A Year 4 Transformation: Day 146-The Softening of a Heart

Passage of the Day:

Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray to the Lord to take the frogs away from me and my people, and I will let your people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord.” ⁹ Moses said to Pharaoh, “I leave to you the honor of setting the time for me to pray for you and your officials and your people that you and your houses may be rid of the frogs, except for those that remain in the Nile.” ¹⁰ “Tomorrow,” Pharaoh said. Moses replied, “It will be as you say, so that you may know there is no one like the Lord our God. ¹¹ The frogs will leave you and your houses, your officials and your people; they will remain only in the Nile.” ¹² After Moses and Aaron left Pharaoh, Moses cried out to the Lord about the frogs he had brought on Pharaoh. ¹³ And the Lord did what Moses asked. The frogs died in the houses, in the courtyards and in the fields. ¹⁴ They were piled into heaps, and the land reeked of them. ¹⁵ But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said, Exodus 8:8-15.

Reflection:

As a college friend used to say, “when times are good, most people abandon God.” As things go according to plan and or your expectations are met, it’s easy to live a happy go lucky life. However, the moment the tables are turned as in the life of Pharoah, he summons Moses and asks for prayers to relieve the circumstances brought by God. According to the book of Exodus, the softening of Pharoah’s heart does not occur until the death of his first-born son, Exodus 12:31-32.

Prayerful Action:

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. ¹¹ Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. ¹² Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me, Psalm 51:10-12.

Building Up Bible Believing Behaviors:

One thing that I have learned from my experiences as a counselor at a boarding school and high school teacher is that there is a back story behind every action, attitude, behavior and choice made. Writing the Improbable Escape, a screenplay about my father’s family journey from Lithuania to America during World War II, helped me better understand my father. After discovering that his father was a police chief, I began to see what shaped his disciplinarian nature. Meanwhile, as I became married, and Leanne had our three children, I witnessed the softening on my father’s heart. Rather than become stuck in his former ways of thinking like Pharoah, my dad’s heart turned compassionate by loving each of his grandchildren. When all of my children were in high school, there was a twinkling in his eyes as he saw their future potential in life. These are just a few examples of what can happen when you allow your heart to become open to change for the better.

Song of the Day:

Part of the apostle Paul’s teaching about keeping in step with the Holy Spirit, Galatians 5:25, is contingent on adopting a heart for God. Stubborn people like Pharoah aren’t open to change. However, teachable souls that cry out to the Lord for help open the door for the softening of their hearts. This can happen to you if you allow God to become the Lord of your life.

by Jay Mankus