When God asks you to trust Him before you can see a way through.

When God Makes a Way | Part 1

Blue watercolor ocean waves beneath the words “Be Still” and Exodus 14:14: “The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.” A devotional graphic from Tell the Story Studios.

Scripture: Exodus 14:14

“The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

Have you ever found yourself in a situation where there seemed to be no way out? You've prayed. You've believed. You've done everything you know to do.

But nothing seems to be changing.

The mountain is still there. The circumstances haven't moved. And the enemy seems to be closing in from every direction.

That's exactly where the Israelites found themselves.

Behind them was Pharaoh's army. In front of them was the Red Sea.
There was nowhere to run.
No escape route. No backup plan. No way through.
At least, not one they could see.

And right there, in what appeared to be an impossible situation, Moses spoke these words:
“The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

Did you catch that?

God hadn't parted the Red Sea yet. The waters were still standing in front of them. Pharaoh's army was still approaching from behind. Nothing about their circumstances had changed.

But God had already made a promise.
Sometimes God asks us to be still before He shows us the way through.
And being still? That's not always easy.
Especially when everything inside you wants to DO something.
Fix it. Figure it out. Defend yourself. Make a phone call. Find another way.

Anything but stand still.
Because standing still can feel a whole lot like doing nothing.

But there's a difference between doing nothing and trusting God.

Being still doesn't mean you've given up.
It means you've surrendered the battle to the One who has never lost one.
Maybe you're fighting a battle today that has left you exhausted.
Maybe you're trying to defend yourself against something that isn't true.
Or maybe you've been asking God to show you the next step, and all you can see is the water in front of you.

Can I encourage you today?

You don't have to figure out how to part the sea. That's God's job.
Your job is to trust Him.
You may not see anything changing yet, but that doesn't mean God isn't working.

The Israelites couldn't see the miracle when Moses first spoke those words. But God was faithful to His promise. And the same God who stood with His people at the Red Sea is still God today.
He sees what you cannot see.
He knows what you do not know.
And He is able to make a way where there seems to be no way.
So take a breath, and release the burden of having to figure everything out.
And remember: Be still. God knows how to fight your battles!

Let's Pray

God, thank You that I don't have to fight every battle on my own. You see what I can’t see, and You know what I don’t know. Forgive me for the times I've tried to take matters into my own hands instead of trusting You. Help me to be still, to rest in Your promises, and to trust You even when my circumstances haven't changed. Thank You for being faithful, even in the waiting. In Jesus' name, amen.

This is Part 1 of When God Makes a Way, a three-part devotional series from Tell the Story Studios.

Coming Next: The Way Through — When God Makes a Way Where There Seems to Be No Way