Mensa Otabil - Stretch Your Rod Over the Waters
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Exodus chapter 7, verse 19: Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying to Aaron, «Take your rod and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over their streams, over their rivers, over their ponds, and over all their pools of water, that they may become blood. There shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in buckets of wood and pitchers of water.» These are the afflictions and plagues of Egypt. For hundreds of years, Egypt had afflicted Israel; they had made their lives uncomfortable.
Now the tables are turned: affliction is moving from Israel to Egypt, and God is visiting the iniquities of Egypt upon them. So the Lord instructed Moses and Aaron to use the same rod that turned into a serpent, and the rod was supposed to be stretched over the waters of Egypt, the streams, the rivers, the ponds, and the pools. The important thing to note here is that God’s power, which turned the rod into a snake or serpent, is now about to do something else. There is no limit to what God can do through His power at work in us. God’s power is not limited to one act or one miracle; God can do many different things.
Now, when you look at the passage, it talks about streams, rivers, ponds, and pools. The streams refer to the branches of the Nile River, the tributaries of the River Nile, and the rivers here refer to the irrigation canals that have been built to water plants in the Nile River or the Nile Delta area. The ponds are accumulations of water, and the pools are systems or containers where the water is kept. Moses and Aaron are addressing it from different levels: from the river itself to the tributaries of the river, through the irrigation canals and storage areas of water. All of these will be impacted by what Moses is doing.
God says to Moses to stretch out your rod over the waters. The impression you get from this miracle, as we will find out later, is that Moses had to be moving; he wouldn’t stand in one place and stretch his wand for miracles to happen. He had to go from place to place; he had to move, and the miracle would occur where he moved. If he didn’t go there, nothing would happen there, and that’s very insightful. It’s similar to a Christian taking a prayer walk. Maybe you want to pray for a location; you’re a pastor, and you need to sometimes drive through the area and pray over it, or walk through places and pray over them. Or perhaps in your home, you can walk through rooms and pray for each room. Wherever you go, that is where you are extending the power of God to work.
Of course, God can work everywhere, but you know that in the Bible, there are specific places where God works-those are the places we occupy. God said to Abraham, «Every place that the soles of your feet shall tread, that is your portion.» Moses had to stretch his rod not only over the Nile River but also over the tributaries, over the canals, and over the reservoirs of water. If he goes sequentially, then the power of God will be seen in those areas. So, be mindful that sometimes God requires you to move from place to place to pray, to declare His word, and to declare His power over a place for there to be a manifestation of His glory. The more we move, the more territories we take for the Lord Jesus Christ.
Let us pray. Say with me: Heavenly Father, let Your power be manifested wherever You take me. Glorify Yourself through me. In Jesus' name, amen and amen.