Signs and the wonder...of a stubborn heart

Today: Exodus 7-9

"There is a stubbornness about me

that cannot bear to be frightened by the will of others,

my courage rises with every attempt to intimidate me."
- Elizabeth Bennett, Pride and Prejudice

Stubbornness is an interesting characteristic--it's one that can be used for good or evil. Some stubborn people have this determination to beat the odds, fight for causes they believe in and stand up for themselves and others. That's admirable.

My sister has that kind of stubborn in her, I think. She has this compassionate nature and desire for justice that often puts her in a place of saying things like, "That's just not right!" The good kind of stubborn can be developed into courage, like what is described in the quote from Elizabeth Bennett above.

But stubbornness can also be problematic.

My parents tell this story about disciplining one of my sisters and I when we were little. When I misbehaved as a preschooler, all they had to do was put a frowny-faced sticker on the fridge. I would burst into tears--absolutely devastated--and admit my wrongdoing. When I was older, it morphed into conversations where words like "I'm really disappointed in you..." would do the trick (one of the worst possible things anyone could ever say to me!).

But my sister was different. Mom and Dad could threaten to spank her or ground her for life and she would look at them with sarcastic determination as if to say, "Is that all you've got?!?" When she was older, the girl debated and stood her ground...even when she was totally wrong. Luckily, as she's matured, the bad stubborn traits have dissipated (and on the flip side, I've developed more of the good kind of stubbornness, too).

In today's passage, we read about a guy with a seriously stubborn heart (in the worst possible way!)--Pharaoh. What's amazing to me is that even when the miraculous signs and wonders of God are right in front of his face, Pharaoh's heart remained stubborn. It was almost as if he was like an obnoxious little kid in the back of a minivan on a long road trip, covering his ears and shouting in an annoying, sing-song voice, "I CAN'T HEAR YOU! I CAN'T HEAR YOU! I CAN'T HEAR YOU!"

Ugh.

But in all fairness, how many people are like Pharaoh? I think most of us have had moments where we've messed up--and instead of admitting we were wrong or asking for forgiveness (from God or people), we are like that obnoxious kid. We'd rather continue on in our own stupidity than listen to reason from wise people or the Word of God. Instead of opening our eyes to see the facts or even miraculous signs from God Himself, we pretend to be content in our blindness.

Many times, our stubbornness turns us into obnoxious children or cold, hard-hearted people like Pharaoh. Instead, let's be stubborn in a different way--by courageously choosing to live in child-like wonder of wisdom and miracles.

Tomorrow: Exodus 10-12