New Year New Direction

New Year

At the end of one year and the beginning of another, many people re-examine their lives. What am I doing? Where am I heading? Do I need to change direction?
Few people wind up doing what they wanted to do when they were children, which is probably a good thing. (How many firemen and ballerinas do we really need?) Usually, our lives take many twists and turns. If we’re not careful, we can wake up one day and ask ourselves, “How did I get here?”
It seems Moses had that happen to him more than once.

Evil King

The nation of Israel had been living in the land of Egypt for over 300 years. At first, they were welcomed there as guests, because of Joseph, one of Jacob’s sone. Over the years, the Egyptian people enslaved the Israelites and started to fear them. Since God was blessing the Israelites with many children, giving them a large population, the Egyptian king and his people were afraid that one day, they might rise up and take over their country. Just before Moses was born, the king even made a decree that all Jewish male children had to be thrown into the Nile River (to kill them).

Supernatural Protection

God miraculously spared Moses, though. His mother carefully placed him in a waterproof basket, then placed him by the side of the Nile River.

The king of Egypt was also called Pharaoh. His daughter saw Moses and had pity on him, so she decided to raise Moses on her own. God even provided a way for Moses’s own mother to nurse him and raise him in the early part of his life. She then brought Moses to Pharaoh’s daughter, where he was trained and raised in the royal household.

Royal Education

At this time, Egypt had possibly the most advanced scientific and military knowledge anywhere. Moses probably saw himself growing up to become a powerful person there. Whether through his mother or someone else, Moses was told that he was chosen to save the Jewish people from their slavery.

Action

Moses was now a grown man. It appears that he was strong, courageous, and very intelligent. He probably looked at his circumstances and reasoned to himself that now was the time that God was going to use him to deliver his people. In his own mind, Moses probably figured that he had the right talent and training, so of course God would use him, and this was the perfect time. He was physically at his strongest, and if he waited much longer, he might not be physically able to accomplish what he could now.
All of this was what Moses could understand on his own, not what God could accomplish. Things were about to change dramatically for him.

Retreat

After Moses killed the Egyptian, the king tried to kill him. Moses fled and went to another country, where he stayed in obscurity. He instantly went from being in the palace of the greatest country in the world to raising another man’s sheep in a poor land. He did that for the next 40 years. During this time, he probably lost all confidence in himself and his abilities, as we can see when God called him.

Retreat

Moses went from this:

to this:

All the confidence and self-assurance that Moses had 40 years earlier had slowly drifted. He saw his calling that was once so clear gradually fade away. He now had resigned himself to the fact that he was going to live and die in obscurity, away from his family, never fulfilling God’s plan for him.

Settling

Moses had probably decided to make the best of where life had taken him. He married one of the daughters of the man whose sheep he was pastoring, and they had two sons. He had settled into this life and lifestyle.
Now, God was about to shake things up again.

Preparation

God needed a man who would be able to lead over 3 million Israelites out of slavery to the most powerful nation on earth. Forty years earlier, Moses thought that God had uniquely prepared him and positioned him to make this happen. What Moses did not understand was that the last 40 years of obscurity and humbling were what he really needed. He needed to depend completely on God, having no confidence in his own talents and training. God needed an empty vessel, and that’s what Moses had become.

Standing Before the King

Moses was now 80 years old. He probably was planning for his death, making sure that his wife and young sons would be provided for. Instead, God tells him that He has a very special plan for him, one that would change the world.

God used Moses to inflict 10 different plagues on the Egyptians. Through this, God was glorified to all of the nations in the known world, especially Egypt.

Your Direction

Are you where you thought you would be when you were younger? What are your plans for the future? Are you ready and willing for God to change your plans into His plans?
Where are you heading? When you die (which will happen to us all), where will you be? If you can’t say for sure that you will be in heaven with Jesus, please stop right now and ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins and be the Lord (ruler) of your life. Ultimately, that is the most important direction and destination for all eternity.