Every Step of the Way

Today's Reading: Exodus 6:1-8

In Exodus 5, Moses and Aaron are sent by God to rescue His people in Egypt. They appear before Pharaoh and request that the Israelites be allowed to march into the desert for three days to worship their God. Pharaoh's response was to increase the burden on the Israelite slaves by making them find their own straw to make the bricks and not reducing their daily quota. In verse 22, Moses speaks to God and reports that Pharaoh has just increased the trouble for God's people and that this doesn't appear to be much of a rescue.

Have you ever felt like that? You were looking for a rescue and what happened next was far from any rescue you might have imagined!

Our reading for today opens with God's answer to Moses, "Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh: because of my mighty hand he will let them go; because of my mighty hand he will drive them out of his country." He goes on to say that He was known as God Almighty to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob but is now revealing Himself as Yahweh, or I AM, to His people.

"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 is now revealing Himself as the great I AM. The God who can and will rescue them. The God who is the one and only true God. As you read through the rest of Exodus then, you see that God did just that. He delivered His people...made good on all His promises...performed miracles and wonders...provided for them...cared for them...led them.

The question for us is: do we believe that the great I AM of Moses' day is still the great I AM that we need today? Do we believe that He will rescue us? Do we believe that He will fight for us? Do we believe that He will fill in the gaps where we are weak or lacking?

As we enter a season of great faith for our church family, we must believe that He was and is and will always be the great Yahweh, I AM...that He can provide ways for us to sacrifice to meet the goals laid out before us...that He will bring those who don't know Him here for us to minister to...that He will bless us in ways that we haven't even begun to think about.

And then one day, just like the Israelites, we will be able to look back and see how His hand was at work every step of the way.

- Holly Barrett