Oftentimes, we delay our blessings and freedom from problems. We wonder why we are not receiving the needed deliverance even after praying. We are sure that God has promised and yet we experience additional years inside of captivity. You may add night vigils and fast to your prayer but all to no avail. What can be the problem? Stay with me.
Slaves For Four Hundred Years
You may remember that the people of God were slaves in Egypt. Long before it happened, God informed Abram that His descendants would be strangers in a foreign land. Those people will make them serve as slaves and afflict them. The period of their slavery will be four hundred years. And it happened exactly as God had said it would.
The plan was set in motion long before they ended up as slaves. In the entire region, including Egypt and Canaan, experienced severe famine. Meanwhile, through the agency of Joseph, Egypt had taken pre-emptive action and stored food. It became the food basket for all nations in that region. Consequently, even the people of God had no choice but to go to Egypt to buy food.
That incident ultimately led to the children of God settling nicely in a foreign land. Only God knows how often we have settled “nicely” in a place that God does not mean for us. We want to satisfy our flesh and hunger and the place looks inviting. We settle, not knowing that we are setting ourselves up for additional years inside of captivity.
Anyway, they settled until there arose a king over Egypt who knew not Joseph. This was a relative of theirs who had brought effected their chain immigration into Egypt. That new king started to deal harshly with them until he finally enslaved them. God’s plan was that this period of slavery should come to an end at the four-hundred-year mark.
Moses Interfered With God’s Plan
However, in the three hundred and ninetieth year, something unplanned happened. It served to extend their slavery. This event resulted in thirty additional years inside of captivity. Moses, the very man earmarked for their deliverance, developed an attitude of anger.
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Anger is one of the attitudes that deflect blessings, as we saw in an earlier post. Click on the link to discover how malignantly anger works. Moses became angry and murdered one of the slave masters. Now, if you have ever been under an oppressive regime in the office or family, you know that you can get angry, easily.
Therefore, you may now be thinking that Moses did nothing wrong, and you would be right. Perhaps you are trying to justify Moses. There is nothing wrong with being angry with those who spitefully use you except that that is not God’s way. Jesus says we should pray for such people.
Additionally, Moses took his anger to where it should never go – murder. God says that by all means, we should be angry but we should not sin. By murdering the man, Moses sinned, without any ifs or buts. In any case, it soon became a habit of sinning. Because the next day, he became angry again. This time, it was with one of the oppressed. As a result, he fled into the desert, where he was in exile for forty years.
Thirty Additional Years Inside Of Captivity
That period when Moses was in exile effectively gave the children of Israel thirty additional years inside of captivity. And it was not as if their lives became easier with experience. If anything, it got worse. They now not only had to make bricks, but they also had to source the materials themselves.
How they must have prayed. The elders would remind God of His promise to release them at the four-hundred-year mark. But it did not happen. You can almost see their prayer meetings becoming longer and longer. Those meetings started lasting far into the night and soon became night vigils.
The agony of disappointment in a God who had never steered them wrong must have been palpable. However, all they got for their trouble were additional years inside of captivity. Meanwhile, their designated deliverer cooled his heels in exile. As a result, they only came out of captivity after four hundred and thirty years. imagine spending all those additional years inside of captivity, Just because their leader had an anger issue.
Helping God Will Bring Additional Years Inside Of Captivity
What must be obvious by now (I hope), is that any attempt to help God results in stagnation. God is God all by Himself and requires assistance from nobody.
Moses tried to help God by doing away with their oppressor. Instead of hastening their deliverance, it simply made matters worse. They had thirty additional years inside of captivity. Ouch!
Think about it, each time you have attempted to assist God, you have ended in more trouble. It never fails. God will not share His glory with any man, not even you. Which is why each time you try to rescue yourself, it leads to additional years inside of captivity.
Impatience And Additional Years Inside Of Captivity
Anger may not be your problem. It might be impatience. It could be any one of several character flaws. Sarah, the well-known wife of the father of faith had a problem with impatience. No doubt you identify with her. I know that I do.
After waiting like what seemed forever for God to perform His word, she took matters into her own hands. She brought a proposal to her husband. Go into my handmaid and make a baby through her. Her husband listened to her and made a baby with Hagar.
Talk of additional years inside of captivity. That is nothing compared to what we have been going through. And I mean the entire world has been in the Middle East additional years inside of captivity. If you doubt that, ask any one of the powerful Presidents who have tried but failed to bring peace. We are still paying for that impatience.
Your best bet is not to come near God with any character flaw. Until you can ax such a flaw, stay away and pray for help to get rid of it. stay on in hope because hope does not make ashamed. Click the link to watch the video. If you try to interfere with God in any way, you get additional years in captivity. Period. But I pray that we shall soon be delivered from whatever is holding us captive. Amen.
Maranatha!
