As we worked our way through the middle chapters of Genesis in December, we saw the Lord establish a covenant relationship with Abraham and his descendants and give them prosperity in the land of Canaan. But in these final chapters of Genesis, God providentially uses the dramatic events of Joseph’s life to guide the family of Jacob out of Canaan and into Egypt. Then, in the beginning chapters of Exodus, we see God directly intervening to deliver his people out of slavery in Egypt to wander in the wilderness. If God was going to give his chosen people the land of Canaan as he had promised, why was he leading them out of it? The section of Israel’s history that you will read this month is filled with the twists and turns of family squabbles and famine, slavery and salvation. It was a time of waiting and wondering for God’s people.

Our natural response to being forced to wait for something is often anger or doubt. We may feel resentment because God is leading us down a path that was not part of our own plan. We may question why he is giving us an affliction that is so difficult to deal with. We may even begin to lose faith in God’s promises and wonder whether he is really working all things for our good as Romans 8:28 says. Joseph probably wondered how God was going to fulfill his dreams of being a ruler over his brothers when he was working as a slave and languishing in prison. God’s people probably wondered how God was going to fulfill his promise to give them the land of Canaan while they were in slavery in Egypt. Moses probably wondered how he was going to be the deliverer of Israel after the people rejected him and he spent forty years in the desert of Midian as a shepherd. It is natural to experience confusion and discouragement when we are going through times of waiting or intense suffering. But if we allow difficult days and sleepless nights to lead us away from God, we will have the wrong perspective of our struggles.

One reason that we often question God’s way for us is because it is so far beyond the understanding of our limited human minds. As Paul reminds us in Romans 11:33, “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!” We do not know exactly what God is going to do in our lives, but we may take comfort in what we do know about God’s character from his word and creation. We know that God is powerful. Nothing is out of his control! He controls the big things like nations and rulers, weather, and the events of history. But he also controls even the smaller things that we think we have control over, like our bodies, possessions, relationships, and circumstances. We also know that God is perfectly good and works all things for the good of his people. We are reminded of this in Genesis 50:20 when Joseph tells his brothers, “But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.”

Providentially, Psalter 211 was chosen as the chapel theme song at my children’s school in the 2020–2021 school year, which was an especially difficult time for many of us. I distinctly remember sitting outside on the soccer field for the all-school program surrounded by families who were dealing with all sorts of different trials, including struggling to navigate daily life with COVID restrictions and schism due to doctrinal controversy. Uncertainty regarding the future of our families, churches, and schools was rampant, yet we all joined together in singing the beautiful words of stanza 3:

Thy way was in the sea, O God,

Thro’ mighty waters, deep and broad;

None understood but God alone,

To man Thy footsteps were unknown;

But safe Thy people Thou didst keep,

Almighty Shepherd of Thy sheep.[1]

We do not know the ways of God any more than the nation of Israel did when they stood at the edge of the Red Sea with deep water in front of them and enemies closing in behind. We do not know where he is going to lead us in the coming months as individuals, families, and churches. But what we do know is that our good Shepherd will always protect and preserve his people. We may not be able to see around the bend of the path we are on, but we know where it is ultimately leading. So by God’s grace we live in faith, like Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and so many saints who have gone before, trusting that the unchanging God who has acted so powerfully in the past on behalf of his people will continue to do so in the future. In your devotions this month, pray for the humility to recognize that you are not God and the faith to place your trust in his understanding instead of your own (Prov. 3:5–6).

Abby is a wife and mother in the home. She worships at Trinity Protestant Reformed Church with her family.

Reading Plan

[1] No. 211, in The Psalter (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1927), 178.

Originally published February 2023, Vol 82 No 2