Exodus

Exodus is one of my favorite books in the Bible. There are several reasons why but to sum it up I feel like Exodus shows God's faithfulness.
On my way home today I heard Bethany Dillon's song "Exodus".
She wrote this song after reading through Exodus. The song itself sums up the book, but I thought Id write about what God showed me when I read through Exodus.

Anyone who grew up in church or spent any significant amount of time in church would have heard the story of the Red Sea. God was with Moses when he parted the Red Sea so the people could go free. The story is great.
However, that isn't the whole story.

"When Pharoah let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, "if they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt. " So God led the people around  by the desert road toward the Red Sea." Exodus 13:17-18

God knew His children so well that He took them the long way. The long way led them to the Red Sea. It was God ordained for the Red Sea to be part of the story. The shorter route was not in God's plan because He knew His children would turn and go back. God loved them and knew their hearts, so He sent them the long way.
The people complained about where God had led them.
"They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt?...It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert." Exodus 14: 10-12

They complained about where they were, but they didn't see the bigger picture. God led them to that place on purpose. God saw the bigger picture. He promised deliverance. The people couldn't see that going through the desert was part of the plan. They were so tired of the desert that they though being enslaved would be better. They questioned God.
Too often do we, as Christians question God. We can't see the bigger picture. God puts certain circumstances and paths in our lives for a reason. We may not see it now and we may not ever see it, but God knows.
God is faithful to His children. He does not leave us ever. He is always with us, and in any circumstance He is doing what is best...whether we think it's best or not.