DCLM Daily Manna 2024: DCLM Daily Manna 9 November 2024: God Feels Your Pain
Text: Exodus 3:4-19 (KJV)
4 And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.
7 And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;
8 And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
9 Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.
10 Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.
11 And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?
12 And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain.
13 And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?
14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.
16 Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt:
17 And I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt unto the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, unto a land flowing with milk and honey.
18 And they shall hearken to thy voice: and thou shalt come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the king of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath met with us: and now let us go, we beseech thee, three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God.
19 And I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not by a mighty hand.
KEY VERSE: Exodus 3:9,10
“Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.”
Quite often, the pressure of our present experiences leaves us almost unhappy. We see no sign of respite from anywhere; we feel abandoned, even by God. But nothing can be further from the truth. When we think we are all alone, God gets busy working out a solution to our situation. Nigerian songwriter aptly puts it thus: “…Tobechukwu, He has done it for me. Even before I pray, Jehovah Nissi answered me,… tobechukwu, He has done it for me… When I was worried and couldn’t sleep, He was working behind the scene o, tobechukwu, He has done it for me…” Many do not realise that when they are worried and getting exasperated, God is working behind the scene.
In our text, the suffering of the children of Israel in Egypt, seemed to have reached a boiling point, and they had no idea how to escape it. Just then, God swung into action and arranged a meeting with Moses, assuring him He had heard their cries. He had come down to rescue them from Egypt and take them to the land of Canaan, a promise He gave to their forebears. When Moses, who had been chosen to lead them out of Egypt, began to make excuses, God assured him that He would be with him.
When it seems as if God has forgotten you, and there is no hope, you should not despair. He will respond soon enough. He might send help from unexpected quarters and at a time you are no longer eagerly awaiting His intervention. But you must not waver in faith, “For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry” (Hebrews 10:37).
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
God’s work begins where human efforts stop.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
1 Kings 17-18
Daily Manna 9 November 2024
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