So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” (Exodus 3:10-12 NIV)
In this passage, Moses is aware of God’s purpose for asking him to return to Pharaoh in Egypt. Seeing the Israelites released from Egyptian captivity was something that Moses desired greatly, but he didn’t understand why God would chose to do it this way.
Moses realized his own weakness, and that he was incapable of accomplishing this task himself. God assured him that He would be with him. God affirmed Moses’ success when He said, “WHEN you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” (Emphasis mine) God did not say “IF”, He said “WHEN.”
For Moses, Egypt was a literal place, but for most of us that will not be the case. God may ask us to go to a spiritual Egypt, as opposed to a literal Egypt. If that happens, we can be sure that God will not send us there alone, but He will be with us every step of the way. Also, we can be sure that if God has a plan for us, it is His plan that we succeed and He will help us along the way.
I’ve had many “Egypt Experiences” in my lifetime, and all of them have been growing seasons for me, spiritually and sometimes emotionally as well. There have been too many to talk about today, but I would like to share one of them.
Almost 24 years ago, I started to feel the Lord’s prompting that He wanted me to return to the church that I attended in my childhood. At the time, that idea didn’t appeal to me for a number of reasons. In some sense, that was “my Egypt.” My identity there was not about me as a person, instead it was about my family ties. The congregation was older and it wasn’t likely a place where I’d find many peers, and their style of worship was more traditional and formal. I had found my place in a new faith community where I fit in and was growing spiritually, I had friends there and the worship was contemporary.
After a few weeks of praying about it, I did return to worshiping there. That was a life-changing experience for me in a number of ways, not the least of which was that I met my husband there. It was God’s plan all along for Bruce and I to meet, and begin a journey together that is a gift from God.
Bruce and I didn’t meet until about 9 months after I went back to my childhood church. But, God’s presence with me was quite obvious throughout the entire time. Once I made the decision to be obedient to God’s leading, even when I didn’t know or understand why, I had peace, contentment and even joy.
For a long time, I focused solely on the fact that God had brought Bruce and me together. Clearly, that’s huge, but God didn’t just “show up” when it was time for my path to intersect with Bruce’s.
As I reflected on that season of life, I could see the blessing that God had given to me in Bruce. But, I was at risk of overlooking all of the other blessings God gave me all throughout the journey.
I expected that I would be completely alone in this place, but I did make friendships there. I got involved in various activities. God did something extraordinary for me by giving me the peace that came with trusting Him, when my actions seemingly didn’t make sense.
He wasn’t just there to see His big plan accomplished. He led me on a journey that would greatly nurture my faith in Him, from the smallest details to the biggest. In hindsight, trusting God and following His lead on that journey was the best decision I could have ever made. My whole life changed because of one step of faith.
Is He asking you to take a step of faith in some area of your life today? Where is YOUR Egypt?
My prayer is, “Heavenly Father, thank You for always knowing what is best for us, and showing us which path we should take to make it to the destination that You have chosen for us. Please help us to trust You more, and to recognize the miracles that You do for us every day, no matter how big or small. Please give us hearts that are willing to do follow You wherever You lead. In Jesus’ Name, AMEN.
