Now Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation died, but the Israelites were exceedingly fruitful; they multiplied greatly, increased in numbers and became so numerous that the land was filled with them.

Then a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt.

- Exodus 1:6-8

Exodus starts in the middle of a story-already-in-progress.

Jacob’s entire family was heading toward starvation as a famine swept through their land. The only way they would survive was if they left their homes, travelled to Egypt, and were welcomed by the Egyptians.

By God’s grace and a painful set of circumstances, one of Jacob’s sons – Joseph – had become a leader in the Egyptian government years and years earlier. He welcomed his relatives into Egypt. The family was saved.

This is a beautiful story. And our world is filled with stories like this. Strange coincidences line up, one after another, and people are saved, rescued and delivered. God’s ways are not just mysterious; they are magnificent.

But the story of Jacob’s family – the Israelites – takes a dark and dangerous turn. Generations passed. Relationships changed. Memory faded (more on that tomorrow). The new king enslaved the Israelites and put them to backbreaking labor.

God’s deliverance in this life is never permanent or final. Even God’s blessings get twisted by our fallen human agency. And yet the harsh reality of pain and slavery doesn’t destroy the beauty of God’s deliverance. In fact, the beauty of the story of God’s deliverance in the past gives God’s people hope that he might deliver them in the future.

Our stories in this world are co-mingled with powerful acts of redemption and the dis-colored threads of sin which leads to corruption, pain, and death. We celebrate our experiences of God’s redemption in this life as a foretaste of our hope of the final redemption of all things.

In the mean time, we acknowledge both the joys of our deliverances and the harsh realities of their impermanence.

Where have you experienced God’s deliverance in your life? Where have you seen stories of God’s deliverance mingled with sadness and difficulty?