Character Revealed in Hardship

 Character Revealed in Hardship

Exodus 17: Then all the congregation of the children of Israel set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped in Rephidim; but there was no water for the people to drink. ² Therefore the people contended with Moses, and said, “Give us water, that we may drink.”

 

So Moses said to them, “Why do you contend with me? Why do you tempt the Lord?”

 

³ And the people thirsted there for water, and the people complained against Moses, and said, “Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”

 

⁴ So Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me!”

 

⁵ And the Lord said to Moses, “Go on before the people, and take with you some of the elders of Israel. Also take in your hand your rod with which you struck the river, and go. ⁶ Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.”

 

And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. ⁷ So he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”

 

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After GOD provided manna and quail for everyone to eat, the children of Israel were satisfied. GOD then told them to go into a part of the wilderness where there was no water. The people complained so much, that they were ready to stone Moses.

 

My Observations:

• GOD sent the children of Israel to a waterless place, possibly to address their disbelief in HIS power.
• When times got hard, the people turned against Moses and questioned whether the LORD was among them or not.
• GOD told Moses to strike the rock and water will come out.

 

During hard times, humans show their belief in GOD and their character comes out. In this instance, GOD sent them to a waterless place on purpose. The children of Israel were furious when humility was needed. They were ready to used stones as weapons to kill Moses. Instead, GOD told Moses to strike the very weapon they would use to kill him, to bring life preserving water.

 

When times get difficult, our character is tested. GOD gives us opportunities to grow during difficult times. Our character can be adjusted when we realize that GOD is taking us through something to make us more like HIM. Unfortunately, we don’t always make the best use of the difficult time when we complain. GOD still provided, but the people were not thankful.

 

Challenge

• Why does GOD remind Moses about the complaint from the children of Israel regarding the waterless place?
• Have you ever complained about your situation?
• Have you asked GOD to show you how to respond to your difficult situations?

Resilient Character Building

Resilient Character Building

Genesis 39: ¹⁰ So it was, as she spoke to Joseph day by day, that he did not heed her, to lie with her or to be with her.

 

¹¹ But it happened about this time, when Joseph went into the house to do his work, and none of the men of the house was inside, ¹² that she caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me.” But he left his garment in her hand, and fled and ran outside. ¹³ And so it was, when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and fled outside, ¹⁴ that she called to the men of her house and spoke to them, saying, “See, he has brought in to us a Hebrew to mock us. He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice. ¹⁵ And it happened, when he heard that I lifted my voice and cried out, that he left his garment with me, and fled and went outside.”

 

¹⁶ So she kept his garment with her until his master came home. ¹⁷ Then she spoke to him with words like these, saying, “The Hebrew servant whom you brought to us came in to me to mock me; ¹⁸ so it happened, as I lifted my voice and cried out, that he left his garment with me and fled outside.”

 

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Potiphar’s wife propositioned Joseph, day after day after day. He may have tried to avoid her, or ignore her, but she got to the point where she was not going to take “no” for an answer. She aggressively pursued Joseph, but he escaped. He left his garment and she thought of a lie.

 

My Observations:

• Joseph had integrity and character because he was following GOD.
• Abram was called a Hebrew and so was Joseph.
• Even when Joseph showed extreme character, he could still be lied on and slandered.

 

When all else fails, defamation of character seems to be the tool used against those who refuse to bow to evil ways. Joseph was doing well until he met Potiphar’s wife. Her desire to get what she wanted made her dream up a lie to cover her actions. She may have thought Joseph would tell on her, but she did not know Joseph had extreme character that would not do that.

 

Joseph’s restraint was the right thing to do, yet he found himself in a situation he did not cause. He did not tell Potiphar that his wife was constantly pursuing him, probably because he did not want her to get in trouble. But she had no problem with telling as many people about her lie as possible. Joseph’s character was now being put to test even though he did no wrong.

 

Challenge

• Why does GOD tell Moses about Potiphar’s wife’s’ advances toward Joseph?
• Have you ever had your character defamed?
• Can you stand firm in your walk with the LORD even when people are mislabeling you and even slandering you?