His Way (Exodus 14:21-22)

Nearly everyone is familiar with the stirring account of the exodus and how God used Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egyptian captivity by parting the Red Sea.

Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.

Exodus 14:21-22 (ESV)

The Bible does not record the expressions or comments of the Israelites as they walked on the dry river bed with walls of water surrounding them. It must have been an incredible sight! But why did God chose to deliver the Israelites in this manner? God can do anything, Couldn’t He have instantly transported all of them into the promised land? Wouldn’t that have been as amazing as walking through walls of water? Of course He could have done this. But God does things His way. The exodus was not for His benefit but for the Israelites and ours. Over the next 40 years, as the Israelites wandered in the wilderness, God showed the Israelites what true faithfulness means. He taught the Israelites the importance of holiness, of separating themselves from the sins that pollute their minds and body. He demonstrated what it meant to live solely by God’s Word and commands. He prepared and matured them to live by faith.

God does things His way!

I am impatient and sometimes want God to immediately resolve all my problems. I don’t want to face the arduous task of learning the life lessons that He wants to teach me. I can learn the same life lesson if He just shows me the end result. Right? Wrong! I want to do things my way. I want to be God. And this is why my faith is so weak. I am unwilling to learn the lessons of faith by obeying God’s plan and timing, instead, substituting my terms and time frames. I need to continually return and remember the promises that God has kept in my life, no matter how long He takes to answer. Only then, like the Israelites, will I begin to learn what it means to live by faith.

God does things His way!

Love and trust the Lord; seek His will in your life.