Friday, July 29, 2016
I was revisiting yesterday the biblical account of the people of God escaping their many years of bondage in Egypt, particularly the crossing of the Red Sea under the leadership of Moses. I was especially moved as I read these two verses: “Then the angel of God, who had been traveling in front of Israel’s army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar 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.” (Exodus 14:19-20)
Here is the specific eternal truth I gathered from these two verses: The Lord not only guides His children as they journey in this life, He also goes behind them so that their adversaries can’t get to them and harm them. In the case of the Israelites in Moses’ day, the Lord went ahead of them all the way through the wilderness with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of smoke by night to light their way. Once they reached the edge of their crossing point, the Red Sea, the cloud moved to the rear to hide them from the pursuing Egyptian army. At this point, God’s people had light and Pharaoh’s army could no longer advance in the darkness. To me, this is a reminder of God’s complete care of His children. He leads, guides, and protects them all the way until they cross over into their promised land.
If you find yourself going through a dark and scary time in your life, please remember that you are just as special to God as His people were in Moses’ day. If He provided and watched over them until they safely crossed over, He will do the same for you. Things looked so scary to God’s people right before they reached the Red Sea, many started to cry and complain but God was never going to abandon them and we all saw the results. It won’t be any different for you. I trust you won't complain or despair as you journey through this life, and that you remember that the Lord, just as He promised, will be right there by your side and make sure that you arrive safely in Heaven.
Memory verse for the week: (2 Timothy 2:24) “And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.”
