Be Still

The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. (Exodus 14:14)

The Israelites have fled their slavery in Egypt. Now they stand at the Red Sea with Pharoah and army racing toward them, with annihilation of the Israelites as their goal, The Israelites are trapped and are grumbling about their situation. Moses gives them the instruction, saying, “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” What happens next? God parts the Red Sea, the Israelites cross on dry land, and Pharoah and his army are swallowed up in the sea when God releases the water after all the Israelites have found safety on the other side. This was all because the Israelites got out of God’s way. 

How many times do we want God to do something but we get in His way? Or, how many times does God want to do something but we get in the way? In this fast paced world we tend to be busy. As long as our eyes are open we are busy doing something. I understand. I am not one to sit idly around. I will invent things to do. But how many things have I missed out on because I didn’t sit still and wait on God. I ran ahead without being still before Him. I’m learning, but still have a ways to go. There are times when we want to fix a situation ourselves. Yes, we have a role to play in resolving issues. Notice I said “role.” This is because God is our partner. He is on our side and wants to do this through us. To be still doesn’t mean to do nothing about our situation. It means trusting God. It means placing our trust in His plan and timing, and not rushing things in the direction we want. It invites us into quiet reflection and prayer with God. When we are still we have the opportunity to experience God’s presence in our lives. In doing so we give control of things to God. 

In our fast paced lives we find it hard to be still before God. However, it is in our stillness that God does His work the best. We don’t have to be doing nothing to be still before Him. We just need to recognize that we aren’t God. We simply need to invite Him into our lives and into our situations. When we wait for God’s plan to be carried out in His time, not ours, we’ll find dealing with life’s situations less stressful. As we stand at the edge of our Red Sea, with our Pharoah and his army rapidly making their way toward us, may we heed the words of Moses.

“The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”