Joseph is gone, and so are the memories of how he (an Israelite) saved Egypt from devastation and ruin. There’s a new Pharaoh on the throne, and he hates the Israelites and has reduced them to enslaved people.
The Israelites pray to their God for deliverance, and God hears their cries and turns to Moses for their Exodus.
Within Pharaohs, hatred for the Israelites came with hatred’s best friend, a cold heart.
Moses pleaded with Pharaoh on Gods’ behalf to let his people go! Pharaoh’s response was No!
Exodus 8:21-23 NCV “If you don’t let them go, I will send swarms of flies into your houses. The flies will be on you, your officers, and your people. The houses of Egypt will be full of flies, and they will be all over the ground too. But I will not treat the Israelites the same as the Egyptian people. There will not be any flies in the land of Goshen, where my people live. By this you will know that I, the Lord am in this land. I will treat my people differently from your people. This miracle will happen tomorrow
Exodus 9:4 NCV “But the Lord will treat Israel’s animals differently from the animals of Egypt. None of the animals that belonged to the Israelites will die.”
Exodus 9:26 NCV “The only place it did not hail was in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites lived.”
Where are you living?
Egypt here represents pride, arrogance, power, authority, wealth, privilege, a disconnect, hatred, racism, and disbelief in God.
Israelites here represent oppression, servitude, daily hardships and struggles, heavy loads, big quotas and low pay, bondage, and debt. However, we see this group bending a knee to their God asking for his help! His deliverance!
I challenge you to reflect on your heart…has life and its many struggles left you with a heart of stone? Might you live behind a wall of success that you no longer see the hurting and broken living on the streets? The Israelites had to suffer some of the trials from Pharaoh’s lessons, such as we do in life, but when the significant hailstorms hit, do you sit and complain about your life, or do you turn your troubles over to God? Is it hailing in your Egypt, or do you have blue skies and sun in your Goshen!
Prayer produces results…Give God a try; I think you’ll be glad you did! Thank you for joining me today, and be blessed. 🥰
Sunshine On My Shoulder 