Bypassing the Red Sea
By Elin
Henderson
“So God led them in a roundabout way through
the wilderness toward the Red Sea.”
Exodus 13:18a (NLT)
How many of us have found ourselves
in a “Red Sea” moment? God has painted us into a corner and we are forced to
cry out to Him. Water on one side, an attacking army on the other; there is no
way out, unless God intervenes.
Now, imagine that you were friends
with the Israelite people and, from a distance, you could look down and see
their dilemma. What would be your first response? Look for some way to rescue
them, right? Maybe go and fight off that army for them or drag some boats over
for them to use. (I know we are really
“imagining” a lot here!) My point is
that when we see loved ones in a Red Sea situation, what is our initial
reaction? We look for ways to rescue them. It’s a natural human thing!
Yet, God had something pretty
powerful that He wanted to show the Israelite people. He was going to grow
their faith in an amazing way by stepping in, against all odds and showing His
amazing power to save. Had someone else stepped in and “rescued” them, would
the Israelites have seen this? Would their faith have grown?
So many times I find myself stepping
into Red Sea situations - - whether it is in my children’s lives, my spouse’s,
or my friends - - and trying to rescue them, to help them bypass their Red Sea.
God has painted them into a corner, to show them their desperate need for Him,
and His mighty power to save…and then I come in with the cavalry…and the
teaching moment is gone.
Oh God, help us to see Your hand at
work and allow You to use the Red Sea moments that you bring into our lives and
the lives of our loved ones! Give us the grace to not swoop in to save, but to
patiently wait on You to move and work. Give us Your perspective so that we may
see these teaching moments that You have planned! Help us to “stand still and
see the Salvation of the Lord” (Exodus 14:13).
GOING
DEEPER:
1.
Can you
think of a time when you intervened to save someone from a Red Sea moment?
2.
How can we
support people in times of trouble, without a full-blown rescue attempt? How
can we point people (ourselves included) to look to the Lord in the midst of
the trials that they/we are facing, and not always seek a way out?
FURTHER
READING:
Oakwood’s missionaries Elin
Henderson (a registered nurse) and her husband Phil serve as church planters
with Ethnos 360 in Mozambique, Africa.
Elin is mother to eighteen-year-old Callie and fifteen-year-old Elias.
