Sudden setbacks in the family or business
Exodus 14:10-12
Last week I focused on Israel’s quick but confident departure from Egypt. God was leading them through the wilderness, to the promised land of Canaan, “a land flowing with milk and honey.” But then the Egyptians changed their minds about letting the Israelites go, and now Pharoah, along with thousands of soldiers, is chasing them:
When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” (Exodus 14:10-12)
How quickly the situation has turned for the worse! The Israelites went from being led out of Egypt by God’s pillars of cloud and fire to now having their back against the sea, facing their angry captors in a hostile wilderness. What seemed like a new beginning feels more like an ending, and the Israelites are suddenly scared. Notice how quickly they turn on Moses for leading them out of captivity — a place they didn’t like, but one they knew well.1
We have similar experiences in our lives, in our families, and in our businesses. We start out with a quick success, an early win, or positive momentum, only to run up against obstacles, challenges, and failures. It might be a health crisis, an unexpected financial catastrophe, a customer or supplier’s behavior, a weather event, or a severe misunderstanding with a loved one. It feels like circumstances have changed overnight for the worse. It’s hard to remember that God is present in both kinds of experiences, the successful and the difficult.
Have you ever experienced a quick reversal in your personal or professional life? How did your faith inform your response?
I’m not sure who said it, but the quote is appropriate here: “Your nervous system will always choose a familiar hell over an unfamiliar heaven.”