Sunday, June 7, 2026
Scripture Readings
- Primary Reading: Exodus 14-16
Key Verse
Exodus 15:17 — “Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance, in the place, O LORD, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, in the Sanctuary, O LORD, which thy hands have established.”
Devotional Thought
On this early June Sunday, when gardens are planted and the long days of summer stretch ahead, Exodus 14–16 invites us to consider where we are looking when the way forward disappears. Israel stands at Pihahiroth, pinned between Migdol and the sea, with Pharaoh’s six hundred chosen chariots thundering behind them. They cry out, and then they do what frightened people often do: they romanticize the past. “Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness?” They remember flesh pots and full bread, and forget the whip and the brick kilns. Fear has a way of rewriting memory. Moses answers with one of the great sentences of Scripture: “Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD.” But notice what God says next. He does not tell them to stand still forever. He says, “Go forward.” The sea does not part until Moses stretches out the rod; the people do not walk dry ground until they lift their feet. Stillness of heart and forward motion of obedience belong together.
That night the pillar of cloud moved from before the camp to behind it, standing between Israel and Egypt, darkness to the pursuers and light to the pursued. God Himself became the rear guard. Then the east wind blew until morning, and the waters stood as walls on either hand. Israel walked through on dry ground; the Egyptians followed and were troubled, their chariot wheels dragging heavily, until the sea returned to its strength and “there remained not so much as one of them.” Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the shore, feared the LORD, and believed. Then Moses and Miriam sang, timbrel in hand, “The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name.”
Yet only three days later, at Marah, the water was bitter and the people murmured again. God showed Moses a tree; the waters were made sweet. In the wilderness of Sin, when hunger came, He rained manna from heaven and brought quails in the evening — bread enough for each day, twice as much on the sixth day, and none on the Sabbath. Every morning’s gathering was a small lesson in trust: “he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack.” The God who split the sea also sweetens bitter water and feeds murmuring children. This summer season, whatever sea lies before you and whatever wilderness lies beyond it, the same LORD still fights for His people, still provides daily bread, and still says, “Go forward.”
Reflection
- When you look back on a season of difficulty, do you find yourself remembering Egypt’s flesh pots while forgetting Egypt’s chains — and what would it look like to stand still before God and then go forward today?
- God gave Israel manna only for one day at a time, and it bred worms when hoarded. Where in your life are you trying to store up tomorrow’s provision instead of trusting the Giver for today’s?
Prayer
LORD God of hosts, who made the sea dry land and drowned the horse and his rider, we confess that we are quick to fear and slow to trust. When we are pinned between the water and the chariots, teach us to stand still and see Your salvation, and then give us courage to go forward at Your word. You are our strength and song, the God who heals and the God who feeds. Sweeten the bitter waters of our lives, rain down our daily bread, and let us rest in You this day. In the name of Jesus, who is our manna and our Passover, Amen.