Bible Journaling | Exodus 14:14 - The Lord Will Fight For You

Guest post by Neely Beattie

So, most of the time, I just need to be silent.

In Exodus14:10, the Israelites started complaining. This is only the first instance when they grumbled and doubted. They were afraid that they were trapped as the Egyptian army started closing in on them. They started saying to Moses, “See? What did you think you were doing? We told you to leave us alone.” And in response Moses told them to be still, the Lord would fight for them. And He did! 

 I am a lot like the Israelites. This verse, Exodus 14:14, is something I need to remember daily. I am a complainer (much to the chagrin of those around me, I’m sure). It’s pretty bad.

When things get hard, inconvenient, or stressful. When I start feeling weighed down, trapped or unhopeful about life…I complain. I grumble. I question. I get irritable and grumpy. I doubt.

And then I complain some more. I know that I sound like the Israelites except I’m not complaining to Moses, I’m basically complaining right to God.

In July, we went to stay with my grandparents because it was flooding. We stayed with them because their basement tends to fill with water when it rains a lot and my grandpa wasn't feeling well enough to keep up with himself (while we were there, we also learned that he had stage 4 lung cancer...but that's a story for a different post).

Everyone was complaining about the rain, but my grandpa said he wouldn’t complain about it. Unfortunately, I can’t remember what he said exactly (I think I was trying so hard to remember because I knew it was a wonderful piece of wisdom, that I forgot, haha) but he basically said to complain about something was like telling God He's wrong and he wasn't going to do that. Amen, Papaw.

Moses had faith. Of course, that can be pretty easy when God talks to you through a burning bush and gives you a staff that can part a sea… but the God we serve is still that same God. We may not be running from an army. We may not have a staff that can turn into a snake like Moses, but we can have the same faith. 

When we are feeling trapped, scared, and discouraged…God will fight for us, we only need to be still, silent, calm, and full of faith that the God who loves us is the same God who loved the Israelites.

We should try to be optimistic in our wait, even when it’s hard. To take the days as they come and not assume that God is leading us into some kind of trap for our failure. He will deliver us from any thing He leads us to. We may be as flawed as the Israelites, but we are also just as loved as them. 

So friends, my prayer for you (and me), is that when you're feeling trapped by the sea, when you feel like the rain won't stop, when you feel like God has lead you out into the desert, that you can remember that God is fighting for you...just be silent and let Him.