The Safest Place to Walk

Scripture: “Thou leddest thy people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron.” — Psalm 77:20

There is something almost unexpected about the way Psalm 77 describes the Exodus. After speaking of thunder, lightning, trembling earth, and waters parting, the psalmist ends with the quiet picture of a Shepherd leading His flock.

That contrast stays with me.

The same God whose voice shook the heavens was tenderly guiding His people step by step. His power was great enough to command the sea, yet His attention was personal enough to shepherd a frightened people through it.

If I had been standing there that day, I probably would’ve suggested a different route. Green pastures make sense. A valley I can understand. But leading sheep toward an uncrossable sea? That hardly seems like the work of a shepherd.

Yet that was exactly where God revealed Himself most clearly.

Israel wasn’t merely being rescued from Egypt. They were learning who their God was. The sea became more than an obstacle standing in their way. It became the place where they discovered that the One leading them had authority over everything threatening to destroy them.

I cannot help but wonder what it sounded like to walk between those walls of water. Was there a deafening roar? Could they hear the tremendous weight of the sea pressing against the unseen hand of God, held back only because He had commanded it to stand still?

If so, every step would have required a choice. They could focus on the frightening sound surrounding them, or they could keep following the God who was holding it back.

The miracle was not simply that water stood on either side. It was that every impossible step taught Israel something new about the heart of their Shepherd. His power was undeniable, but so was His patience. His authority was beyond question, but so was His care.

I think that’s true of us at times. We hear the noise of our circumstances—the doctor’s report, the financial pressure, the uncertain future—and it can become loud enough to make us question whether we should keep moving forward. Yet all the while, an unseen Hand may be restraining far more than we realize. We may hear the waters, but God is still holding them.

We sometimes think of the Exodus as the story of a sea that opened. God saw it as the story of a people learning who was leading them.

Sometimes the path makes perfect sense. Other times it leads straight toward something we never would have chosen.

But if the Shepherd is the One going before us, then even the sea becomes the safest place to walk.

If this Fireside Chat warmed your spirit and sparked fresh resolve to live what you believe, fan that flame with Scripture—“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly” (Colossians 3:16). Pull a little closer to the Light, and carry it into the week ahead.

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