Get a Move On…Confident of the Lord’s Power
Daily Devotions based the Sermon from January 3, 2021
Full Sunday message: CONTEMPORARY or TRADITIONAL
THIS WEEK: Be Still…and Get a Move On!
The closest I’ve come to walking through water on dry land is walking through a clear aquarium tunnel as the fish (and sharks) swam all around us. While safe inside, I will admit there was a tinge of nervousness as to what would happen if the Plexiglas would break while inside.
I would have been more nervous if there was no Plexiglas and was told to walk through the water.
But that’s what God told his people to do…Get a move on!…through the water!
15 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. 16 Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground. (Exodus 14:15-16)
21 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, 22 and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. (Exodus 14:21-22)
What would you be thinking as you stepped into the pathway with your family with the water to your left and right realizing nothing was holding it back but the power of God.
Each step was a step forward in confidence that the power of the Lord was strong enough to hold back the waters. The deeper it got…the more confidence you needed. As you stepped on the shore safely on the other side and watched the waters crash in over the Egyptian army, one might have thought, “That could have been me if it weren’t for the power of God fighting for me.”
Even the powerful Egyptian army realized they were powerless before the Lord.
23 The Egyptians pursued them, and all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and horsemen followed them into the sea. 24 During 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. 25 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.”
26 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.” 27 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. 28 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. (Exodus 14:23-28)
God opened the way before them and defeated the opposition pursuing them. He was willing to display his power to carry out his promises and give them confidence to move on!
When they all were safe on the other side, Moses and the people sang a song of praise (Good read in Exodus 15):
13 “In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed.
In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling. (Exodus 15:13)
God doesn’t promise us the same display of his power, but his power is ready to be displayed to carry out his promises. He wants to lead us to an eternity in his holy dwelling.
I don’t know what seas or armies you will face in your life, but God has one desire for us to be with him in his holy dwelling, heaven. He has his power ready to be displayed to carry out this promise to you.
So…in 2021, get a move on … moving forward confident of the Lord’s power – no matter how deep the waters get or how powerful the pursuit!
Apply: Resolve today to move forward with confidence in the Lord’s power. The path forward may seem challenging, but the Lord is able to remove the obstacles and bring an end to the opposition.
Prayer: Lord, display your power in my life. Help me to realize my weakness and rely all the more on your strength as I go through the days of 2021. Amen.
Be Still and WATCH the Lord Act!
Daily Devotions based the Sermon from January 3, 2021
Full Sunday message: CONTEMPORARY or TRADITIONAL
THIS WEEK: Be Still…and Get a Move On!
Sitting on the beach in most situations is a relaxing and refreshing activity. As you watch the waves roll in and hear their roar, you are mesmerized by the uniqueness and power of each wave. If you venture into the water, you realize the weight and force those waves have as they shift you around.
Taking time to observe the creation of God is a good thing to do. The beach is a good place to do it. (Just my humble opinion!)
However watching the power of God is not always so relaxing…or so calming.
The community of Israel was sitting on the beach. The water of the Red Sea in front of them. The cliffs beside them and their only path out being closed in by the Egyptian army. The cliffs were no longer marvels of God’s immensity, but a high point over which they could not climb and from which any army could fire upon them. The water in front of them was not the calming waves of a relaxing vacation, it was a death trap which may be preferred to the Egyptian army.
The people wanted to surrender. They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? 12 Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” (Exodus 14:11-12)
Ironically, the nature around the camp of Israel would be their deliverance…they only had to watch God act.
The passage way between the cliffs was blocked by the pillar of cloud – making the army of Pharaoh unable to see the Israelites. The opposite side was the light of the pillar of fire, enabling the camp of Israel to get ready to move while darkness prevented Pharaoh from attacking.
Then the water in front. What would you be thinking as the waves stopped and the water coming on shore was blown back until the ground covered with water was now as dry as the land on which you were sitting. The water you thought would be your demise was now your deliverance.
God acted while you watched.
NOTHING humanly speaking would save them from the Egyptians. I’m sure some were grabbing their swords, trying plot how they would escape or figuring out words they would speak to save their lives, or graveling to offer themselves to be slaves again.
But God wanted them to stop the fretting, stop the planning and be still and watch the Lord act.
13 Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” (Exodus 14:13-14)
Perhaps we don’t face the same situation as the Israelites did in the year ahead, but we will encounter obstacles that humanly speaking have no way of overcoming. Maybe in those situations the voice of God whispers, “Be still and watch me fight for you.”
Apply: What situation are you facing that seems to have no way out? Ask the Lord to act on your behalf and show you the way. Be still and watch him act.
Prayer: Lord, forgive me for my fretting, worry and lack of trust that faces life with my limited perspective and power. Help me in 2021 to trust that you WILL fight for me…and then calmly and confidently watch you act. AMEN.
Be Still…and REMEMBER what the Lord Has Done!
Daily Devotions based the Sermon from January 3, 2021
Full Sunday message: CONTEMPORARY or TRADITIONAL
THIS WEEK: Be Still…and Get a Move On!
I can forget a lot of things.
This past week on our family vacation, my wife and I take time to reflect on the year coming to a close and plan for the year ahead. She is better at it than I, but she suggested scrolling through the pictures on our phones to jog our memory as to the things that happened in 2020. (GREAT idea by the way!) In doing this, I remembered a lot more of what happened in 2020 than I would have without the aid of pictures. Then when we compared notes, she remembered things I had forgotten and visa versa.
In doing this, it was honestly hard to join the “2020 stinks, on with 2021” crowd. Sure we utilized our home, health and car insurance (some multiple times)…sure the ministry of the church went online and faced challenges…we’ve had to wear masks and social distance, but what we realized was 2020 had a LOT of blessings as a result of the challenges we faced…personal blessings, ministry blessings, family blessings, financial blessings, and more.
It just took time to remember what the LORD HAD done instead of focusing on what I wanted him to do or the things I wish would have been different.
God has been faithful for thousands of years. 2020 was one more…I’m confident 2021 will be the same.
The problem is, it is easy to forget the blessings God has given. I do it to. I can focus on what God HASN’T given…just like the Israelites did.
Exodus 14:10 As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. 11 They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? 12 Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!”
God had just delivered the people in a miraculous way through the tenth plague, the event marked by Passover (Exodus 12). Yet, when faced with a new obstacle, they forgot the power of God and his promise to deliver them. The result? They wanted to go back to slavery and die in Egypt.
God used Moses to calm the fears of the people and focus them on remembering the deliverance the Lord had already orchestrated…to instill confidence on the deliverance he would orchestrate.
When I face a challenge or fear the future, it is easy to forget how the LORD has helped you in the past. Each situation seems new and overwhelming. To the LORD it’s another opportunity to remind you of his power and promises. The Israelites didn’t muster the army to get out Egypt, the Lord did it for them. In the same way, he would do it again.
Don’t forget…God will do the same for you!
Apply: God has been faithful and acted on your behalf. Perhaps this is a good time to reflect back on 2020 – use your pictures on your phone if you have to. Make a list of what the LORD has done for you in the past year…keep them handy to remind you when the next obstacle in life comes.
Prayer: Lord God, thank you for your faithfulness and all the things you have done for me in the past. Forgive me for forgetting and fearing you will abandon me in the present. When I am afraid and the obstacle large, lead me to be still and remember what you have done in the past and look forward to your promise to act in the present. Amen.
Be Still…and turn TO the LORD!
Daily Devotions based the Sermon from January 3, 2021
Full Sunday message: CONTEMPORARY or TRADITIONAL
THIS WEEK: Be Still…and Get a Move On!
I am a person of action…most of the time! If something is broken, I want to fix it. If there is a problem, I am willing to help out.
But I have a hard time turning to others to help me solve issues or accomplish tasks I can’t figure out or get done on my own.
Too often I treat the Lord like this too. I look at the circumstance, situation or issue and see if I can figure it out, fix it or make it better. Only when I get frustrated and stuck…maybe I turn to the Lord for help.
The Israelites were facing a huge challenge. God had delivered them in a powerful way from their slavery in Egypt, yet now they were faced with the Red Sea in front of them, cliffs of both sides and the army of Pharaoh in hot pursuit behind them.
They thought, “We’re going to die. We might as well go back to Egypt and offer ourselves as slaves again.” They didn’t see how THEY could fix the problem they were in.
God gave Moses a different solution to offer the people. Instead of turning FROM the LORD…be still…and turn TO the Lord.
Exodus 14:13 Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”
If you’re curious of the details – read Exodus chapter 14. Bottom line: God wins. Israel is delivered, and the army of Pharaoh perishes at the bottom of the Red Sea.
As you enter 2021, what situations in life are you finding yourself turning FROM the Lord instead of TO the Lord?
2020 had many challenges. 2021 will have them too. So perhaps in this first week of the year, make a decision to turn first to the Lord when your challenges arise.
Instead of blaming God for the problem, invite God into the problem.
Instead of trying to figure out the problem first, ask God to show the way through the problem.
Instead of running from God and back to what is familiar, run with God and follow where he leads, even if the challenge or change is difficult.
Israel thought running back to Egypt was the solution. Yet, that direction led them back into slavery. Being still and turning to God led to their deliverance and freedom.
God desires the same for you. Be still and turn TO God in 2021!
Apply: Take time this week to be still and identify those situations which are or tempting you to turn from the LORD. Ask the Spirit of God to give you wisdom and strength to turn TO the Lord. Perhaps asking the simple question in a situation might help: “What happens if I turn from the Lord and do it my way versus what might happen if I turn TO the Lord and do it his way?”
Prayer: Dear Lord, give me trust and confidence all year to turn TO you in every circumstance and never turn FROM you. Amen.
Happy New Year…Expect more of the same…???
A blessed and happy New Year to all the daily devotion readers and your families!
I have a prediction for 2021.
It will be like 2020.
WHAT!!! Say it isn’t so! I am SO done with 2020 and ready for 2021!
In many ways, so am I. 2021 is before us with many new experiences and opportunities. We will sit down today or soon and plan out what we hope to accomplish, set resolutions to change mindset or behavior, and pray that the challenges of 2020 will NOT follow us into 2021.
I too am optimistic. But not because we have a vaccine, or because it’s not an election year, or because the stock market is ending the year higher than it has ended any previous year (at least at the time of this writing!)
I am optimistic because I/we enter the year with the same, faithful, loving God with whom we entered 2020 with, and 2019, and 2018, and…
I am optimistic because the promises of God that were true last January 1 are the same today…here’s a few.
The calendar changes…we change…situations change…but…God doesn’t change in 2021!
James 1:17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.
Seasons change…winter to spring, spring to summer, summer to fall, fall to winter…they may be cooler or warmer than last year, but the fact that they change testifies that God’s faithfulness hasn’t changed.
Genesis 8:22 “As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease.”
If I stop and reflect, every day of 2020, I had the compassion and mercy of God shown to me. He promises the same every morning of 2021.
Lamentations 3:22 Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
In spite of the social distancing, “zoom” gatherings, and 6 foot spacing, we still are connected to the love of God found in Christ. Nothing will separate us from that in 2021 either!
Romans 8: 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The list could go on…which reminds us whatever events and experiences we have in 2021, we can engage in them with the CONSISTENT, UNCHANGING, promises of God!
May your 2021 be filled with many realizations of the loving and faithful God who has allowed you to enter a New Year!
Apply: What promise of God will you hold on to as you enter 2021?
Prayer:
Help us, O Lord, for now we enter; Upon another year today
In you our hopes and thoughts now center; Renew our courage for the way.
New life, new strength, new happiness We ask of you–oh, hear and bless! AMEN! (Christian Worship 70:1)