The story of Moses leading the Hebrews out of Egypt contains a whole lot of complaining.
- A Hebrew complains to Moses after Moses kills an Egyptian guard who is beating another Hebrew. (Exodus 2: 11-14, ESV)
- Moses complains to God when God calls him to lead the Hebrews out of Egypt: “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.” (Exodus 4: 13, ESV)
- When Pharaoh puts unrealistic production demands on the Hebrew slaves, the Hebrews complained to Moses and Aaron. Moses, in turn, complained to God. (Exodus 5: 20-22, ESV)
- As the Egyptians pursued the Hebrews after Pharaoh changed his mind about releasing them, the Hebrews said to Moses, “it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” (Exodus 14: 12, ESV)
- The Lord parted the sea to let the Hebrews through and closed it back up to swallow the Egyptians. He made stale water sweet. He provided manna for them to eat in the desert. Still the Hebrews questioned God and Moses: “you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” (Exodus 16: 2, ESV)
Granted, God took an unlikely servant in Moses. The Hebrews had to wait through 10 plagues before their release. And, it wasn’t easy after that. But, God kept saying “I hear you. I am with you.” He may have done it in his own good time, but he had them covered.
God has you covered. It may take awhile. Stop complaining! We read Exodus and think “Why are the Hebrews complaining about being rescued from slavery?” We are surprised to see Moses questioning and complaining to God so often.
But, don’t we do this?
Don’t we complain when God answers our prayers but they not answered in the way we wanted them answered? Don’t we continually question and complain to God when he doesn’t answer our prayer quickly enough for our worldly, selfish schedule?
God keeps you in his care. Remember that always. Even if you don’t think he’s there, he is. Just as Moses told the Hebrews “he has heard your grumbling.” (Exodus 16: 7, ESV)
This devotional corresponds with Chapter 4 of The Story. I hope you will prayerfully consider joining us in this faith journey. For more information visit: Read The Story with The Wellness Wife. You can also join our Facebook group, Read “The Story” with The Wellness Wife. Don’t be discouraged by the fact that we’ve already started. You can pick up anywhere and catch up at your leisure. Follow this link for all devotionals related to The Story.
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