Post by Betty on Jan 14, 2005 6:20:46 GMT -5
by Os Hillman
Move On!
..."Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the Israelites to move on."
Exodus 14:15
Moses had brought the whole nation of Israel, approximately 600,000, to a dead
end in the desert. The only thing between Israel and Pharaoh's pursuing army was
the Red Sea. This was after nine plagues God had inflicted on Pharaoh to
motivate him to free the Israelites. Finally, Pharaoh had freed Moses and the
people, and they left Egypt. They thought they were home free. "Freedom at
last," they said. But God did a strange thing. He directed Moses to take a route
that led to the Red Sea, instead of the northern route around the Red Sea. God
explained that He didn't want them fighting the enemies they would have
encountered on this route. But still, there was the issue of the Red Sea.
They finally arrived at the Red Sea, and the people were wondering where they
would go from there. News hit the camp: Pharaoh had changed his mind. He was
coming after them with his army. Panic set in. The defenseless Israelites cried
out, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the
desert to die?...It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to
die in the desert!" (Ex. 14:11b-12)
God sometimes brings each of us to a "Red Sea" in our life. It may be a work
problem that can't be solved. It may be a marriage that seems to be failing. It
may be a debilitating disease. Whatever your Red Sea, God tells us one thing:
"Keep moving." The Red Sea was before them, yet God was angered at Moses and
told him to "Keep moving."
"But Lord, the Red Sea is before me." "Keep moving." When we live by sight, we
act on what we see. God sets this stage in dramatic fashion. God is into the
dramatic. There is no way out without God here. That is just the way He wants
it. No one will get glory except God.
A friend once admonished me when I was in the midst of a marriage separation
that eventually led to a divorce, "You must not withdraw from being proactive in
your faith just because of this trial that you are in. God's hand is on your
life. There are too many who are depending on you to fulfill the purposes God
has in your life. Keep moving! Keep investing yourself in others." I didn't feel
like it. I was in too much pain. But I did it anyway. God met me at the point of
my greatest need once I decided simply to be obedient. Getting past myself by
investing myself in others helped heal the pain. There is great healing when we
look past our own problems and seek to invest ourselves in others for the sake
of Christ. This is when our own Red Seas become parted. We begin to walk to
freedom. But we will never experience the miracle of the Red Sea in our lives if
we don't first "Keep moving."
Move On!
..."Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the Israelites to move on."
Exodus 14:15
Moses had brought the whole nation of Israel, approximately 600,000, to a dead
end in the desert. The only thing between Israel and Pharaoh's pursuing army was
the Red Sea. This was after nine plagues God had inflicted on Pharaoh to
motivate him to free the Israelites. Finally, Pharaoh had freed Moses and the
people, and they left Egypt. They thought they were home free. "Freedom at
last," they said. But God did a strange thing. He directed Moses to take a route
that led to the Red Sea, instead of the northern route around the Red Sea. God
explained that He didn't want them fighting the enemies they would have
encountered on this route. But still, there was the issue of the Red Sea.
They finally arrived at the Red Sea, and the people were wondering where they
would go from there. News hit the camp: Pharaoh had changed his mind. He was
coming after them with his army. Panic set in. The defenseless Israelites cried
out, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the
desert to die?...It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to
die in the desert!" (Ex. 14:11b-12)
God sometimes brings each of us to a "Red Sea" in our life. It may be a work
problem that can't be solved. It may be a marriage that seems to be failing. It
may be a debilitating disease. Whatever your Red Sea, God tells us one thing:
"Keep moving." The Red Sea was before them, yet God was angered at Moses and
told him to "Keep moving."
"But Lord, the Red Sea is before me." "Keep moving." When we live by sight, we
act on what we see. God sets this stage in dramatic fashion. God is into the
dramatic. There is no way out without God here. That is just the way He wants
it. No one will get glory except God.
A friend once admonished me when I was in the midst of a marriage separation
that eventually led to a divorce, "You must not withdraw from being proactive in
your faith just because of this trial that you are in. God's hand is on your
life. There are too many who are depending on you to fulfill the purposes God
has in your life. Keep moving! Keep investing yourself in others." I didn't feel
like it. I was in too much pain. But I did it anyway. God met me at the point of
my greatest need once I decided simply to be obedient. Getting past myself by
investing myself in others helped heal the pain. There is great healing when we
look past our own problems and seek to invest ourselves in others for the sake
of Christ. This is when our own Red Seas become parted. We begin to walk to
freedom. But we will never experience the miracle of the Red Sea in our lives if
we don't first "Keep moving."
