So many people forget that the Bible is called, “the living Word of God.” It is called that for a reason – God wants to speak to you through His love letter to you, for that is what the Bible is.
GOD’S LOVE LETTER TO YOU
But in order to realize that you have to open up your Bible and read it. God loves you so very much, and the older I get, the more I realize how patient God is with us. Over and over, He tries to direct your attention to the fact that the VERY essence of you NEEDS Him. Actually, is crying out to Him, and so many people don’t even REALIZE that that unsatiable feeling that we try so hard to fill with EVERYTHING BUT GOD can never be satiated until we identify what that need is.
THAT NEED WITHIN YOU IS A GOD NEED. YOU NEED YOUR CREATOR. YOU WERE MADE FOR HIM. HE CREATED YOU IN LOVE AND AT SOME POINT IN YOUR LIFE, YOU WILL COME TO YOUR RED SEA MOMENT. THE MOMENT WHERE EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE FAILS YOU, BUT GOD.
You Might be asking me:
Kelly, what is a “Red Sea moment?”
A Red Sea moment is a moment where you have come to the end of yourself, you are at a standstill. You have no more answers, see no solutions, can’t figure out what or how to do. It is at the point in your life where you recognize your need for God. Something that you are facing, be it a situation, illness, disease or loss. It is the moment where you come to the realization that you just can’t figure out what to do… A standstill moment.
In the Bible, the book of Exodus tells the story of how God called Moses to set the Israelites free. The Israelites were slaves to the Egyptians, Pharoah would not let God’s people go. God allowed plague after plague to hit the Egyptians and in the end, Pharoah finally submitted to setting the captives free. Exodus 12:29 – 32 tells the story further:
“At midnight the Lord struck down every oldest son in Egypt. He killed the oldest son of Pharaoh, who sat on the throne. He killed all the oldest sons of prisoners. He also killed all the male animals born first to their mothers among the livestock. Pharaoh and all his officials got up during the night. So did all the Egyptians. There was loud crying in Egypt because someone had died in every home. During the night, Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron. He said to them, “Get out of here! You and the Israelites, leave my people! Go. Worship the Lord, just as you have asked. Go. Take your flocks and herds, just as you have said. And also give me your blessing.” “
Exodus 13:17:
“Pharaoh let the people go. The shortest road from Goshen to Canaan went through the Philistine country. But God didn’t lead them that way. God said, “If they have to go into battle, they might change their minds. They might return to Egypt.” So God led the people toward the Red Sea by taking them on a road through the desert. The Israelites were ready for battle when they went up out of Egypt.”
and Exodus 14:1-29:
“Then the Lord spoke to Moses. He said, “Tell the people of Israel to turn back. Have them camp near Pi Hahiroth between Migdol and the Red Sea. They must camp by the sea, right across from Baal Zephon. Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites are wandering around the land. They don’t know which way to go. The desert is all around them.’ I will make Pharaoh stubborn. He will chase them. But I will gain glory for myself because of what will happen to Pharaoh and his whole army. And the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.” So the Israelites camped by the Red Sea. The king of Egypt was told that the people had escaped. Then Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them. They said, “What have we done? We’ve let the people of Israel go! We’ve lost our slaves and all the work they used to do for us!” So he had his chariot made ready. He took his army with him. He took 600 of the best chariots in Egypt. He also took along all the other chariots. Officers were in charge of all of them. The Lord made Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, stubborn. So he chased the Israelites as they were marching out boldly. The Egyptians went after the Israelites. All Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and horsemen and troops chased them. They caught up with the Israelites as they camped by the sea. The Israelites were near Pi Hahiroth, across from Baal Zephon. As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked back. There were the Egyptians marching after them! The Israelites were terrified. They cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, “Why did you bring us to the desert to die? Weren’t there any graves in Egypt? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? We told 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 here in the desert!” Moses answered the people. He said, “Don’t be afraid. Stand firm. You will see how the Lord will save you today. Do you see those Egyptians? You will never see them again. The Lord will fight for you. Just be still.” Then the Lord spoke to Moses. He said, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the people of Israel to move on. Hold out your walking stick. Reach out your hand over the Red Sea to divide the water. Then the people can go through the sea on dry ground. I will make the Egyptians stubborn. They will go in after the Israelites. I will gain glory for myself because of what will happen to Pharaoh, his army, chariots and horsemen. The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord. I will gain glory because of what will happen to Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen.” The angel of God had been traveling in front of Israel’s army. Now he moved back and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved away from in front of them. Now it stood behind them. It came between the armies of Egypt and Israel. All through the night the cloud brought darkness to one side and light to the other. Neither army went near the other all night long. Then Moses reached out his hand over the Red Sea. All that night the Lord pushed the sea back with a strong east wind. He turned the sea into dry land. The waters were divided. The people of Israel went through the sea on dry ground. There was a wall of water on their right side and on their left. The Egyptians chased them. All Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and horsemen followed them into the sea. Near the end of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud. He saw the Egyptian army and threw it into a panic. He jammed the wheels of their chariots. That made the chariots hard to drive. The Egyptians said, “Let’s get away from the Israelites! The Lord is fighting for Israel against Egypt.” Then the Lord spoke to Moses. He said, “Reach out your hand over the sea. The waters will flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.” So Moses reached out his hand over the sea. At sunrise the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians tried to run away from the sea. But the Lord swept them into it. The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen. It covered the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the people of Israel into the sea. Not one of the Egyptians was left. But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground. There was a wall of water on their right side and on their left. That day the Lord saved Israel from the power of Egypt. The Israelites saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. The Israelites saw the amazing power the Lord showed against the Egyptians. So the Israelites had great respect for the Lord and put their trust in him. They also put their trust in his servant Moses.”
Scripture says it best, so I ask you:
ARE YOU IN THE MIDDLE OF A RED SEA MOMENT?
Because our loving God has created us with free will, we always have a choice, the same choice that Pharoah had, we can submit to God and confess that we can’t get through life without Him, or we can stubbornly refuse to submit to God and continue to unsuccessfully try to get through life without Him, only to reach a point where our backs up against a wall and we realize what Pharoah came to realize life without God is futile.
Our God is a loving and patient God who realizes that we can be “hardheaded people” and sometimes it takes “Red Sea Moments,” times when we have no choice BUT to halt, stand still and re-evaluate where we are, what brought us here and where we go from there. If you choose to realize your deep soul-seated need for God, that you simply were NOT created to “go it on your own” but to put your trust in a God who LOVES you enough to bring you to the end of yourself to reach a realization that you NEED Him, and that He IS the only One who can bring you through ALL the difficult moments in life, because He loves You. Because He is GREATER than ANY “Red Sea Moment” that could present itself to you. He is the God WHO CREATED the sea! There is NOTHING that you can go through in life that God is NOT greater than. We only have to choose to trust in Him. Our trust has GOT to be in God in order to get through those moments where we’ve reached the end of knowing what to do. To turn to the God Who knows EVERYTHING. Who loves you BEYOND ANYTHING you can or will experience, and who NEVER lets you go through the waters alone. Ask Him, and see what God will do, if only you turn to Him.
“Father God, I thank You so much for the examples You have given to me in my Bible. I often forget that these are living, breathing people who encountered situations, like me. My “Red Sea” may not be a literal “sea” but it is still a moment where I’ve come to a halt. I’m out of answers, have no solutions, a moment where I am turning to You, crying out, “Abba Father! Help me!” Forgive me for my sins, and for the situations where I have allowed myself to walk right into a trap of the enemy. Father God, I call upon Your Holy name to deliver me. Please part this Red Sea and help me to successfully cross over to the other side. That ALL will know that YOU are my God. An ever present help in time of trouble. That You will receive ALL the glory, honor and praise. Part this Red Sea in my life Father. I recognize I CANNOT do anything on my own – I NEED YOU. Thank You Father for hearing this prayer. I love You. In Jesus’ precious name I pray, Amen.”
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