New Year Meditations - Deliverance

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, ‘This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year. Exodus 12:1‭-‬2 NIVUK https://bible.com/bible/113/exo.12.1-2.NIVUK

As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord . They said to Moses, ‘Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, “Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians”? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!’ Moses answered the people, ‘Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.’ Exodus 14:10‭-‬14 NIVUK https://bible.com/bible/113/exo.14.10-14.NIVUK

We received a real blessing in 2005, one for which I will always be thankful. My wife's spouse visa needed to be extended by a year so she could apply for the right to remain indefinitely in my country. We compiled all the evidence we could get, while keeping a close, eagle-eyed gaze on the immigration rules (which change frequently). Suddenly something caught my wife's keen eye. There was a possibility we might not get the extension we needed. You see, we had received her entry visa far sooner than we had expected. so we decided to stay in the Philippines for another month to give her time to spend with family and friends before we came to the UK. This decision could cost us: she would not have been in the country long enough to obtain the visa extension we needed, and paying for two extensions would be very expensive. It was causing us a lot of concern. We constantly debated on what we should do. After some prayer, we thought we would phone our local immigration office, explain the situation and try to book our appointment to extend the visa as normal. Then, if there were problems, we would apply for two extensions, all while hoping the immigration officer would not deport her. We prayed and called the immigration office. I explained the situation to them. He gave me an answer I could not have hoped for. "That will not be a problem. Just bring your documents to the interview and we'll sort it out." That was the most edgy journey to the city we have ever made. As we walked from the underground station to the immigration office, we could see other people arriving with immigration lawyers, which we could not afford. We both felt really intimidated. We went into the office and waited our turn. The atmosphere was incredibly tense. Lives were on hold, and could potentially be disrupted entirely, by the decisions made that morning. Then it was our turn. I handed over our huge form and a wad of papers. The officer thanked us, disappeared for three minutes, and then handed my wife back her passport. Just like that, with a minimum of drama, she got the visa extension we needed. Immigration is never easy. It is always intimidating. There is always the fear that a simple decision could change your family life forever. Some people wait years to have their cases heard. The migration happening in these verses, however, is on another level. One million people, fresh out of slavery, standing on the banks of the Red Sea. In front of them, a seemingly impassable body of water. Behind them, the might of the Egyptian army, the superpower of the day. I have a feeling we would not want to trade places with them. Just as the stress and fear was reaching fever pitch, Moses came with a simple, direct message. He tells them not to be afraid. Why tell them that? Because they were in charge of their reactions and could choose to be unafraid. He tells them to stand firm: to not panic, run away or surrender. Just to take their stand where they were. This is something Paul tells the church in Ephesus to do four times in the space of just a few verses (Ephesians 6:10-17). No-one wins victories by running away in a blind panic. If we want to get through any problem, we have to stand up to it. He tells them that God will get rid of the Egyptians and that they will never see them again. When we choose to be unafraid and take our stand in Christ, our eventual victory is assured. There are enemies we will never see again. He then said the Lord would fight for them, which He does. Spectacularly. Through using the pillars of fire and cloud and the wind and the waters of the Red Sea (Exodus 14:16-31). The elements were at God's disposal and He used them mightily to show the Jews and the Egyptians just who He was. But before that, Moses tells them to be still, or, better translated, to be silent. To stop whining and moaning and being an echo chamber for their worst, darkest fears. We stand on the brink of a New Year. We have no idea what lies before us. But to be victorious in it, we need to be unafraid, we need to take our stand in the faith that God will vanquish our enemies once and for all, we need to understand that He is for us, and we must silence all the negative and fearful self-talk echoing round our head. Yes, Moses was leading them into a desert. Yes, the journey to the Promised Land took forty years longer than it should. But that was because they forgot these lessons and gave full vent to all of their doubts. Paul holds up those who failed to complete the journey as examples for us so we do not do as they did (1 Corinthians 10:1-13). We may face the New Year with trepidation, and that is understandable given what we've been through, but if we stand firm, fearlessly and know that God is fighting for us, then when we cross into 2021 the victory will one day be ours. All we have to do is trust God and put one foot in front of the other. The rest us up to Him. Have a very blessed 2021!