You know that moment when you’re feeling overwhelmed or afraid, and someone says to you, “Just stay calm”?
Ugh! It’s hard to “just stay calm” when you’re in the middle of a crisis. Maybe that’s where you are right now. Or maybe you’re caught in another round of painful thoughts that no one but you and God know about. It’s easy to tell someone to stay calm, but how do we do it in the middle of the battle? How do we give God’s peace room to invade our hearts and minds when chaos is running rampant?
The Israelites were caught in this dilemma. In Exodus 14, we find them trapped by the Red Sea, with the Egyptian army quickly closing in. On the brink of sure disaster, their leader Moses says, “The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm” (Exodus 14:14).
I can imagine their response. “Really? The Red Sea is in front of us, mountains surround us, and the enemy we just escaped from is breathing down our necks, ready to enslave us again. And you want us to stay calm?!”
But Moses knew there was no reason to panic; he trusted God’s heart for His people. So in faith, he stretched out the rod in his hand over the sea as God had instructed…and just like that, God parted the Red Sea, creating a dry path for 3.5 million Israelites to cross safely over.
The Egyptian army chased after the Israelites, right down into that dry path through the seabed, but then things got bad. God started fighting for the Israelites by bringing confusion to their enemy. He even twisted their chariot wheels till they fell off! Even the Egyptians recognized God was in the battle. Exodus 14:25 says they began shouting, “Let’s get out of here—away from these Israelites!… The Lord is fighting for them against Egypt!”
But they didn’t get out in time. Once the Israelites had reached the other side safely, the Lord released the water. In moments, it rushed over the Egyptians, and the enemy army drowned.
Remember what Moses said: “The Lord will fight for you, just stay calm.” His words hold a vital truth to living a victorious life: No matter what we face, we can trust that God is fighting for us. He will provide a way out. When we know that, we can stay calm. It won’t be easy. Anxious thoughts will remind us of painful past experience. Fear will try to convince us there’s no way out, that all hope is gone. But we know better.
I’ve asked the Lord to help me defeat those painful thoughts, to drown them just like He drowned the Egyptians. He showed me that the Red Sea represents the cleansing power of the blood of Jesus Christ. That precious blood can defeat every thought or enemy that comes against me. When I plead Jesus’s blood over my mind and speak His Word over my situation, I will emerge victorious every time.
When fear arises, I flood it with a wave of the blood and the Word. I pray through 2 Timothy 1:7: “Father, You have not given me a spirit of fear or anxiety, of pressure or torment. You, my Jesus, have given me the spirit of power, of love, and of a sound and peaceful mind. I will remain calm, because I know that You are fighting for me!” And every time, those out-of-control thoughts diminish.
I refuse to allow negative thoughts to control my life. Proverbs 23:7 NKJV says, “As [a man] thinks in his heart, so is he.” I also refuse to allow my words to defeat me. Proverbs 18:21 says, “The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences.”
What we tell ourselves is vital to claiming the calmness and peace that Jesus’s blood and His Word offer. Choose to fill your heart and thoughts with the unlimited power of God’s Word. Cover your mind with His blood. Like a flood, they will drown out every anxious thought, so you can rest in the truth that God is fighting on your behalf. Stay calm! †
