I'm Following Jesus – Page 2294 – Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Saturday, February 03, 2018
Chapters: Exodus 13-15
Message: Stand Still And Trust God

Hello My Friend,

Sometimes it seems as though we face one challenge after another, that as soon as we get through one hurdle another comes right after. While sometimes the devil does try to hinder us by placing affliction upon us, many times this comes from God, and no, He is not tempting us like the devil does, He will never tempt us to do evil things, but He is proving us, which means, He is testing our faith, to see whether or not we going to trust Him or forsake Him. No, He does not do it all the time, but He does do it when we ourselves are having issues with our faith. Challenges, are well, challenging, but if we stand still and trust God, He will not only rekindle our faith, He will see us through them. “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.” – I Peter 4:12-13.

I am not going to lie to you, I tire of all these challenges, if it is not the devil messing with me it is God testing me. Let me tell you though, some of these challenges could have been avoided had I just trusted God in the first place. When God promised that He would save us through our faith in Christ alone He did not promise that it was going to be a cushy walk on the clouds, in fact, He wants to be more than the God our our salvation, He wants to be the God of our life, which is why we get faced with challenges in the first place. If we had it easy all the time we would not understand the depths of what Jesus went through to save us from hell nor would we depend on Him for all things. So, here they are, after being slaves to Egypt for four hundred and thirty years, Israel is now free and headed for the promised land. While God could have led them down the cushy path that was easy, He decided to lead them down a path that would be challenging.

“And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt: But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt. And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him: for he had straitly sworn the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you; and ye shall carry up my bones away hence with you. And they took their journey from Succoth, and encamped in Etham, in the edge of the wilderness. And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night: He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.” – Exodus 13:17-22.

“And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud,” Pillar; A supporter; that which sustains or upholds. Jesus is our pillar, the one who sustains and supports us no matter what challenge we face. He is our light, day and night, and leads us to the promised land whether that path is light or dark. You see, God does not challenge us just to see if we are going to remain faithful to Him, He does it so that we do not retreat and head back into the bondage. Now, it was time to prove their faith, would Israel trust God with His first challenge?

“Speak unto the children of Israel, that they turn and encamp before Pihahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, over against Baalzephon: before it shall ye encamp by the sea. For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, They are entangled in the land, the wilderness hath shut them in. And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, that he shall follow after them; and I will be honoured upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host; that the Egyptians may know that I am the LORD. And they did so. And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued after the children of Israel: and the children of Israel went out with an high hand. And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the LORD. And they said unto Moses, Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt? Is not this the word that we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness.” – Exodus 14:2-4,8,10-12.

“For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians,” More often than we care to admit, the first reaction when we are faced with a challenge is why we stepped out of that bondage in the first place. Before I dedicated my life to Christ my life was a mess, talk about bondage, I broke free from a relationship with a guy who is the worst womanizer ever and I was willing to walk right back into it because dating in this day and age stinks. Whenever I start thinking of how good I had it when I was in bondage that is when Jesus reminds me of what He broke me free from and it was more than my sin, He broke me free from a life that would have been hell. Moses reminds Israel that God is still with them, and will help them, they just have to stand still and watch.

“And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever. The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace. And the LORD said unto Moses, Wherefore criest thou unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward: But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea. And I, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them: and I will get me honour upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have gotten me honour upon Pharaoh, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen. And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them:” – Exodus 14:13-19.

“and see the salvation of the LORD,” You see, salvation is more than Jesus saving us from hell, it is saving us from a life of bondage, one in which we are succumb to the sins of this world. One thing about Christians is they can quickly forget the amazing things that God has done for them when faced with another challenge. When you think about it, are they really God’s people, or just pretending to be because they see the power of God working? As soon as the Israel saw all the Egyptian guards die in the Red Sea they rejoiced and even sang and danced in honor of Him, but no sooner than faced with another challenge they begin to complain.

“Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him. The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name. And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah. And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them, And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee.” – Exodus 15:1-3,23-26.

“for I am the LORD that healeth thee.” Do you understand what Jesus has healed you from? I would hate to see where I would be right now had I remained in a relationship with that guy. God does not want to always challenge us, but the truth is, unless we face some challenges we tend to forget that He is right there above us, watching over us, and guiding us with His light. It is time that we stop and think about what God has given us, the miraculous things that He has done for us, not only through our challenges, but when things are going well too. WE NEED NOT FEAR, BUT TO STAND STILL, TRUST GOD. AND LET HIM GUIDE YOU. “Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him: But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.” – Job 23:8-10. Praise God!

Jesus Christ Magnified: “And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night:” – Exodus 13:21.

Today’s Prayer: God, You know that life can be a challenge sometimes, and while You are not the one who always brings the challenges, You are the one who always sees us through them when we simply stand still, trust You, and let You guide us through them. We do not have to fear the present nor the future when we place our complete confidence in You and recognize that Your plans prevail. Daily we make our plans, but You have the final say in where we should go. Help us to find comfort in You through the challenges, knowing all the while that You will guide us with Your light to all we need and give us the spiritual support that leads us to victory in every challenge that You give us, I will not fear, I will stand still, trust You, and let You guide me to victory. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,

Christina

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