What to do when you face the impossible

What do you do when you have followed God into a situation that seems impossible? Three things. First, you eliminate fear. “Do not fear,” Moses told God’s people as they were hemmed in by the Red Sea and Pharaoh’s army. Second, you must stand by, or stand fast. God is working, even if you cannot see His hand. Finally, you must see the salvation of the Lord. 

How do I do that, you may ask? What is the salvation of the Lord? It is a backward look, and a forward look. It is the sum total of all that God has done, is doing and will do on your behalf, for His glory. It is a retrospective look at His past promises and blessings, and a prospective view of His future grace. The Israelites could look back and see God’s promise to Abraham, His provision of Isaac, and His blessings on Jacob. They could see the ten plagues, the Passover, and their deliverance from Egypt. They could see the pillar of fire and the cloud that had led them to this place.

But the salvation of the Lord has a future component, too. Based on all that God has done in the past, we can look forward and anticipate with confidence that He will continue to display His manifold faithfulness in the future. Are you in a cul-de-sac like the Israelites? Is a crisis immanent? Fear not! Stand by! See the salvation of the Lord.