Thursday, October 25, 2012

Just Stand Still and Watch

But Moses told the people, “Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today. The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.”     Exodus 14:13-14

Sometimes being still is the most powerful thing to do!  We are experiencing high degree of transition in the Gaddini home right now, a number of circumstantial contingencies that can create the illusion of uncertainty.  Anne is much better at living with ambiguity than I am.  Faith is not easy for me; I pray often for it.

This morning I was led to the Exodus account and was humbled by Moses’ word to the Israelites.  Circumstantially, every data factored to a reality that they were doomed.  In front of them was a Red Sea, behind them, a sandstorm grew bigger and bigger giving mounting evidence that the Egyptians would quickly be upon them to overtake them.  God’s word to the Israelites through Moses: “Do nothing, stop fighting and let me fight.”

Sometimes a posture of humble standstill is the godliest posture a follower of Jesus can take.  It is in those moments that the child of God makes a statement, “God, you deliver or else!  It is obedience that has brought me this far, and I can’t go any farther unless you open the next door.  So I am still; my eyes are on you.  I can’t wait to see what you do from here!”

I must admit, writing that and re-reading it on my Macbook Pro screen sounds inviting, sounds daring, sounds like the adventure I signed up for in following Christ.  Living it is a whole different experience. And therein lies the tension of following Jesus.  We rely not on circumstance, intellect and human perspective only.  We walk by faith, not by sight. Faith is not a betrayal of intellect, but neither is it limited by intellect. It is fueled by godly wisdom and revelation.

So my dear PCC’ers who, like the Gaddini’s are called by God to be still and let Him fight for them – you for whom further activity would actually reflect disobedience because you are trying instead of trusting – my heart goes out to you and I want to encourage you that waiting on God is NOT wasted time.  He is still God ALL-mighty and He will fight, in His time and in His way.  The Egyptians never expected a parted Red Sea and dry ground to walk through, and I have a hunch, when we obediently wait, faithfully following God’s directives, we will experience a deliverance that is distinctly God and profoundly gratifying.  Know that we are praying for you!

This weekend we have an amazing Sunday planned!  Baptisms in all three gatherings, great fellowship with each other, and then sitting under an amazing text in Luke looking at Jesus’ teaching on demons and Satan!  Read up in Luke 11:14-26 and come ready to engage with God and others. I’ll see you Sunday!

I love being your pastor!