A Mother’s Courage

“Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: ‘Every Hebrew boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live.'” Exodus 1:22

Moses was born in a time where oppression, slavery, poverty, injustice, and an unimaginable life was being lived by his Hebrew people. He had a death sentence before he took his first breath. Hate surrounded his being without even his first cry was heard. The misery, fear, sadness the Hebrew nation must’ve felt during these times is inconceivable. How could anyone have hope when they are surrounded with evil? Jochebed, Moses’ mother, witnessed her friends, her cousins, maybe even her sisters get their infant son’s yanked from their loving arms and thrown into the river. She saw the devastation, the agonizing pain of the murder of their babies. I imagine her running to the them, holding them up as they cried in helpless torment. She could’ve been their support as they struggled to continue living in such a cruel world. This, however, could’ve been her motivation, a sort of inspiration for preparing a way to save her own son’s life. Having to witness such murders, she devoted her time to pray and plan a way to escape this faith for her child. I imagine this in itself wouldn’t of been an easy task. She had to be conspicuous around all the Egyptians, as she continued her usual routine of slavery life. The courage she must’ve had in order to create the master plan of survival for her unborn son is unspeakable. When Moses was born, she had already weaved him a papyrus basket to place him in for escape and protection. I wonder how many times she started over because the basket wasn’t big enough, or safe enough, or comfy enough. I wonder how many tears she shed as she carefully weaved each piece knowing that she wasn’t making this basket for future embraces, but for the survival of her baby. She had to keep this basket hidden somewhere in her humble home where the Egyptians couldn’t find it and continue the work during hours that were safe from view. The courage, energy, and love she must’ve had for this task to be completed by the time Moses was born is just incredible. The hours spent thinking of where to place him, how to keep him alive in the basket, the moments of fear if he would be discovered. She knew that was the only way to keep him from being killed so she continued weaving, through the fear, the unknown, the sleepiness nights, the impossible circumstances-she continued letting her courage and love guide her. I know she talked to God through every piece, every thought, every tear, she talked to her Heavenly Father, and she knew His hand was all over her and her son. He would be the only way her plan would succeed. Moses was born and when she couldn’t hide him any longer, placed him in the basket she had weaved for months, maybe even redone multiple times, and finally, set him in the river. She had evaded the destruction of her son. She courageously defiled the Egyptian law and chose LIFE for her son! Moses, in his carefully weaved basket, floated up the Nile with his older sister cautiously watching him from afar until he reached the riverbank close to Pharaoh’s daughter. His sister watched as Pharaoh’s daughter had her slaves open the basket where Moses was laying. He was crying. The Pharaoh’s daughter felt sorry for him, is what the bible says, and that’s when Moses’ sister comes out and asks if she should find someone that could nurse the baby for her. The bible doesn’t go in detail, but I can imagine how difficult this must’ve been for Myriam, Moses’ sister, as she came out of hiding and approached the Egyptian royalty. All of this was God blessed. Only He was able to soften the heart of the Pharaoh’s daughter to want to keep a Hebrew baby, and allow Myriam to find a woman to nurse her newly adopted son. Jochebed’s hard work for all the days and nights she spent weaving, praying, crying and being faithful to her God allowed her son to live. That was a miracle that can’t be unnoticed. Moses was not supposed to be alive, much less get nursed, hugged, kissed by his Hebrew mother. We don’t know how long Moses was in the river, how long he had to travel up the Nile before he was discovered, but he was crying. We could assume he was hungry, maybe even hot, wet and dirty, and needed a lot of attention. Can you imagine how Jochebed was feeling during this time of unknown? Myriam was following and stayed close to the basket the entire journey until he was discovered. No cell phones. No way of communicating to Moses’ mom. She was in the dark about her son and his whereabouts. It wasn’t until Myriam comes to deliver the news of Moses being found that she finally realizes her son has lived, and she gets to continue to nurse him! Hallelujah! The average age a child nursed was 3 years old during this time. The bible is unclear how long Jochebed was able to spend time with Moses, but it is clear that she saved his life and was able to witness him live. “When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son.” Exodus 2:10

Moses grew and became a monumental figure in the Hebrew’s survival out of slavery and Egypt. God needed him to be born. To be protected. To be adopted. To be raised. To be groomed. To be God-fearing. To be a man of God. If Jochebed wouldn’t of been obedient and wouldn’t of been courageous, Moses’ story would’ve been different. We may not even of known a man named Moses. A man that saved his people from slavery. A man who God handed him our commandments. A man who, with God’s help, parted the Red Sea. A man whose story is too long to tell in one page, but should be known throughout eternity. No matter how amazing and important Moses is to history and the story of the bible, we can’t ignore his mom. Jochebed is even more crucial and relevant. Without his mother’s courage, her obedience, and her faith, his story wouldn’t of existed. Mothers, we are God’s stewards. Our children are on borrowed time. As much as we want, need, and desire to have them for ourselves, they are not our own. God has blessed us with them during our Earthly lives, but He is the ultimate decider on how long we get to be with them. We must be obedient on how we raise them. We must obey God’s plan for their life. It may not be the path we want for them, but God has given us the responsibility as their parents for a reason. He knew you were the perfect mom for his child, therefore, we must be obedient to His plan. We won’t understand it. We won’t even accept it at times, but we must have faith that His ways are better than ours. We must be courageous. God has given us the responsibility to raise our children for His glory, and that may not be the safest route, but it is the route with God’s Holy Hand and Spirit. What could be a better route?

Today, I encourage every mother to be courageous. Spend time with Him. Allow Him to speak to you, guide you, and bring you wisdom and courage to step out in faith. We are raising children of God, and that will take all the courage and strength in this world, but we have our All Mighty God who will never leave us or forsake us. Be encouraged. Be courageous. Be a Jochebed.

My Pebble, my Lil Rocky, when he first born. His first day outside my womb. We nursed him soon after. December 24, 2015-September 25, 2017