Stand Still – Read Ex. 14:13

It doesn’t matter whether you are being chased by Egyptians, hounded by creditors, or believing God for the biggest step you have ever taken in ministry. His response in the hard place is still, “Stand still.”

On February 7, 1986, I found myself in a new city with a new life and old financial problems. I had two months’ rent due in three days and nowhere to go but to God. As I sat on the floor of my empty living room to spend some quality time with the Lord, the Holy Spirit prompted me to read the thirteenth and fourteenth chapters of the book of Exodus. I celebrated with the Israelites there as God led these formerly enslaved people out of bondage and into freedom. Just when things started looking good for them—the presence of God manifested in pillars of cloud and fire—here comes the enemy again. Pharoah has changed his mind about letting them go, and now he’s coming after them. With a sea in front of them and the enemy behind them, God’s man, Moses, says to the people, “Fear not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord which he will show to you today….” Just then, the ringing of my telephone jolted me back to 1986.

The caller was a friend who lived several miles away. He asked how I was, and I answered with the courteous, “Fine, and you?” Not put off by that contrived answer, he probed, “No really, how are you?” Something in the restated question caused my pride to break, and I exhaled one long sentence about how I had three days to pay two months’ rent. As though he never heard my words, my friend began telling me how he was driving his car and suddenly envisioned my face in his windshield. He was calling from his car, sure that something urgent was going on. He then asked how much I needed to make my rent current. When I told him, he said, “Call the rental office and tell them that they will have their money tomorrow. I will wire enough to cover the rent and give you some extra to carry you until your next pay period.” As I hung up the telephone, my eyes fell on page eighty-eight of my Bible: “Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord which he will show to you today.”

It doesn’t matter what you are facing in your life. There is nothing that can try to overtake you that is a match for the power of God. If you can resist the temptation to make things happen in your own strength and instead find the courage to stand still, God can work a miracle for you. Your experience may not be as radical as drowned Egyptians or even a last-minute eviction rescue. But, regardless of what form the enemy is taking, God’s deliverance is powerful and life-changing. Just stand still and see His salvation.

Copyright © 2021. D’Ann V. Johnson