God Doesn't LIke Shortcuts!

 

                                 God Doesn't Like Shortcuts!

I'm reading Exodus 13 this morning. Moses has won his challenge to Pharaoh, the plagues are over, the first Passover has been celebrated and God Is leading His people home -- to the land He determined to be their homeland and had promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Then in verse 17 we read: God did not lead them through the land of the Philistines, although that was the most direct route from Egypt to the promised land. Instead, God led them along a route through the Red Sea wilderness.

Why not take the short, direct route? For one reason, He didn't feel the people were ready to do battle with the powerful Philistines. But God could have easily solved that issue.

The bigger reason was that He wanted to show His people something very important at the Red Sea. The way He directed them led them to a fearful, no-way-out corner that trapped them between the mountains on one side  and the Red Sea on the other. And they could watch the Egyptian army chasing after them with their chariots and horses, intent on bringing them back to Egypt! Where could they run?

But God had a way out - a miraculous event that changed their history forever!

And they were eye-witnesses!

He told Moses to raise his staff - and the Red Sea parted and let the people safely pass over. And they could even watch the Egyptian army being destroyed!

If they had taken the shorter, direct route, look at what they would have missed!

Obvious lessons in how He could then, and always, care for them in miraculous ways!

Our lives are like that. Often God doesn't lead us the quickest, most direct route to our spiritual destinations because He is showing us His power and teaching us about His ways as we go along........ lessons we need to learn...and that takes, in my case, a lot of time! 

And He doesn't take short cuts for that!