' When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” Ex.13:17
When you think you know the direction your life should be heading and God just doesn't seem to know what He is doing, you are in good company. The Israelites were fleeing Egypt, heading to the promised land and God took them on a path not headed in the right direction. Why? Because He knew that they weren't ready for the tests they would meet along the fast path. Maybe God knows that you aren't ready for that dream job, that forever relationship, that position of authority, that allure of wealth or that level of responsibility. Like the Karate kid, you need to "wax on wax off" for awhile and you are bursting at the seams to move on with life but God is training you. He knows more about you than you do. Trust His timing.
“Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon. Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.’ Ex. 14:2-4
Secondly, you might think "God has led me to a dead end. All the eligible men are married, I'm too old for children, my career path has stymied, my future looks bleak" ... you aren't alone. A million Israelites were led by a cloud to the edge of the sea with the Egyptians blocking their retreat.They probably thought "I guess the cloud doesn't know we can't float over water like a cloud can. That's what you get for following something without eyes." What they didn't and you don't know is that God is getting ready to do something God-like and He will grow in your eyes and He will be glorified. Picture Joseph year after year in prison waiting for his God moment. Faith takes patience because God's plan takes a while to become ripe.
On the first day of the third month after the Israelites left Egypt—on that very day—they came to the Desert of Sinai. After they set out from Rephidim, they entered the Desert of Sinai, and Israel camped there in the desert in front of the mountain." Ex. 19:1,2
Lastly, I can imagine the Israelites saying when they got to Sinai, "Hey, we're stopping here for a while? I want to get to the land of milk and honey." It's like saying, "Kids, I know we are on our way to Florida for spring break but we are going to stay at this exit a couple days because there is great shopping." Little did they know that the promised land is a let down compared to what they were about to witness. They had an opportunity to meet the creator of the universe. Are you looking for what's in God's hand rather than His hand. I love it when I offer my twin granddaughters a Cheerio and they don't want that but they want to hold my hand or me to pick them up. Sinai was in fact the end. The promised land was just the icing on the cake. Are you so ready to get to what God has planned for your life that you are missing His presence along the way? You have your eyes on the wrong thing.
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