There is a Pharaoh and Moses inside each of us

Are we perpetually enslaved to our inner doubts, despair and anger?

It is hard to sing the song of freedom when we do not feel free. So often it feels as though the sea will never split.

Because inside every one of us there is a Pharaoh and he will not let us go. He holds us down and mocks our hopes. He laughs and tells us that we are slaves and we will always be slaves. That there is no other life for us than the one we have.

He points to the wasted, ruined efforts of our past and tells us that we must continue to waste our lives building useless buildings and watching them fall. He tells us that all of our tomorrows will be made of this futile, helpless emptiness. And we hear him and we are crushed and defeated. Depleted of spirit and unable even to cry. We see our future and it looks like our present and it looks like our past. We are not worthy of salvation. We will never reach the promised land.

This is all true. Except.

Except that within each of us there is also a Moses. And his voice says, “Let’s go!” His voice says, “It’s true that you may now be a slave but you don’t have to be tomorrow what you are today. You were not created to build castles in the sand. You are worthy of serving God in the Promised Land. Look up and see that place in the distance. If you believe in yourself you can be saved.”

And all of this is true. Except.

Except that the voice of Moses is a stammer and he speaks so softly that we cannot hear. And if we cannot hear then how can we change? And if we do not change then how will we be free?

We are condemned to be exactly what we are right now, a small, wan version of the self that God willed for us when He blew into us the breath of life. The life that we are now wasting.

This is painful but true. Except.

Except, the thin, soft sound can be heard if you are willing to hear it. If you can be silent long enough. Even a soft stammer is loud when is speaks the truth. You will know the truth when you encounter it. You will recognize the voice that uplifts instead of pushing you down. When you hear it, you can choose to heed its call.

And every word of it will be true.

Sometimes the path to salvation is made of your own work and the sea will not split, so you must swim to get to the other side. Sometimes the lesson is not so obvious, and both the hero and the villain are you. Sometimes the Egypt you escape is within you and you must find a new way to be.

There is always a Pharaoh and a Moses, slavery and salvation. And there is always a choice to make. Only you can decide whose voice you will heed and where you will travel.

And that is eternally true.