When It Gets Harder Before It Gets Better
Day 44 · Exodus 6:6
📖 TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
Exodus 6:6 (NIV)
“Therefore, say to the Israelites: ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.'”
Today’s John 15 thread: Sometimes staying connected to the Vine means going through a season where things get harder before they get better. Moses obeyed God and the Israelites ended up with more bricks to make and no straw to make them with. Obedience does not always bring immediate relief. But the Vine is still bearing fruit, even through the harder season. God said: I am the Lord, and I WILL bring you out.
✍️ REFLECTION
Moses did exactly what God asked. He went to Pharaoh with Aaron, delivered God’s message, and asked Pharaoh to let the Israelites go. And things got worse. Pharaoh was so annoyed that he immediately increased the Israelites’ workload, they now had to gather their own straw while still making the same number of bricks, and the people turned on Moses: “You have made us obnoxious to Pharaoh. You’ve put a sword in his hand to kill us.”
Moses had obeyed and it backfired. So he goes back to God and says: “Why, Lord, why have you brought trouble on this people? Is this why you sent me? You have not rescued your people at all.”
Q1: Have you ever obeyed God and had things get harder instead of easier? What did that do to your faith? Did you keep going, or did you pull back?
This is one of the most honest moments in Moses’ life. He is not polishing his prayer. He is not saying the right thing. He is telling God exactly what he sees: it’s getting worse, not better, and where are You? And God’s response is not to rebuke Moses for his honesty. He responds with a long, powerful statement of who He is and what He is going to do.
“I am the Lord. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob. I have heard the groaning of the Israelites. I will bring you out. I will free you. I will redeem you. I will take you as my own people. I will be your God. I will bring you to the land.”
Seven times: I will. When the circumstances say this is getting worse, God says: I am the Lord, and I WILL.
Q2: What is the ‘I will’ that God has spoken over your life that you need to hold on to when circumstances say otherwise? What is the promise you are standing on?
The hardening of Pharaoh’s heart, which made things harder at this point, was not the end of the story. It was the beginning of the confrontation that would eventually break open the door of freedom. Sometimes the situation gets harder right before the breakthrough, not because God is absent, but because something is about to give.
Q3: Is it possible that the hardship you are in right now is not a sign that God has stopped working, but that He is building towards something? What would it look like to hold on for one more step?
🌿 REMAIN IN HIM
Take a moment before you move on. This isn’t a to-do. It’s an invitation to stay.
Reflect honestly: Have you pulled back from obedience because it led somewhere harder than you expected? Be honest about where you are.
Bring it to Jesus: Bring Him your honest frustration, like Moses did. Tell Him it’s getting harder. Then listen for His ‘I will.’
Trust the Gardener: The Gardener is still at work in the hard season. The branch that stays connected, even through the harder stretch, will bear fruit.
🙏 PRAYER
Father, I want to be honest with You. Sometimes obedience has led me somewhere harder than I expected, and I have wondered if I got it wrong. But I hear You saying: I am the Lord, and I will. Help me to hold onto Your ‘I will’ when the circumstances say otherwise. I will not let go of Your promises. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
💡 MEMORY VERSE
Exodus 6:6 (NIV): “I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians.”
This post is part of the Abide in Him Daily devotional series, reading Scripture through the lens of John 15:1–17. The branch doesn’t manufacture the fruit. It bears it because it stays connected to the Vine.
