Exodus 1:7-14
“But the sons of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly, and multiplied, and became exceedingly mighty, so that the land was filled with them. Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. He said to his people, “Behold, the people of the sons of Israel are more and mightier than we. “Come, let us deal wisely with them, or else they will multiply and in the event of war, they will also join themselves to those who hate us, and fight against us and depart from the land.“ So they appointed taskmasters over them to afflict them with hard labor. And they built for Pharaoh storage cities, Pithom and Raamses. But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and the more they spread out, so that they were in dread of the sons of Israel. The Egyptians compelled the sons of Israel to labor rigorously; and they made their lives bitter with hard labor in mortar and bricks and at all kinds of labor in the field, all their labors which they rigorously imposed on them.“
A popular song written in the late 1960s talks about someone looking back over his life and proudly proclaiming that he did it his way. At five different times, the unidentified person declares in a self-satisfied manner that he managed life his own way. The song’s theme is the exact opposite of how God has called believers to live. As Christ-followers, we are to submit to God’s plan and live according to it. How do we go about living God’s way?
Give Him our attention. We are to set aside our agendas and focus on our relationship with God and what pleases Him.
Receive God’s directions. We must obey any steps He has already revealed for our situation. Being confident God will answer, we should continue to ask what the subsequent steps are. (Proverbs 3:5-6)
Act on divine command. This requires that we listen attentively to the Lord’s instructions. Learning to hear Him is a basic lesson in the Christian life. If we do not know how to listen to the Lord, how will we know when He has spoken? If we do not know what He has said, then how can we obey?
Accept what God provides as enough. God takes full responsibility for the life committed to Him and provides all that we need in order to obey. We are to act based on this truth (Philippians 4:13) even when our feelings say we have inadequate resources or skills.
What do your choices reveal: God’s way or your own? Commit to making the song of your life “I did it God’s way.”
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