The Blessing Inside of the Blessing

Last night when looking up at the sky during a car ride to my aunt’s house, the Lord put on my heart the story of Moses and the Israelites. As many of you may know the story, throughout Exodus, Moses leads the way in freeing the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. The Lord worked in miraculous ways to free his people. From protecting them from deadly plagues in Egypt to PARTING THE RED SEA, the Lord did the impossible to fulfill his promise in saving his people. 

What gravitated me towards discussing this passage was the lack of faith that the Israelites had throughout their journey of going to the Promise Land. In one chapter, the Lord defies the laws of gravity, and the Israelites are rejoicing in the Lord’s faithfulness, but in several chapters later, the Israelites are complaining about their food supply and are worshiping idols and statues. From a reader’s perspective, it’s easy to judge the circumstantial faith that the Israelites had, but how many of us are like that with God? We praise God when we receive a blessing but quickly question his faithfulness when our circumstances are not aligning up with his promises. We get amnesia as Christians and quickly forget the faithful and consistent God that we serve, just like the Israelites. When we chose to dwell in our circumstances, we are not only diminishing the impact of the blessing, but we are robbing God of his glory. It’s easy to be faithful to God when a prayer is answered or a promise is fulfilled, but will we praise God’s prior to the blessing when the odds are against us, and our circumstance is worsening?

What’s even more interesting about this story is that throughout the passage, the Israelites even suggest going back to Egypt instead of pursuing the Promise Land. They were willing to compromise their freedom for comfortability! To me, that spoke volumes about the nature of humans; we rather avoid trials and hardships, choosing comfortability over purpose. But I believe that Lord was trying to do so much more than just take the Israelites to the Promise Land. I believe the Lord was trying to instill a faith in his people like never before. He was giving them a chance to receive a blessing far beyond a land of security and safety. He was giving them a chance to have a deeply rooted faith in him. What if the hardships we are running from are the potential catalyst for the biggest life lessons that God wants to instill in us? What if it’s so much more than just a prayer being be answered, but the fruit that the Lord wants you to reap throughout the journey? Maybe there’s a blessing inside of the blessing that you are missing out on, and the one thing you’re avoiding will be your breakthrough?

For me, I am seeing these 6 months of waiting to go on the World Race so much more than just time for fundraising and achieving the goal of 15,800 dollars. The Lord is trying to teach me lessons in the hardships that I am facing, purifying my heart in the midst of opposition. We serve a God of intention, and with every obstacle we face comes an opportunity to grow and become more deeply rooted in him. The Lord is preparing my heart so that when I go out on the mission’s field, I am not hindering the Lord’s impact and glory from being displayed. I want to be ready and willing for the Lord to move in full capacity. My ending question to you guys is, what lessons are you missing out from the Lord that is preventing you from receiving the blessing inside of the blessing?