Just Stay Calm

    This morning as I was reading about the Israelites' exit from Egypt, I came across this scripture. It grabbed my attention. I re-read it several times. The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm. The Lord himself will fight for me. Just stay calm. The LORD himself will FIGHT for ME! JUST STAY CALM! Wow! How huge is that? I just have to not panic, not get upset, not try to figure it on my own (Hmmm, where have I heard that before?), and not get in God's way. I just need to stay calm, pray about it, and trust God to fight for me, to work it out for me.

    Just as the enemy was coming after the Israelites, the enemy is coming after me. No, my enemy may not be Pharaoh at the head of all the forces of Egypt and his weapons may not be swords and spears. All the same, he is attacking me. He is trying to destroy me just as the Egyptians were trying to destroy the Israelites. His weapons? Worry, fear, discontent, uproar, and turmoil.

    See, satan thinks that if he can get me looking at the circumstances of my life that I'll stumble and fall. By getting me to worry about how I am going to pay the bills or how we are going to afford a new engine in the trailblazer that possibly threw a rod yesterday or... or... or any of the many other things that come up, he thinks he can get me to take my eyes off of Jesus. And that leaves me vulnerable. Makes me an even easier target. So what does the enemy do next? He goes to work on a different area. He starts trying to pick apart my relationships or my children's relationships or any other area of my life that he can, just to keep me distracted and unfocused. This is the way he works. Not just on me, but on all of us. He tries to keep us concentrating on our problems instead of on the One who an fix them.

    Just stay clam. The Lord is fighting for me. The Lord is fighting for you. We just have to keep looking up. Keep our eyes on the Lord. He will fight for us. And just as He made a path for the Israelites, He will make a way for us. We just have to stay calm and be ready to move, to act, to obey when He says, "Go." We have to stay quiet and listen for His voice, His direction, His command. We have to be ready to step out between those towering walls of sea water and cross that dry sea bed. We have to trust Him even when it seems impossible; when all our problems seem too big for even God. Trust Him. Nothing is too big for God. Not cancer. Not a car engine. Not anything of this world. God can take care of it. He is fighting for us.

    And just as He washed away the Egyptians as they tried to cross behind the Israelites, He will stop the enemy dead in his tracks. He will put the enemy on the run. He will provide for the bills. He can repair an engine. He can restore relationships. He will open doors and hearts. He will heal cancer. He can make the impossible possible. Just stay calm.

    Thank You, Lord, for fighting for me. Thank You for the encouragement this verse, Your word, Your promise, gives to me. Help me to just stay calm and quiet and at rest as You fight this battle for me. Guide me, direct my path, and help me to recognize when it is time for me to move, to take action, to follow Your commands. And to always give You the honor and glory. In Your Son's name, Amen.

~Delta