Exodus 9:15 For by now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your people with a plague that would have wiped you off the earth.
The Lord’s wording in verse 16 (“But I have raised you up for this very purpose”) put me in mind of Mordecai’s words to Queen Esther in Esther 4:14 “And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” I have never connected these two books, so I find the echoes really interesting.
Exodus 9:16 But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.
I do think God has a plan and a purpose for each of us, something He uniquely created us to do, but I also believe that if we fail to live up to His plans, He will accomplish them through other means. He’d rather we fulfil the plans He has for us, but they will be fulfilled, regardless.
Exodus 9:17-18 You still set yourself against my people and will not let them go. Therefore, at this time tomorrow I will send the worst hailstorm that has ever fallen on Egypt, from the day it was founded till now.
Precious Savior, I do think You created me as an encourager. I think You directed me into the classroom, and I’m pretty sure that You placed lives in my path that needed my encouragement. My life was changed by my students as well. Thank You for the reminder that even though I am no longer in the classroom, You still have work for me to do. Help me to understand Your purpose for this chapter of my life. Amen.
Exodus 9:19 Give an order now to bring your livestock and everything you have in the field to a place of shelter, because the hail will fall on every person and animal that has not been brought in and is still out in the field, and they will die.’”
Have a blessed day.