Exodus 14: 19-31
Then the angel of God, who has been traveling in front of Israel’s army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillor of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long.
Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.
The Egyptians pursued them, and all of Pharoah’s horses and chariots and horsemen followed into the sea. Durning the last watch of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion. He made the wheels of their chariots come off so that they had difficulty driving. And the Egyptians said, “Let’s get away from the Israelites! The Lord is fighting for them against Egypt.”
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.” Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were fleeing toward it, and the Lord swept them into the sea. The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen–the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived.
But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. That day the Lord saved Israel from the hands of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. And when the Israelites saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant.
A Thought
We of today should learn from the experiences of the people of God from the Old Testament. We have two choices–we can be like Moses who talked, trusted and obeyed God or we can be like the Israelites who were filled with fear, doubt and grumbling. There is one more choice; we can refuse to be on God’s side and reap the same results that the Pharaoh, his horsemen and his entire army received. God prepared Moses to deliver his people. Today, God has provided his Son, in whom we can trust as our deliver and salvation. Will we rely on Jesus or will we grumble and complain? God knows our every need and concern. He has provided for us completely even to giving us the desires of our heart when we submit our will to his will. We can pray, study his Word, and learn from the mistakes of others. We will all be held accountable for our choices.
Our Prayer
Father thank you for giving us gifts and talents to do your will to make a difference in our life and in the lives of others. Thank you for your faith that we gain from the truth of your word that will lead us to choose to trust you in fighting our battles. We ask you in Jesus’ name, amen.
