“Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on.'”
Exodus 14:15
A phrase like “Let go and let God” sounds good, but it raises questions. Who does all the work as we grow in Christ? Do we give in to God, making certain that we put forth no energy on our part? Or do we charge full steam ahead and do our best to do what’s right?
If you’ve wrestled with that question, you’re in good company because Moses struggled with the same thing. In Exodus 14, Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, but they screeched to a halt at the edge of the Red Sea. Pharaoh’s army was in hot pursuit and the people were panicking. So in the thirteenth and fourteenth verses Moses says, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Lord will fight for you; you will need only to be still.”
His was a “Let go and let God” way of looking at the problem. But that was no time to yield passively, and God says so in the next verses! “Why are you crying out to me?” said God. “Tell the Israelites to move on. Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.”
The Lord is not about to let Moses or you sit still. If danger is about, if temptation is knocking, if a friend needs help, if the Devil is gearing up for an attack, God does not want His people to stand still. “Letting go and letting God” speaks to only half the battle. The other half involves you moving forward in His power.
God of the Israelites, help me today not to sit still but courageously to move onward!
