‘ “Here I am,” he replied’ (2b).

‘It would not be easy for Jacob, now 130 years old, to leave the land God gave him and go to Egypt. Moving to a new home is usually a difficult experience, and the older we are the more difficult it is. Furthermore, Abraham got into trouble in Egypt (12:10ff.), and God had stopped Isaac from going there (26:2ff.).
But Jacob was able to go with confidence and peace because he was sure of God’s promise and presence (46:1-4). In the crisis hours of life, God speaks to us and assures us when we take time to worship. Furthermore, Jacob knew that God had gone before him and that Joseph was there making everything ready for him. The future is your friend when Jesus is your Lord and you follow Him.’ Warren W.Wiersbe: ‘With the Word’, p.44.

So, when you know God is telling you to go…

• Go with worship – with thankfulness and joy (1). Has not God been good to you thus far on your pilgrimage? You have been blessed with much already that you can carry into your new season of life (6). Although, sometimes you have to leave certain ‘baggage’ behind before you can move on. It’s interesting that Pharaoh had told them not to bring these things. Whatever, ‘We’ll praise Him for all that is past, and trust Him for all that’s to come’;
• Go available (2): ‘Here I am, wholly available; As for me, I will serve the Lord.’ Let this be our song, even into old age (and possible obscurity.) We can still be ‘wholly available’ to God;
• Go unafraid (3a);
• Go trusting in God’s purpose (3b), surprising though it may be;
• Go trusting God’s presence and promises (4a);
• Go relying on God’s provision (5). We regularly find His provision to be amazing and surprising;
• Go with hope (4b): Ultimately, all will be well. Whatever may lie in the intervening period, a true believer knows that the final chapter is a great one. We may not yet have lived in its pages, but we do know it’s a happy ending.

‘He was not only to go down into Egypt, but to go there under divine guidance and protection. When we visit Egypt at our own impulse we shall land ourselves, as Abraham and Isaac did, in temptation and failure; but when God bids us go, we may make the journey with absolute impunity. Though we walk through the dark valley, we need not fear, if He be with us.’ F.B.Meyer: ‘Devotional Commentary’, p.32.