Be Still!

 Be Still!

The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace. Exodus 14:14 KJV

Context:

The background to today's extract is a promise that God made to Abraham more than 500 years before this extract. Abraham received the promise of a land flowing with milk and honey, and he settled in the land as a stranger. His own children also settled in the land, but at a time, famine came and his grandson Jacob had to leave with his family to settle in Egypt. There they were for more than 400 years, in slavery and servitude. It is easy to think that because God has promised you something, it has to be smooth. It seems that from God's perspective, you appreciate what you get more when you have to be tried and tested for it. It seems that God would try my heart to see if he can commit such mighty blessings into my hands. What is that promise that you are certain God has made to you? He is able to bring it to pass, but can he trust your heart? Can he trust mine? 

Israel had slaved in Egypt for more than 400 years, but God had sent a Moses to deliver them from Egypt and take them to the land of promise. God led them out, yet the army of Egypt followed them. There they were, no experience of war at all, with the Red Sea in front and the Egyptian army coming after them. How could they avoid either of them? Going forward was into the sea and certain death, going backwards was falling into the hands of the Egyptians who had just lost family members. The fact that God leads me out does not guarantee that I will not face trials. Thr certainty of God's presence also means the certainty of tests. What I do is then defined by my understanding of who God is, and the Word he had spoken to me. 

Message and Response:

Just as God did for Israel here, so does he do for all who He sends out. He is not defined by the tests in front of me, but by the power that is able to conquer all. My victory is not in the ability to understand what I am going through, but to simply obey the instructions I receive from God. Imagine: army behind and sea ahead, and all that God can say is: hold your peace. Be still. In a world that is defined by activity, labour and exertion, this message seems to be out of time. 

How do I hold my peace when life is threatening to capsize my boat? How do I remain calm in a storm, or relax when the winds are contrary? Let's turn this around and ask: if I fret, what outcome can I change? If I worry, what difference can I make to the final outcome? If I complain and grumble about my lot, how does that in any way change the direction of my life? That is the biggest lesson of my life: I am indeed safe when I am in God's hands, no matter where or how he leads me. I am limited in knowledge, power and wisdom, and I need the help, direction and wisdom of the One who is limitless to keep me focused. 

It is clear that life is a battle. God does not indicate otherwise anywhere in His Word. He refers to himself as the Man of War, asks me to stand with the full armour of God in place, and Paul further emphasies this by charging me to fight the good fight of faith. There is just this one point that must be made: the battle to be fought is not mine to sort out. It is God's to fight, but it is mine to stand in that certain victory and uphold it. That is the thrust of today's extract: I can do nothing about the tests that will come, but I can determine the outcome by completely trusting in the ability of God to make it end well. Holding my peace is not being careless, but completely depending on God to help me. If I can help myself, I don't need God. If I will depend on God, I cannot seek glory for myself. I cannot sit on the throne of my heart and still expect God to be in charge. I must let him have his way, taking charge of all that is ahead. He is God; he has not lost any war yet, and he will not lose any. His time of favour is here.