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Have you ever felt attacked by someone? Have you felt done wrong or like someone was treating you unfairly? I have been betrayed. I have had people talk behind my back. I have been lied about and wronged for no good reason. In this world, we sometimes even have people that just don’t like us, we’re not good enough for, or are flat out mean to us. There is a great illustration in the Bible that shows an unfair attack.
Pharaoh had already let the Israelites go, but then decided to gather his army together to chase them down. We all remember the miraculous events that led up to the Israelites release so their first response to realizing they were being chased down was to have faith in God’s mighty power, right? Or…not. They became like Dash on the Incredibles after his plane crashed into the water: “We’re gonna die! We’re gonna die! We’re all gonna diiiiiie!!” Not only did the horde freak out about dying, but they blamed Moses. (Side note, you’re not going to ever make progress by blaming someone else).
I know we hear Christians say: Oh tell God about how upset you are, tell him about your problems. But I say: Yes, be honest about how you feel, but then back it up about how you believe in Him and trust Him to make a way for you! Being honest about how you feel can end up being you just complaining to God! Complaining sure doesn’t get you very far.
I love the advice 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.
When an attack comes against us, we should be confident that the Lord is at work for us. We need to hold on to our peace, not throw it out the window!
Moses began to cry out to God for help and God’s answer was not, “Oh you poor guy, let me handle this for you”. No, He did work for them but He needed them to be a part of what He was doing. He said: “Why do you cry to Me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward!
Sometimes we can get really stuck in freak out mode. We want to feel sorry for ourselves, we want to ponder how we ever got here in the first place, we want to ask why no one cares about us! All these things are useless and just lets the enemy get closer the longer we stay there!
The Lord said to move forward! Trust Him, but get moving! As we turn our backs to those who have wronged us, and continue to move forward in the Lord, the enemy is not going to reach us! God will work for you, but you need to do your part and start moving forward so that He can take care of the situation.
As the Israelites held onto their peace and stood firm in the Lord, He made a way for them to go forward. You may not see how you can move forward from a situation, but the Lord will open a path for you as you move forward trusting in Him.
Father God, I know people have hurt me, I’ve been let down, but I don’t want to get stuck in despair while the enemy moves in on me. I choose to not live in fear. I choose to hold onto the peace You’ve given me and trust that You are at work in my life. Thank You for fighting for me. Thank You for caring about my situation. I know that I can trust You as I move forward from this into the wonderful future you have prepared for me!