You, my friends, should have tried to walk in Moses' sandals. HIs job was to lead God's people, the Israelites, from Egypt to the Promised Land. Working in a nitroglycerin factory would have been less stressful!
The people rejoiced when God miraculously delivered them from slavery. They sang with Moses when God destroyed Pharaoh's army in the Red Sea. They praised God when He promised to establish a covenant which would make them a people to be envied by all other tribes and nations.
But the Israelites could also be, as God described them, "a stiff-necked people." You've heard the phrase, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going?" When things got a little difficult for God's people, they would moan and complain, with Moses as their whipping boy. They accused their leader of having brought them out to the desert so they could die of thirst. They whined of having no food to eat. Even when God provided them with good food, they complained that they were tired of the same old menu. How was it that Moses could put up with these people.
Moses got frustrated from time to time. But soon he would calm down and get back to his job, leading God's people to the land that the Lord had given them. Moses was able to do so because He had a personal relationship with God. He communed with the Lord. He spent time in God's presence. Moses even reflected God radiance to the people. When the going got tough, Moses got back to His ever-present God. He trusted in the Lord. The Lord was with him.
You are just as blessed as Moses. Remember the great hymn of the church?
Jesus, priceless treasure, Source of purest pleasure, truest friend to me
Our greatest treasure in this life in the Lord Himself. No matter how tough life becomes for us, we have a personal relationship with Jesus. He is with us always. He has sent the Spirit to guide us. He is preparing a place for us and He will come again to take us to our home in heaven. Don't despair, my friends, in these tough times. Just as Moses communed with God, so you have fellowship with the Lord, now and forever!
