Delay is the most deadly form of denial. (C. Northcote Parkinson)
The nation of Israel was enslaved in Egypt. God had sent Moses to tell Pharaoh to set Israel free and let them leave Egypt. Pharaoh had refused so, God began to send plagues upon the land of Egypt as a means of changing Pharaoh’s mind. The second plague was frogs. They were innumerable. Think about the problems the plague of frogs brought to Egypt.
The frogs were everywhere! Frogs in the bedroom, frogs in the kitchen, frogs in the parlor, frogs in the oven, frogs in the yard! God had said,
| “If you refuse to let the children of Israel go, behold I will smite all your borders with frogs.” Exodus 8:2 |
God keeps His word. Look at that Egyptian woman opening her oven; she screams and out jumps frogs! There’s a fellow pulling down the sheets to get into a comfortable bed and frogs are his sleeping partners! Another is putting on his clothes. What’s that in his pockets? Frogs! See those Egyptian boys kicking along the roads to school squashing frogs (instead of mud) between their toes. Frogs in the palace! Frogs in the hut of squalor! Little frogs! Big frogs! The sound must have been deafening. Frogs in the house, frogs in the yard, thousands of dead frogs heaped up in smelly mountains as millions more came from the rivers to take their place! Finally, Pharaoh could stand it no longer. He called for Moses, the Servant of God.
| “Entreat the Lord, that He may take away the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the Lord.” |
Now Moses was overjoyed. At last Pharaoh had made up his mind to obey the Lord. So Moses said,
| “Glory over me, when shall I entreat for thee, and for thy servants, and for thy people, to destroy the frogs from thee and thy houses, that they remain in the river only?” |
And here is Pharaoh’s unbelievable answer. Pharaoh said, “TOMORROW!”
I have never been able to figure that one out! Frogs in his food, frogs in his bed, frogs in his clothes, frogs everywhere and God was ready to remove the frogs instantly. The decision was up to Pharaoh. And he said, Tomorrow! It was as though he was saying, “Give me one more night with the frogs.”
How could he possibly have chosen one more night with those frogs? It was a strange decision on Pharaoh’s part. However, before we pass judgment on Pharaoh and conclude that he was out of his right mind before we assign him to the psychiatric ward for observation let me ask this question:
What about the frog situation in your own life?
We have them, you know. I’m talking about the frogs of troubles, doubt, burdens, suffering, sickness, sorrow, perplexities, disappointments and heartaches. Frogs! All of them! Frogs of difficulty and grief on every hand. They plague us morning, noon and night. They are a constant source of harassment.
Moses was sent by God to deal with the frog problem in Egypt. Jesus was sent by God the Father to deal with the frog situation in our lives. God was standing by. He was ready to remove the frogs that troubled the Egyptians; whenever, they were willing to ask. Likewise, the Lord is standing by ready and willing to help us deal with the troublesome frogs of our life whenever we are willing to ask Him to intervene.
When Pharaoh was asked when, he replied, “Tomorrow is soon enough.” Essentially, he was saying, “Give me one more night with the frogs.”
God is asking us this same question. When do you want me to take care of your frogs?
Don’t spend one more night with the frogs.