The Stillness Strategy

UV 1590/10000 The Stillness Strategy of Spiritual Warfare
And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.
Exodus 14 v 13
The Egyptians are a metaphor for the superpower or powers that threaten our freedom and security today, who held us in bondage in the past, who suppressed us and prevented us from reaching our full potential as human beings and as children of God. The uni-verse exhorts us not to fear such as these for just as the ancient Israelites never saw Pharaoh and their former slave masters ever again, we will leave them behind as a remnant of our past. Moses tells the Israelites to hold their tongues and not to confess or give expression to their fears, to stand still and perceive the amazing way in which the Lord God would save them.
The Lord expects us to hand over our greatest fears or apprehensions to Him in prayer and to await an amazing answer. Terrorism and violence are the ancient weapons of the weak while prayer and faith are the powerful weapons of the strong. Terrorism and violence leaves their victims stronger in faith and courage while it drains the strength and power of the perpetrator. Pharaoh and his commander thought that the Israelites would be trapped by the topography of the place they were camping and would have no escape route. At times we might seem overwhelmed and trapped in our circumstances. As we look up to the Lord for salvation, He will show us the way of escape that we will be able to endure and overcome it. The Lord desires that we do not attempt to even defend ourselves but to surrender or commit our protection to His able hands. Standing still does not mean that we freeze or get paralysed with fear. The Lord asked Moses, “ Why are you crying to me? Move forward and use over your staff over the water of the Red Sea.” We are to move in the direction we are led by the Spirit of God. We are to use the all powerful weapons of the Word and prayer as our defence and shield. To yield to the Lord is our best shield and it also increases our yield.
We should hope and quietly wait for the Lord to reveal His plan of salvation as He did with the Israelites in piloting them with an angel and guarding them with a thick cloud at their rear so that the Egyptians could neither see nor approach them in their powerful chariots. When they reached the Red Sea, as Moses lifted his staff over the water, the Lord send a powerful east wind to make the waters part and stand as a wall on either side as they crossed. Likewise in this day and time, the Lord will show us the path and direction we should take as we stand still and lean on Him. This reminds us of the hedgehog who rolls into a still and impenetrable ball anytime and every time a fox attacks it.
The Lord allowed Pharaoh to chase the Israelites and hardened his heart so that His name would be honoured, so that the Israelites’ faith would be strengthened, Moses’ leadership would be vindicated. The strategy of faith is passivity of physical retaliation or action accompanied by intensity and dynamism of the spirit of God in us. Moses and the Israelites under his leadership did not panic at the sight of the dust of the horses’ hooves pursuing them. They calmly moved forward trusting in the deliverance of the Lord with a mighty hand. The result was that they were given safe passage through the sea while the same waters that stood still as walls when they crossed came down crashing and drowned the chariots of Pharaoh. This taught the Israelites that the battle is the Lord’s. We too should realize that the battle is the Lord’s. We only need to calmly do all that lies with us in the natural and in terms of our responsibilities and move forward. We shall see the awesome salvation and deliverance of the Lord but those who oppress us, we shall see no more.
Prateep V Philip