still and silent

The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. Exodus 14:14 NIV

The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent. Exodus 14:14 ESV

God has used this verse twice in my heart over the past few months.

The first was when we were waiting for our visas to enter Namibia. I was reading from the NIV with the word still. This led me to Psalm 46:10 where we are to be still and know He is God. Why? In Exodus, it was for God to gain glory. In Psalm, it was for God to be exalted among the nations. We believe God got our visas for us to enter the country because even when we arrived at the airport they were not welcoming and they were not going to let us enter. Thankfully, we had three beautiful little girls who are the daughters of our team members. The visa control officer was going to hold us at the airport but since there were children involved he allowed us to enter. Jeremy and I had to be still for many months, weeks, and days to get us to where we are today. We are here so the San can hear the Good News of Jesus Christ. For God’s glory and for God to be exalted among the nations.

The second is now as we are delayed in Windhoek before returning to Tsumkwe. We went to Kenya for 3 weeks of Africa Base Orientation. Before we left, both of our team vehicles needed repairs/work to be done on them and both had to be registered in the same city of Windhoek. We were hoping the 3 weeks away would be enough time for these things to be done. Most things take longer to be done here. So one vehicle is ready but we wait for the other to be registered now. Please pray with us that it will be registered soon. God is using this time in our team. I cannot share details but there is conflict that needs to be resolved. This is where Exodus 14:14 came back to me in ESV with the word silent. The conflict doesn’t involve Jeremy and I and we have been asked to stay silent. Being silent can be very hard at times but I can rest in the assurance that God is fighting for us. Please pray with us that this conflict can be resolved.

I am just amazed that God’s word is living and active everyday. It is good ALL the time. It can be used in our hearts in different situations and in different versions. For me, I needed to be still and let the Lord fight and now I need to be silent and let the Lord fight.

We are in a spiritual battle here. The LORD is fighting for us against the Enemy who doesn’t want us here. Please pray for our team.