By Tom Wiles | For The Times-Post
“The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” — Exodus 14:1-31
I have attempted to stand-up paddleboard one time in my life.
I beat myself to a pulp falling over and over again.
As I stopped to regroup on the paddleboard, I saw a dark shadow in the water; a 6-foot barracuda swimming towards me.
I thought, “Thank you Lord! It’s not a shark.”
Then I thought, “O Lord, Help! There’s a 6-foot barracuda swimming right at me!”
Mostly, I thought, “Just stay calm… just stay calm…”
There’s something about rocks and hard places that improve our prayer lives instantaneously.
The people of Israel chose panic, fear and angry criticism of Moses who led them between the rock of the Egyptian army and the hard place of the sea.
As it turns out, it was actually God’s doing.
He was about to display his glory.
What did Moses tell the people to do?
“Do not be afraid.”
“Just stand still.”
“Watch the Lord rescue you.”
“Just stay calm.”
What will we do when it’s our turn at the water’s edge?
They’re coming, the rock and the hard place.
We’ve been in some already.
We may be in one today.
Our tomorrows have some real doozies in store for us.
Our responses in those moments will reveal what we truly believe about God and the condition of our relationship with him.
As we enter our days with Jesus, we have every reason to “just…stay…calm.”
The desire
“May he give us the desire to do his will in everything and to obey all the commands, decrees, and regulations that he gave our ancestors.” — 1 Kings 8:54-66
“I didn’t ask you what you wanted to do; I told you what I wanted you to do.” (I smile when I hear my kids tell their kids the same things I told them, which were the same things my mom and dad told me.)
After some more refocusing, my daughter had her troops all rounded up, shoes on and headed out the door to the next adventure.
As the time came to move the ark of the covenant from the special tent to the newly finished temple in Jerusalem, Solomon called for all the elders of Israel.
The priests carried it to the temple and put in its place.
This moment was special.
God’s people honoring God with all their heart.
Solomon’s prayer was nothing short of awesome.
He then turned to bless the people.
One of the key blessings? May God give you the desire to do his will.
In the book of Philippians, Paul picked up on this same truth — God gives us both the desire and the power to do that which pleases him.
Since this is something God has wanted to give his people then and still does now, it is more than right to ask him for it.
Obedience is a declaration of our love for God and comes with one blessing after another.
Ask for the desire to do what he wants.
Ask for the power to do it.
What a joy to live in the center of God’s will.
Tom Wiles is senior minister of Fall Creek Christian Church in Pendleton. He can be reached at 765-778-3166.