Hemmed in on All Sides
- Tal Haroni
- Apr 27, 2023
- 3 min read
Revive Israel
Yad Hashmonah, Israel
Finally it had happened. The Israelites were out of Egypt, free at last, standing at the door to a new future and a new land. The plagues had passed. They were released from slavery, and the air was heavy with excitement.
But quickly they discovered that the war was not over. Pharaoh was about to chase them down. Even though he had suffered greatly from the plagues, and even though his crown prince was killed because of his disobedience, Pharaoh would not give up. When he heard that the Israelites were in the middle of the desert, he determined to find and destroy them completely.
“As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up and saw the Egyptians marching after them, and they were terrified and cried out to the LORD.” (Exodus 14:10)
It seemed as though God had brought the Israelites to a dead end. They were trapped between Pharaoh’s army and the sea, frightened, starting to doubt God’s and Moses’ intentions. They complained to Moses, saying they would have been better off in Egypt, enslaved to Pharaoh.
Their reaction reminds me of myself, when God is asking me to release to Him something that enslaves me; yet I don’t want to go through the freedom process. It seems much easier to stay enslaved to my own habits and temptations.
“But Moses told the people, ‘Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the LORD’s salvation, which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.’” (Exodus 14:13-14)
Moses encouraged the children of Israel, stood in faith for them. It wasn’t easy. The situation looked dire in the extreme. He likely thought to himself, “How in the world is God going to save us now?” Yet Moses believed and God came through. I don’t think Moses even considered the possibility of God parting the Sea, but a miracle, by definition, can only happen in extraordinary circumstances; after all human attempts have failed.
God loves to save us and manifest His glory in our lives. He’s not scared of impossibly difficult situations, on the contrary, “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).
Lately I’ve been facing my own Red-Sea-type situation. I need to move out of my apartment by the end of the month. Another place fell through last week. I was very disappointed, but kept hope. Then I started to look for new options. Every single one closed before me. I am still waiting and can only believe that God has something better for me.
Do you have a spiritual or physical need with no human solution? Maybe you are daily more desperate for God’s intervention. If you feel trapped, with no solution in sight, don’t be discouraged! It might be that God wants to go above and beyond your thoughts and dreams, better than what you could envision for yourself. Hold on. Don’t lose hope. God is faithful! He will always have a greater strategy than we do. He loves you and has a wonderful plan in store for you.
