Reading: Exodus 14:19-31

Verse 22: “The Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.”

In our time with this passage yesterday we focused on God’s role in the story. Today we shift to the Israelites. This focus allows us to enter the story too.

The Israelites have been slaves in Egypt for 400 years. Many generations have come and gone since Joseph brought his family there to survive a famine. Slavery in Egypt is all they now know. It is a hard life, but it is home, and there is routine. It is the only home and life that any have ever known. Now they find themselves out in the desert, trapped. Have you ever felt like you were in a similar situation, trapped?

Their leader, Moses, stretches out his hand and parts the sea. The water walls up, a path in the middle forms. In our difficult situations, God can open a door or show us a path to walk. To move forward, to find peace, to begin anew – it requires a step of faith. Those walls of water – standing tall against every fiber of logic – those are what the Israelites must walk through. Imagine what that would be like!

When we are called to move forward, it often feels like this. Like it was with the Israelites, these difficult steps are taking us to someplace new, to a place that is unknown and unfamiliar. And like the Israelites, may we step forward in faith and trust, knowing that the Lord our God goes with us, leading us forward in love.

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for always being there, for joining me where I am at. Thank you for coming alongside me, helping and guiding me to move forward. Thank you for the strength and courage. Thank you for the faith and trust. Continue to be our God of provision and of love. Amen.