The Broken WayGwen Smith
Today’s Truth
Moses answered the people, 'Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see
the deliverance the LORD will bring you today ... the LORD will fight for you;
you need only to be still (Exodus 14:13-14, NIV).
Friend to Friend
While at a football game of my son Preston’s, I had a moving conversation
with another team mom. It was the first time we’d ever dialogued beyond socially
expected niceties. Between cheers that went up to our football-playing boys, she
stumbled upon the fact that I was a Jesus-loving girl and was excited to share
about how God has intimately drawn her heart to his over the past five years.
How He met her where she was, ministered to her through the hands of others. How
He sparked life into her soul through His Son Jesus Christ. She was radiant and
she spoke with excitement, joy in every sentence, praise on her tongue for the
God who gives her strength and life. This dear lady opened her heart and told me
of her grueling battle with an aggressive form of breast cancer.
She was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 35 – as a wife and mother to
three small children. Initially, she was angry with God for allowing a disease
to ravage her body, furious that her husband and children might have to live
without her. Though she fought to understand the “why” of it all, she
confidently testifies that God used the pain-filled journey on the broken road
of cancer to lead her to saving Grace. She is now grateful for the broken way
that God breathed new life into her soul as she battled death in her body. As
she spoke, the troubles of my life faded to a humble corner of my heart. Her
words reminded me that God really can and should be glorified through each hard
place we find ourselves in. I was freshly reminded to trust God.
Life is filled with challenges. The struggles we endure often leave our
hearts breaking and our minds aching for reprieve. I’ve not battled cancer, but
I have experienced my fair share of times when I’ve been crushed by
circumstances that are beyond my control … just like her. As a wife, mother,
daughter, and friend, I’ve learned that hard times are inevitable and that they
hurt.
Toward the end of our conversation about her cancer and faith, my new friend
confided that fear still tries to invade her days. She said that she constantly
has to choose faith and to trust God instead of dwelling on the possibilities of
another future diagnosis. Every one of us doubts at times. We all fail to trust.
But Scripture assures us that even when we are faithless, God remains faithful.
As we walk broken paths that challenge our faith, the truth remains that God
does deliver in and through the pain. Though there are struggles that we might
take to the grave with us, God is still good. Each hard place is an opportunity
for Jesus to show His power in and through our lives.
When we find ourselves on the broken way, we often feel like we are wandering
in the wilderness. In Exodus 13:17-14:31, we see a dreary desert drama of the
Israelites. Stop here to read the full account now if you can.
When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the
Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, "If they face war,
they might change their minds and return to Egypt." So God led the people around
by the desert road toward the Red Sea (Exodus 13:17-18a, NIV).
As God moved through the leadership of Moses to bring His people from
captivity to freedom, from poverty to inheritance, the Israelites were not led
the easy way. They didn’t get to take the “paved” road – even though it was
shorter. They had to walk through the desert. God led them the harder way
because He knew it was best for them in the long run. Sometimes we are led the
harder way too. The broken way. Even though our minds conceive an easier
solution, He knows what is unknown to us, He sees what is unseen to us, and His
ways are trustworthy and best.
By day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on
their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they
could travel by day or night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar
of fire by night left its place in front of the people.” (Exodus 17:21-22,
NIV)
“Then the angel of God, who had been traveling in front of Israel's army,
withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and
stood behind them, coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the
night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so
neither went near the other all night long.
Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the LORD
drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The
waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with
a wall of water on their right and on their left (Exodus 14:19-22, NIV).
God has given us his Holy Spirit to lead us by day and by night, to be our
Strength, our Power, and our Direction in the deserts of life. Just as God made
a way for the Israelites when they called on Him as they faced a seemingly
impossible Red Sea situation, He will make a way for you. Call on His name.
Trust His plan. Reach for His hand.
Let’s Pray
Dear Lord, forgive me for the times when I try to navigate the broken path of
life on my own. When my heart is heavy with burdens, please give me Your
strength and remind my soul to trust You. I need Your guidance and power
today.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
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