Seasons of Straw
Certain seasons of life can bring us down if we don’t understand what’s going on. For instance, you’re hopeful that things will change and new opportunities will come, but instead of life getting easier, it gets harder. Or—you’re already going through tough times, and out of nowhere…they get tougher! These times are particularly confusing when you’re sure you’ve heard from God, or felt His assurance that things were changing or good things were about to break through.
In Exodus 5 we see Moses and Aaron asking Pharaoh to allow the Hebrews the chance to go on a three-day journey to worship God. Pharaoh explodes in his reaction and makes a hard situation even harder. The Israelites are already working as slaves in Egypt, and Pharoah not only denies them their freedom, but increases their labor by making the Hebrews find their own straw to make the demanding quota of bricks. He’s punishing the people for even thinking they could leave and seek freedom.
Straw Principle #1: When God is about to bring freedom or breakthrough, the devil will increase your pain or confusion.
Exodus 5: 6-12 shows Pharaoh calling the Hebrews lazy, which is the opposite of what they were as slaves. In fact, they were the work force holding Egypt together!
Straw Principle #2: The devil will call you names that are the exact opposite of what is true, or who God is forming you to be.
When a “season of straw” descends on our lives, it’s tempting to get stuck in cycles of gathering the stubble of straw. The Hebrews were angry at Moses for introducing the idea of freedom, which made their already hard lives harder. But they were about to see the hand of God move on their behalf, and all of human history changed by what they couldn’t yet understand.
Straw Principle #3: They thought freedom would be quick and linear, God knew it’d be complete and powerful instead.
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