Leaving captivity

The Lord had led the Israelites out of Egypt with awesome, undeniable power, and they now moved towards the sea to cross to freedom. Then, they saw the Egyptian army – all Pharaoh’s chariots and cavalry, advancing at full force to stop their flight. They saw it, and feared. The Israelites would rather have remained slaves in Egypt than be in this unfamiliar situation, where they thought they had no power, and nowhere to run. They’d had a small hope – that they might gain their freedom from enslaved drudgery – and now it was dashed. They felt betrayed and terrified. So terrified they blamed Moses, and God, for leading them out of slavery into certain death.

I used to consider these Israelites with disdain and incredulity (and still do somewhat; it’s hard not to); how could they experience such obvious power and deliverance at the Lord’s hand, and yet curse Him and Moses at every step? How could they keep forgetting what He had already done for them, and keep complaining at each new difficulty? Why were they so shortsighted, dependent, and irreverent? Did they not fear God? Were they all children? Why did God keep leading them and calling them His people? Wasn’t He sick of them?

However, I’ve also come to better understand what was happening. The Israelites had been captive for 400+ years. They were dependent. They were used to their captivity, although they hated it. We also have the great benefit of reading this all as a story, thousands of years later. We know what’s going to happen; we know how it turns out; we know that the people are going to experience another miracle, and another trial, and complain again, and then be saved again. Wouldn’t it be nice to have that complete perspective of our own lives? Do you ever forget blessings of the past, and start again to fear things you’ve actually already learnt about? Do you become distressed at each new trial, even though God has brought you through them before? Do you keep referring to your natural mind for how to act and think, instead of listening to the Holy Spirit, who can tell you all things you should know?

If you’re like me, then you, too, might prefer to stay comfortable in the situations you know, even though that ‘comfortable’ place is actually terribly un-comfortable. You might rather continue to endure that than face the more terrifying prospect of the unknown – even though freedom and good things lie in that unknown.

God pulls and pushes us out of our comfortable places, because He knows it’s the only way to grow. He knows it’s the only way for us to gain our freedom – from our own too-small minds, false ideas, and fear that must be broken. He knows it contains blessings we’ve been hoping for.

We, on the other hand, might be terrified, and resist His pulling and pushing (that’s why He has to do it). When we act in faith, doing something we have no certainty will turn out, or be worth it, but have decided it’s either right or a good thing, we might receive blessings and feel rewarded. Then, uncertainty and danger rear their heads again, and we cover our faces and wish we’d just stayed where we were, unpleasant as it was.

So God shows us, with power, that we’re still moving in the right direction, and that our fears are a remnant of our captivity. Trust in His power, because He will show you that He knows it all and is on your side, guiding and protecting you. If you trust God, there is no way it’s not going to be okay. We must continue to act in faith, corralling our thoughts towards that, if needed, because God will see to our salvation. He will not lead you astray. Follow Him; believe Him; take His hand and jump out of the plane, or cross the desert, or flee in front of your enemies, sure of His rearguard protection and miracles before you. He has your back. Literally, here, with the Israelites, and spiritually, with us (although I’m sure it’s literal, at times, with us, too).

Keep going. Keep acting in faith. As long as you do that, you won’t go wrong, regardless of what it looks like to you. You’ll make mistakes, and it’s okay. God fixes it all, in His way and time. He is healing you, putting all the pieces back together and in the proper order, making you what you need to be and leading you to water.

Our thoughts lead us astray. We don’t have enough information, so we have to trust God – all the time, in every thing. We must learn from the ancient Israelites, and know, though we only see in part, that God is leading us to our promised land, and all that keeps us in the wilderness is our own lack of faith and courage.