Lasting Names in Return for Right Decisions

[S] Exodus 1:15,17,20,21 --
 ¹⁵Then the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other was named Puah;

 ¹⁷But the midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt had commanded them, but let the boys live.


 ²⁰So God was good to the midwives, and the people multiplied, and became very mighty.
 ²¹Because the midwives feared God, He established households for them.


[O] God must have allowed the names of these two midwives to be recorded here in Exodus because of their fear and trust in God over the Egyptian authorities who was set to kill lives.  Thye stood up for the godly values of saving lives even at the risk of losing their own lives.  They were wise enough to explain the situation so they won't be in trouble with the authorities either.  However, we can also see that our own "wisdom" has limitations which eventually led to the Pharaoh murdering more lives anyways.  Getting back to the main point, in verses 20 and 21, God showed favor to these midwives and that's the point that grabbed me from this passage.  Many times, we are up against tough situations where I really need to distinguish between what's comfortable vs. what's right (which is usually risky under the circumstances).  God is watching to see what path I would choose and if I select "His ways," then He will honor that and show His favor in my life.  The probability of choosing His ways increases as I spend each morning asking God to "speak" through my own devotions so I may know His heart.

[A] This may seem redundant and old, but be consistent with my morning devotions by getting up earlier to allow time for that quiet time before the heat of the day rises.

[P] Dear God, thank You for honoring my own meager obedience given some challenging situation I'm put under.  I know You don't need my "right" decisions because You are the God of the universe and yet You care enough when I do make those decisions to reflect Your glory.  May my heart be tuned with Yours more and more, each day.  Mold me, Lord.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.