Chapter 8: I thought it was interesting how God kept stepping the plagues up a notch each time... the first one didn't really affect Pharoah, so he didn't care (Exodus 7:23), but the frogs came up in his space, so he couldn't turn his back on them... sometimes I am guilty of this... I think, well that is sad but it doesn't affect me so I quickly forget and move on... I need to be more active in, at the very least, praying for others and also take more action to help them in their situations, instead of focusing on "me" and how it may or may not affect "me".
verse 10... I wonder why Pharoah gave the time of tomorrow, instead of immediately or today?
verse 14 made me think about how we can be so quick to ask for relief from hardships, but then, how quickly we also forget "our side" of the "deal"... the worship of God, etc...when all becomes good again.
verse 18 and 19... again, I like how God keeps stepping it up, and now, the magicians can't follow suit... first, God shows His overall power, little by little increasing it until it is obvious only God can do it... then, God goes on to show which side He is on by keeping His people safe... it is so strategic how He executes this... if He had done it any other way, He would not have had the Israelites attention, and they would not have been so fully ready to worship Him when it was all said and done...
Chapter 9: I love verse 2, because it's not just about letting the people go and alleviating their suffering, but it includes the reason "to worship"... so often I think that it is all about me... the suffering, the blessing, everything... yet, it is "so that" the very important part can happen: God's plan is always for the purpose of His worship and glory.
verse 5- from here on out, God's timing is always "tomorrow"... I wonder if that is based on the precedence that Pharoah set up in chapter 8, or if "tomorrow" is somehow just overall significant in the culture?
verse 14-16... I love how God is again stepping it up and showing His strength... He talks about now laying on His full force (becuase up until then He'd been holding back, yet it was already above and beyond what the others could do), and also God reminds them how He really could just wipe them out if He wanted to, but He has a purpose in all this and it is for them to recognize who God is and that all the earth will know God... this is the overarching theme of the Bible... it is here, was in Genesis, and continues throughout the whole New Testament... I AM your God, you ALL are my people and I will be known by everyone everywhere for who I AM.
I like how in verse 19, even though God is going to bring some suffering, He still cares and gives them an additional warning so they do not have to die or suffer unneccessarily... but only some listen... again, how often do I bring unneccessary suffering and hard times on myself because I do not listen to God's instruction... it is there for my benefit, but I act like He is punishing me by giving me His words of warning in love sometimes.
verse 29-30... I think it is cool, how even though God knows the true heart of the people, that it is not really for Him completely, God still delivers them anyway... His love is so amazing, and I know He does this for me too and I am so glad that He does.... I just hope that at some point I stop making Him have a reason to bail me out again.
Chapter 10: I love how the forgiveness just keeps flowing each time when asked... it reminds me of Jesus saying forgive 70times 7 (verse: Matthew 18:21-22, Luke 17:2-4)... He is not asking us to do anything He has not already done millions of times over!
verse 21-23 is my favorite plague... ok, I know it is weird to say that, but I think it is awesome that it is so dark you can't see anything (like in a cave or something), and that the light that the Israelites had was to localized and didn't spread... that is really cool and amazing (albeit from a nerdy point of view, but still really cool)! :)
Chapter 11: verse 3... reminder that favor in the eyes of people comes from God not by our own works (so, I don't have reason to ever have a big head, because, guess what... once again, it is not about me!) :)
verse 9... God even has a purpose for the "difficult" people in our lives... it is really cool that ALL things... EVERYTHING that happens is part of God's plan... it really makes me think about the details and stand in awe of all that God orchestrates throughout any given day... it also makes me want to look at difficult situations in a different way... I mean, if God is allowing them to fullfill His purpose, then I should look at the grumpy person or difficult event as a blessing or a gift or at least something to learn from (which is a blessing/gift, too)... that will take some working on, but I am glad to be able to see this idea so I can work on it.
Good to have you back Val and welcome "R"... hope all is well with you both, and thanks for your insights! Have a wonderful night!
God Bless,
sandJ
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8-11 Talks about Pharaoh in Egypt. How God says to Moses to relay the message to Pharah to let His people go, so they may worship Him. Pharaoh would not let the people go to the desert to worship him. After the many plagues, Pharaoh still sinned against God.
ReplyDeleteThinking of my life and how much I sin daily, then ask for forgiveness, while still sinning again the following day. I am understanding that we are such great sinners. We are not worthy of his grace and mercy. We don't deserve his gift of salvation.
What does it take in our lives to stop sinning?
How many times are you going to repeat sinning?
Be thankful; God forgives us every time we ask. From now on try not sin no more...
Sandj
-8 frogs and gnats and flies, oh my! makes me definitely glad I won't be in hell, if this is what happens to people who reject God here on earth
ReplyDelete-8:26 Moses remembered he had to obey completely, and rejected the idea of worshiping God right there.
-9 livestock and boils and hail, oh no!
-10 locusts and darkness
-11:8 Moses was hot with anger before Pharaoh - I don't remember reading that before
-Thanks for the great insight tonight. I go along definitely with the theme of trying to remember and live my life as if the purpose of it all is to give him the glory he deserves, and it's not about me. So hard to live out on every level, for sure. Hardest with the people that live in the same house as me. Not because they're difficult people, just because I am. ;)