LIFE SCRIPTS

When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, “What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!” So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him. He took six hundred of the best chariots, along with all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them. The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly. The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon. As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord . They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”
Exodus 14:5‭-‬14 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/exo.14.5-14NIV

The moment was filled with tension. God had led His people to what seemed like a dead end. Trapped between a desert and the sea…on one hand escaping from a tormentor yet on the other hand blocked from further progress by an obstacle. Such a scenario not only brought out frustration but raw anger. So they lashed out to Moses…’weren’t there enough graves in Egypt?…why did you bring us all this way for destruction?… Such is the raw emotional display when we feel cornered…most of all if we had obeyed God…we chose to follow His will yet the odds are stacking against us…our enemies not only seem more powerful but are on our heels…life has suddenly come to a standstill and we’ve thrown caution to the wind. So as the army of pharaoh descended on the Israelites, I can only imagine them shaking…I can only imagine the ground vibrating from the multitude of chariots…a display of military might. I can only see fear mixed with rage in their eyes…fear towards the Egyptians but anger against Moses. Moses the man seemed cornered. Was this campaign a fallacy? Would the Israelites after all become free? The Israelites had been slaves for over 400 years. Generations had come and gone. Children and their children had been used to a life of slavery. It had become so normal that they felt odd when they were on the verge of sweet freedom…but just not yet. So as they stood perplexed at the thought of falling into the hands of their cruel masters, they bombarded their leader, Moses with all sorts of angry retorts. Moses was the man in the real catch 22…a fugitive of Egypt…disliked among Israelites for sending them out and now trapped in oblivion…a man who trusted and believed in God to lead the way…then this! What would he tell the people? He would turn to the One who sent them to get direction. God. Jehovah. In verse 13, he asked them not to be afraid but to wait upon the deliverance from God. At the lowest moment in his life, he still chose to draw strength from God. This is our take home especially for us in leadership positions. When chaos exists in all directions, our only hope is upwards. Look up, draw divine strength and encourage others that all will be well. Even in the midst of turmoil that we don’t understand, God still leads His people. He has sent us and where He sends, He directs.