Trust or Security

I am sure that the people of Israel were excited when they thought about getting out of slavery in Egypt. But I can only imagine they became less than enthusiastic when they learned they were going into a vast and barren desert where they would have nothing of the things they enjoyed in Egypt. They would not have meat, an abundant supply of vegetables, water melons to cool their thirst and many spices to make their dishes tasty. And I am not even mentioning the water that is so essential for life.

I never realized the stark contrast between Egypt and not-Egypt until our teacher, George DeJong, made it very clear to us by having us hike up a mountain on the edge of the flood plane of the Nile River just west of Luxor, Egypt. It is unmistakable what is Egypt and what is not-Egypt when you look over the Nile River valley. The contrast could not be greater.


One is lush and full of life. There are all kinds of plants and crops. Birds of all kinds fly up and down the river. The Nile River is a fountain of life. When the Nile flooded it brought fertile silt and water to keep the valley the center of a prosperous and thriving civilization. Outside of the flood plane there is death. In fact, this is where the Necropolises were built. Here the Egyptians buried their dead; some in pyramids and some in deeply dug tombs like in the Valley of the Kings.


So when God took his people out of Egypt, they were going from the land of the living to the land of the dead. No wonder they often wanted to go back. You ask yourself, “Why did God not bring them back?” I mean, after Pharaoh and his entire army were drowned in the Sea, there was nothing stopping them from going back and taking over the country. They could have places to live, fertile fields, and all the prosperity they could ever want. But this is not what God wanted for his people. He was taking them to a land that he cared for and one in which they would have to trust in him for their life. To be prepared for that, they had to learn to trust the Lord in the dessert for 40 years. They HAD to learn that trust in the Lord was more important than security.

I am not sure that we have gotten to this point yet. We tend to look more to security than trust in the Lord. I have often heard people tell me that when they give to the Lord they give “what they can afford.” This means that they have to make sure that they will be able to eat and pay the bills first. But the Lord wants people who trust him for everything. Maybe we need to allow the Lord to take us into the wilderness to learn to really trust in him.