Exodus 2.25 proclaims He knew that the time had come for their rescue.

400 years is a long-time to live as slaves. Generation after generation had cried-out to the Lord for help to no avail.

Suffering without response from God is a fairly common theme among the heroes of the Bible.

Joseph spent three years in prison. Moses spent forty years in exile. David spent 14 years as a fugitive. Paul spent two years in prison on at least two separate occasions. God Himself, in Jesus, was jailed, beaten and crucified by men. God had a plan in all of these circumstances to be accomplished in His perfect time.

We are ready for our rescue the moment of our capture but God uses these things both to refine us and to shame the world.

Since our rebellion against God when we decided we wanted to be like God (in control, unaccountable, know everything, do anything) instead of submissive to God, we have suffered under the consequences of a world and its inhabitants gone awry.

God has a plan to rescue everyone who will come to Him in humble submission before Him seeking His rescue. The world was created by God for God which means life is not about us but about Him.

Until we fully surrender in our hearts to God we will continue to chaff at the troubles we experience and we all experience troubles because we and the world are broken.

God is good and God is love which makes submitting to Him not harsh or burdensome but instead it leads to life abundant. When our hearts and minds are filled with the knowledge that God is good and His ways are best then we can persevere in confidence, peace and even joy through our suffering.

We shall not always suffer, a new world waits where suffering doesn’t exist, but it is reserved for those who fully surrendered to God and His love now regardless of their circumstances.