6th October 2025
Be still
“The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”Exodus 14:14 (NIV) “The LORD will fight for you, while you keep silent.”(NASB) “The LORD himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” (NLT)
We all like the sound that the Lord will fight for us. Some people love a battle, a challenge, and some of us would rather back out if we could. I personally do not like conflict. I do not even like sports. I would rather that both teams win. The battle spoken of in Exodus 14 is more than mere sports of course. God put down the Egyptians time and time again until they let the Israelites go, but they got back up and came back after them. We had a rooster like that, he never knew when to quit.
Well of course that rattled and shook their confidence, and I imagine they might have been thinking what mess has God got us into now? I think that thought went around. The enemy took their eyes off of the one who fought for them and onto the fact that they were outnumbered in strength. After all they had been slaves and not hardened warriors.
Okay so that still happens today of course, the enemy takes our eyes off of the one who has come to save us and all we see is the negative in this world; the mountains that need to be tossed into the sea. Well, when the children of Israel saw the Egyptians headed for them their hearts melted, and their knees started to shake. Doubt flew around as easily as dry leaves in a winter storm. What were they going to do? What did Moses tell them to do? He told them to have faith in God, he said to be still, keep silent, and stay calm. Why, because they didn’t have to do anything. God had this, it was his battle. Oh, there goes David and Goliath again. No matter how big the enemy appears, our God is much bigger.
We have all been battling an enemy or two or three lately. Our eyes have focused on how big they are, and our focus and our lives have been absorbed by it. Now it is time to look up to the one who has got this. Our God is much, much bigger, and no matter what happens, he can make something good out of what we see and experience.
Now, God will and is fighting our battles, but there is still something we can do. We can have faith and trust in God, and as verse 15 says in Exodus 14, “Tell the Israelites to move on.” We can get out of the way and let God do his work. Oh, I am not saying we should never do our best, but when the time comes and we realise that the battle is too big for us, it is time to move over and let God do the fighting for us; be still, keep silent, and be calm.
Prayer
Merciful Father, you are victorious in all you do, and we have limited vision, we often forget who is in charge of all we see. The battles we face are often beyond our ability, and when it is time to move over, help us to do so, so that you can do your work, but meanwhile help us also see and win the battles we can fight in this world with you by our side. You are an awesome God, and we thank you for allowing us to be your children. In Jesus’s name, Amen.
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Study by: Anne Gillam About the author: |
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