Almost a year ago we moved out of our house, in obedience, unsure where God was leading us. We only knew we were called to leave. We minimized our belongings and moved into the basement of my parents house until we heard the next step. We had/have no idea where God may be leading us but we wait with as much faith as possible. If I told you it wasn’t hard I would be lying, but God never said that his will would be easy to follow. But He did promise us He would walk beside us the whole way.

A few weeks ago I wrote a post about the Israelite’s leaving Egypt. When God told them to leave many were scared and wanted to stay because they feared the unknown, but they obeyed and left Egypt with Moses anyway. What interest me in the last week or so about this chapter is what happened after the “exodus”? What happened to the Isrealites after they left Egypt? They waited. They questioned. They feared.

Many times in life we will question if we have heard God wrong if we are stagnant too long. Or we may find ourselves in a spot where we feel stuck, backed into a corner with no way out. I’ve ponder both of these scenarios as we are currently waiting for God’s leading. I feared because we aren’t moving forward or I can not see the way out that we have made a mistake. Not only are those statements untrue but we are exactly where God wants us to be. He wants us in a place where the only way out is through him and it comes at his perfect timing. Let’s look at what Exodus says when the Isrealites leave Egypt.

In Exodus 13:17 God brings the Israelite’s out of Egypt and then he sends them on road through the philistine country. There was a shorter path they could’ve taken but God sent them on the longer journey. God directed them down the longer path because He knew that if the Isrealites faced war they would turn back, and the shorter path promised war. Their faith was not where it needed to be to face certian trials, they needed time and a protective path to get to where they were going.  Just because the path you are on seems longer than you expected, it may be because God is protected you from something or He is waiting for His best timing.

Then, in chapter 14:2-4 God tells them to turn back and camp by the river. Why did he have them turn back? Have you ever felt like you took a few steps back in your journey? Many times this past year I felt as if we were not making any progress, only taking steps backward. This not only created fear inside of me but I began to question God again. When God sent the Isrealites backward He did this to send confusion to Pharaoh. God wanted Pharaoh to believe he had chance at capturing the Isrealites once more. God knew what was coming then and He does today as well. Many times we may need to take a few steps back to confuse our enemy of God’s mighty plan for our life, the parting of the seas.

As the Israelite’s camped by the sea they began questioning Moses and God. They saw no way out and feared they were trapped. The sea was in front of them and the Egyptians were behind them. They began to wonder if they made a mistake following Moses. Moses answered them in verses 13-14 “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. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” Many times we fear we are trapped and see no way out of our situation. “Where could we possible go?” What we can’t see is great parting of the seas that God has in store for us right around the corner. We only see what we know, a wall. Ever think about what would have happened if they turn back that night? They would’ve never seen the amazing miracle of the parting of the sea and the glory of God being confirmed. Instead, they would have most likely ended up back in slavery.  Have you ever given up when you thought there was no way out? No answer coming? I have.

Let’s learn from this and believe in obedience and in faith that our parting of the Red Sea is coming very soon.

God parts the waters that night and the Isrealites walk on dry land across the bottom of the sea that next morning. He did not let them walk on mushy wet sea bottom, it was dry and perfect. When they reached the other side the Egyptians were crushed by the water and the Isrealites saw the mighty power of the Lord and there faith was restored. God did not just show up at the end, He was there the whole time.  In Exodus 13: 21-22 it states, “By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night.  Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.” Not once did He leave the isrealites, not once will God leave you.  He will guide you just as he guided the Isrealites.

If you are in a waiting period such as myself or the Isrealites, I encourage you to have faith and hold out for God to reveal his plan. His mighty plan, one that seems impossible but will only become possible through Him. If we wait for his perfect timing He will receive the glory and the enemy will be crushed.