Egypt is behind.
Moses is pronouncing a blessing on the children of Israel.
He’s telling them what awaits if they obey1.
After being delivered out of bondage, God is emphasizing the free choices that they have, and how choosing the right path will lead to life.
If they chose well, they would be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.
Wait just one second.
We live in a world where being in the city means you’re blessed and being in the country means you’re not. Listening to the media, it’s easy to believe that entire swarths of people dwell in places where no blessings could possibly exist. It’s the reason multitudes migrate in the belief that the only way they can be blessed is to live in the city. In truth, a lot of opinions about places are based on false narratives perpetuated by ignorance, assumptions and agenda.
Things weren’t that different in biblical times.
Sodom and Gomorrah was a place of glitz and glamor, but it would become a byline for destruction due to pervasive evil.
Bethlehem in Israel was considered the backwoods of the backwoods2, but that was the setting for the world’s greatest miracle.
Galilee was the place no good thing could ever come from….well, except that Galilee is the hometown of the saviour of the world.
Thing is, God doesn’t consult media houses when He decides to deposit a blessing, nor is He constrained by google maps when providing for His people.
The words of Moses showed one thing. God is able to reach his people regardless of location, which is why Isaac sowed in a land which had famine and reaped a bumper harvest3.
Our world has changed and that means people are moving in droves from place to place in an attempt to make the best of things.
In all of these movements, it’s quite easy to assume that you get blessed because of how glitzy the place you chose to go is, and too many have sacrificed relationships, ethics and integrity in an attempt to build a better life in a certain place that the world generally considers to be a city.
When dealing with God, it is good to remember that He is not constrained by location, neither is He put off by bad publicity tied to a particular place.
By all means move – if you have to – but remember that the blessing is not dependent on where you go. It is dependent on the one who gives it, and regardless of your geography, He is able to locate you.
1Deutronomy 28 v 1-4
2Micah 5 v 2
3Gen 26 v 12
Do you wonder if God can see you where you are? Let me know, comment below