This story feels very similar to the one we read yesterday, yet they take place 40 years apart! This seems to display the old adage, some things never change. Once again the people were thirsty, once again they blamed Moses and mistrusted God, once again God gave Moses instructions for getting water for the people. Unfortunately, one thing does change. God told Moses to speak to the rock, but instead Moses struck it with his staff, failing to follow what God had told him.

Anyone who aspires to be a leader should read Moses’ whole story; leading people can be so difficult. In Moses’ life when things were great, the Israelites loved him. Well, most loved him, sometimes others were jealous and made life even harder for the shepherd leader. When things were difficult, however, the people were inconsolable. They were quick to blame, and had very short memories of the good that God and Moses had done for them.

Do you currently feel like you are being pursued by the enemy? Like things were finally going well, and then the destroyer set his sights on you? Maybe it is a temptation that you are fleeing, or a scary diagnosis. Perhaps the enemy has incited someone against you and you don’t know why. Don’t panic, but rather lift your eyes up to the One who can deliver you.

God gave Pharaoh TEN chances to let His people go. The chances came in the form of requests and punishments for denying the requests. Ten times God, through Moses, asked for their release. Each time Pharaoh denied them, the Egyptians would suffer a plague. One interesting thing to note is that the plagues all depicted different Egyptian gods. God used Pharaoh’s hard heart to display His power over all false gods. 

Moses had already lived a unique life. Born during terrible persecution, he was hidden as a baby to escape the murderous plans of Pharaoh. In an amazing twist, baby Moses was discovered by Pharaoh’s daughter and adopted. He grew up in the household of the man who had tried to kill him! As he became an adult, however, it became clearer that he did not belong in that Egyptian palace. Moses had seen the further persecution of his own people. He tried to take matters into his own hands, and ended up killing an Egyptian and fleeing to escape the punishment. This is when things slowed down. For the next few decades Moses tended sheep. He had a small family and a quiet life up until the point that God appeared to him in a burning bush! Suddenly, everything was going to change again.