The Red Sea flows through our toes.
As many of you know, my day job is working at an Outreach center where we serve those living in crisis with food, rental, and utility assistance. The work is a gift and a heartache; so many families are deeply suffering this Advent. I think of those families we spoke to this week who are mourning the tragic loss of a child, who face terminal diagnoses and don’t have a person in the world to hold their hand and, perhaps, most devastating are the men and women who ask if God has forgotten about them.
They see the impossible before them like the Israelites when they stood before the Red Sea. Frightened and overcome by despair they can’t think past the barrier before them. They think; there is no way forward that doesn’t destroy me…
With their toes on the water’s edge and the Egyptians closing in, do you remember what Moses told the Israelites? He said, Do not fear! Stand your ground and see the victory the Lord will win for you today…The Lord will fight for you; you have only to keep still.
Read that again. And again. And again.
If there is anything I have learned from working at Outreach, it is that suffering doesn’t discriminate. At some point, the Red Sea will flow between all of our toes, and we’ll be powerless before the impossible... but for the grace of God.
I pray that as you face your Red Sea, you hear the words of Moses echo in your heart. What power they have!—Because they are true. There is no room for fear. You must stand firmly footed and face what lies ahead. See the victory He desires for you—see His providence over your life. As He parts the sea and makes a way, watch. Watch Him fight for you. Be still and know… He is Lord. He is Father. He is our Savior every day, in every moment, before every impossible.
Share this truth with your kiddos as you meet the Israelites on Day 8 of the Jesse Tree today. Download and read the Pray, Grow, and Serve below and then read Exodus 14:13-14 with them!
See them all in a digital format…here you go!
See you next week! …and if you’re following along with our Jesse Tree I will see you tomorrow for the story if Noah!
