they were discouraged.

The thing I want to communicate today is that the Israelites’ discouragement did not stop God from working on their behalf. He had compassion on them because of their suffering. No one told them to suck it up. If anything, God’s promises were designed to help them have faith to take the next steps because God knew it was going to get harder before it would get better. Ultimately, God fulfilled His promises, not based on anything they did or did not do but by His power in order to satisfy His will for them.

He will do the same for you. It is not a sin to feel discouraged. It is usually a sign that we need to take the time to refocus our attention on God instead of the problem. So lets do that today. Whatever it is that seems hard, or even impossible, lets take it to God in prayer and focus on the Promise Keeper instead of the problem. If it’s His will, then He will provide the way. It may get harder before things get better, but we can rest in the knowledge that God is working on our behalf.

You know, it’s not about you and me. Our lives are a testimony to God and His greatness and His love. Our lives are about pointing others to Him. I’ve been learning to ask God to answer in a way that gives me the biggest testimony. He has not disappointed!