A Time to Stand Still

“And Moses said to the people, Do not  be afraid. Stand still, and  see the salvation of the Lord, which  He will accomplish  for you today.” Exodus 14:3  (NKJV)

As is usually the case at the end of a year and the start of another, many people are ready to make a move, to get up and go, move ahead. It may be that moving  gives them a sense  of a fresh start,   a new perspective,  a change of environment or more desirable  prospects. But in some situations,  it is best  before taking off  on something new to stand still  and see what happens.

When I was a youngster, a group of us  were  passing  through a cow pasture  to get to where we were going. The leader of our little pack,  my mother’s youngset brother, was a few years older than the rest of us. When we came upon some cows idling beside the path, my uncle  gestured  toward the cows, startling them. They began to gallop. The other kids stood still, but I was frightened  and took off running,  one of the cows   galloping  after me. I could hear the other kids yelling, “Don’t run!”  but I  ran fast, driven by my fear of cows. I fell and lay terrified, waiting. The cow stopped, stood over me, sniffed, then turned away. Tearfully,  I  returned to the group. “Don’t run!” my friends had shouted, and I should have listened because they knew more about cows than I did, but powered by my fear, I ran.

A new year looms ahead with  perceived threats and  problems, and we may be tempted to do something  to  avoid the fearful prospects being talked about. Should we move to a new locality?  Do we change our job,  or make an  adjustment in our financial investments?  Before  we act, let us  stand still and in prayer try to see what the Lord has in mind  for us as well as for our country. Let us not run with our fears.   It will be wise to  stop and consider the words of Moses as he instructed the terrified Israelites to stand still and see what the Lord “will accomplish for you.”  As the people stood still, they witnessed a miracle. The dark waters of the Red Sea folded up  and  made a way for them to escape.  God came through for them. He can come through for us.

At the beginning of this  new year—indeed at all times—let us be willing to stand still and give God  a chance  to accomplish amazing things for us.

Always,

Judith

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“But they that wait upon the Lord shall 
renew their strength.”

Isaiah 40:31