Making Bricks Without Straw

“You have to do more with less!”
“We’re short-staffed, but we need you to produce twice as much!”
An interesting ramification of our current economic recession is the demand that’s being placed on the average worker. Many of those who were fortunate enough to avoid the axe of massive job cuts, are wondering if they were fortunate at all—now with longer hours, no increase in pay, and less satisfaction in the workplace.

“Due to the economic recession…” is a phrase that seems to be uttered quite regularly these days. In the workplace, it’s often used as justification for stripping away even the basic niceties that workers have become used to. And it’s leveraged as a threat against those who feel that they can do better elsewhere: “Due to the economic recession…no one else is hiring!”

But there is hope. While dealing with my own struggles in the workplace, I was led to Exodus 5. In this passage of scripture, Moses and Aaron go before Pharaoh to petition for the release of the Israelites. Outraged by the request, Pharaoh sets forth an impossible ordinance: the Israelite slave workers were to continue making their allotment of bricks every day, but they were to do so by gathering their own straw for the bricks. (Basically forcing them to do twice as much with fewer resources.) Upon falling short, the workers were beaten mercilessly.

What I found most interesting about this scenario were the words of Pharaoh in verse 9, “Make the work harder for the men so that they keep working and pay no attention to lies.” Those “lies” that Pharaoh referred to were the petitions of Moses and Aaron on behalf of the Lord to, “Let My people go!” Pharaoh believed that with an oppressive burden of work on their shoulders, the Israelites would turn away from the Word of God.

My brothers and sisters in Christ, during these “hard economic times” have we become so burdened in the workplace that we have turned away from the Word of God? Are we becoming frustrated, depressed, and agitated or are we still leaning on His promises that we are the head and not the tail? Do we still believe that we are more than conquerors? Are we trusting in Him with all our heart and leaning not to our own understanding?

In the NIV version of the Bible, toward the end of Exodus 5, there is a header that precedes verse 22. That header reads, “God promises deliverance.” And as chapter 5 transitions into Exodus 6, the Lord promises to remove His people from their oppressive yoke.

Let’s not be like the Israelites who became discouraged and disgruntled in their oppression. Let’s rejoice and give God praise in advance for His deliverance!