Parade

The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. -Exodus 14:14

8 And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the people of Israel while the people of Israel were going out defiantly. 9 The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh's horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and overtook them encamped at the sea. 10 When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord. 11 They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? 12 Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” 13 And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

These past few months I have felt some Egyptians coming in and reigning on my parade.

Imagine, the Israelites had tasted freedom at last.  They were free from slavery to the Egyptian rulers.  What was ahead?  They didn’t know, but they were free.  Imagine the parade, joy, and pride they felt leaving Egypt.  The Lord had rescued them, brought them out of Egypt.  The Egyptians even gave their belongings to the Israelites as they were walking out of Egypt in fear of what the Israelite god might do if they didn’t please him.

Then the Egyptians come back, out of nowhere.  They had changed their minds.  They had the Israelites trapped at the Red Sea.  Nowhere to go.

How often do we feel as though we have Egyptians raining in on our parade?  We are doing God’s will, we feel as though we are serving Him with our entire being, dedicating our lives to him and then we see the Egyptians.  Closing in on us.

Of course, our Egyptians could be a number of things.  Maybe they are people.    The Lord had hardened the heart of Pharoh.  He deliberately hardened it.  Why? Maybe the Israelites became too full of themselves during their parade.  And does it really surprise you…it’s the Israelites....Go ahead and read the rest of Exodus.

Sometimes I get a little too wrapped up in my own parade, and don’t we all?  This is all for the Lord and not for me.  I have been set free, but not by me.

The deliverance out of Egypt was for the glory of the Lord, not for the glory of man.  And so to on our journey, where ever that may be.  May it be only for the glory of the Lord, never for our own parade.

Let the Lord fight for you.  Whatever struggle that may be.  So it may be for His glory, and never for your own.

Take comfort, be still.  The NIV says, “be silent”.  Oh how our lives would be different if we were able to just be silent and let the Lord fight our battles.

After all isn’t it our act of worship?  Our entire lives are to glorify him.  Go ahead and let the Egyptians rain on your parade and let the Lord fight your battle to show the world His glory.