LAND OF GOSHEN

Today's reading: Exodus 9-12

"The only spot in all Egypt without hail that day was the land of Goshen, where the people of Israel lived." Exodus 9:26 NLT

We're visiting the section of the Bible where God sent plagues to convince Pharoah to release the Hebrews from slavery.

This single verse caught my eye.

Imagine the stark contrast between Egyptian inhabited land and 'across the tracks' where the Hebrews lived.

Imagine the devastation in Egypt from the plagues--the stench, the carnage, the beaten, the bruised, the lifelessness.

Then pan your imagination to the land of Goshen. The place marked as the shepherd's hills when Joseph brought his father, Jacob, his brothers and all their families to the land of Egypt.

This very place was sheltered by God's hand during the plagues.

The grass remained green in Goshen. The trees retained their leaves in Goshen. The water never turned to blood in this neighborhood. The frogs never invaded the homes of God's people. The locusts never destroyed the crops of God's people. The flies never annoyed God's people. The boils never affected God's people.  

I don't know about you, but I've stood in Goshen before.

When chaos was swirling around me, I had God's peace in my heart.

When the world was seemingly upside-down and topsy-turvy, I had a strong anchor keeping my soul in a place of safety and security.

When I should have been frantic, I had a calm.

When I should have been broken, I retained God's strength.

When I could have been broken, God held me together.

If you've ever stood in the 'land of Goshen' you knew the hand of God was upon you--no doubt about it.

In the 'land of Goshen' you could breathe. You could think. You could make right decisions. You could trust what you didn't know, see or like, to your loving Father.

I pray that no matter what's going on around you today, you are in the 'land of Goshen' and you enjoy the view.