Moses told the people, Fear not; stand still (firm, confident, undismayed) and see the salvation of the Lord which He will work for you today. For the Egyptians you have seen today you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace and remain at rest. ~Exodus 14:13-14 (AMPCE)
When the Israelites left Egypt, life was looking up for them. Scripture teaches us the Egyptians were even giving the Israelites their expensive belongings as God’s people caravanned out of their country. Parting gifts from their previous captors seemed to confirm that God had their backs, but it didn’t take long for Pharaoh to change his mind and come after them and when he did the Israelites immediately regressed from their victorious “if God is for us, who can be against us” mind set right back to a frightened and defeated mentality. When God’s people had backtracked in their mind to a point that they started to decide they would have been better off remaining as captives in Egypt, Moses stepped in to speak for God. Essentially Moses told the people in Exodus 14 “Stop and calm yourselves down. Fear and worry are not going to fix this problem, and neither is turning tail and running, much less running right back into the captivity you were just delivered from! This situation might look hopeless, but we need to keep trusting God. We need to be still for just a minute and watch what the Lord is going to step in and do for us.” Sometimes we don’t go from victory to victory. Sometimes there are valleys we have to go through and sometimes those valleys can be trying. David said in Psalm 23:4 “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.” (NIV) Have you ever felt like you were going through that kind of season in your life? It’s at those very times that we need to fight to remain at rest while the Lord fights on our behalf.
Do you fear evil? Do you anticipate the worst? Or do you use your imagination to anticipate good things? We should stretch ourselves a little more to believe that God has a plan, a good plan and it’s better than anything we could ever come up with. When was the last time you held your peace, remained at rest, and thought of all the wonderful outcomes the Lord could bring about from that situation that seemed so bleak? That is the very reason we are supposed to hold our peace and rest. It’s so we can assess our thought life and get back on track in believing God for blessings and miracles. Before the Egyptian armies got close enough to the Israelites to overcome them, God miraculously parted the Red Sea for them to walk across on dry ground. As they looked back, they watched the sea close up and swallow their enemies. We serve the same miracle working God who is still fighting for His people today. Our job is to fear not and hold our peace as we wait for Him to act on our behalf. Look around, maybe God is sending you like Moses to speak for Him and encourage someone else to trust Him no matter what their circumstances look like or if fears or worry come your way today, stay calm, trust God, and watch your enemies be swallowed up as you head off to your promised land.
You shall not need to fight in this battle; take your positions, stand still, and see the deliverance of the Lord [Who is] with you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Fear not nor be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them, for the Lord is with you. ~2 Chronicles 20:17 (AMPCE)
Do you struggle to remain at rest during trials and troubles? What do you do to maintain your peace?
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