JOCHEBED

“But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile.” Exodus 2:3 (NIV).

When I read the book of Exodus, I often focus on Moses. His life decisions teach us valuable lessons. Moses’ mistakes are recorded so that we can learn from them. His relationship with God is an example for us of what intimacy with The Father looks like. Moses is a shining model of leadership. When every Israelite turned their eyes to Moses, Moses turned his eyes to God.

In most cases, Moses saw the hand of God and witnessed the fulfillment of God’s prophecies firsthand. The faith of Moses was often rewarded with works soon after. Moses saw the plagues God promised. Moses led the children of Egypt out of slavery. He saw the sea split in two and watched as the LORD sealed their enemies beneath it. Moses witnessed a pillar of smoke and of fire; he saw manna rain down from heaven and drank the water from the rock.

Moses saw the LORD make good on his promises.

But what happens when you don’t?

What happens when you’ve been praying for healing for years, and you’re still sick?

What happens when you’ve been believing for a breakthrough, and you’re still stuck?

What happens when you step out in faith but have no idea if it was even worth it?

What happens when it feels as though you’ve done everything right and you still haven’t heard from God?

At times like these, when I read the book of Exodus, I focus on Jochebed.

Jochebed was the mother of Moses. She played a monumental part in this story in Exodus 2. However, her name is not mentioned until chapter 6, when the genealogy of Moses and Aaron is being told.

In Exodus 2, the Pharaoh was killing off young Israelite boys. Jochebed placed him in a basket to save Moses’ life and allowed him to float down the Nile River as his sister, Miriam, watched on. Moses’ basket eventually settled with Pharaoh’s daughter, who took Moses as her own.

Jochebed had been living in slavery, just like all the Israelites. She, too, longed to be free and for God to make good on His promises of her people having a land to call their own. In the midst of this, God used Jochebed to ensure the rescue of the Israelites from the Egyptians.

Because of Jochebed’s obedience, Moses lived. Yet, Moses was still separated from his family for most of his life due to his adoption. And when Moses grew up, he fled Egypt due to a threat to his life.

I can imagine that this broke Jochebed’s heart. She had protected her son as an infant, but he grew up in another family and soon left the country. It wasn’t until Moses was about 80 years old that he returned to Egypt to free the Israelites.

We don’t know if Jochebed lived to see her son return home.

We don’t know if Jochebed lived to see her children lead the children of Israel out of captivity.

We don’t know if Jochebed lived to see the promises of God come to fruition. But I did.

I’ve heard of how Israel followed Moses out of Egypt, and Joshua settled them in the Promised Land. I learned how the LORD kept Israel safe by using judges to protect the land and how Israel chose Saul as their king. How David was his successor, and how the line of David led to Jesus Christ.

Even though Jochebed could never have known the impact of surrendering her baby to God by placing him in the Nile River, God used her as part of His divine story of salvation.

The beauty of this story is that each character’s choices have the opportunity to make an impact – even if we never get the chance to experience it.

I am living in the obedience of prior generations whom God used to bring about salvation. Perhaps, the obedience we walk into today will be a blessing to generations coming after us.

Maybe God is asking us to pray, even when we don’t see results.

Perhaps God wants us to continue believing for breakthroughs even when we’re stuck.

Maybe God is calling us to step out of the boat, even when unsure.

Perhaps not seeing the fulfillment of the promise is a promise that those who come after us will.