Then the LORD said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is unyielding; he refuses to let the people go. Go to Pharaoh in the morning as he goes out to the water. Wait on the bank of the Nile to meet him, and take in your hand the staff that was changed into a snake.  Then say to him, ‘The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to say to you: Let my people go, so that they may worship me in the desert. But until now you have not listened.  This is what the LORD says: By this you will know that I am the LORD: With the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water of the Nile, and it will be changed into blood.  The fish in the Nile will die, and the river will stink; the Egyptians will not be able to drink its water.'” – Exodus 7:14-18 (NIV)

I have been a slave.  A slave to my own desires.  A slave to ignorance.  A slave to imperfection.  A slave to the brokenness of humanity.  I was born into this slavery and there was no way out of it by my own design.  I didn’t even have the inclination to try.  But there were voices calling me out of the land of slavery, calling me out of Egypt.  A mother’s voice sang songs of Jesus and read to me the words of God.  A father’s voice full of wisdom and tempered with grace called me from a plagued land to a land of promise.  Many other voices of friends, mentors and ministers have pushed and pulled me in the right direction on a journey not yet completed.

I made my way from the land of slavery toward the land of promise and am still on the road.  I forget sometimes about the voices that called me out of slavery, and I lose my way in the wilderness.  In those moments, it seemed like the life in Egypt would have been the easier route, but the voices cut through the foolishness and pride and set me back on course again.  I am so thankful for the voices that have spoken on behalf of God into my life.

Our children need to hear us calling them out of Egypt.  They need to know that there is something better in this life than living by our base desires and fractured feelings.  They need us to speak against the enemy and stand against the deceivers who would keep them in bondage.  Our children need to know that they will not walk through the wilderness alone and that the Promised Land is worth the journey.

Lord, help me be a voice calling my children from slavery to sin into freedom in Christ.  Help me to lead my children through the wilderness of this life and instill in them the hope of the Promised Land of eternity with You.  Amen.