🕊️ PRAY HERE Devotion 🕊️ “Don’t Second Guess Your Freedom!”

Scripture: Exodus 14:10–13 KJV

“And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the LORD.

And they said unto Moses, Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt?

Is not this the word that we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness.

And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.”

Devotion :

Maybe it’s just me, but…

HAS MAKING THE RIGHT CHOICE EVER FELT WRONG? 😮‍💨

You finally decide:

“I’m going to do this God’s way.”

Maybe you’ve been making money doing something you KNOW isn’t right. Lying. Scheming. Cutting corners. Doing whatever you have to do to get by.

But conviction hits you.

You stop.

You start applying for legitimate jobs because you’ve decided:

“I’m going to trust God and do this the RIGHT way.”

And then…

NOBODY CALLS YOU BACK. 😩😂

Now the bills are due.

Your account is getting low.

And suddenly that old way of making money starts looking pretty good again.

👀

“Welllllll… I knew how to make some money before.”

NO! 😂🤦🏽‍♀️

That’s exactly the kind of moment we’re talking about today.

Sometimes you can make the RIGHT decision and immediately encounter a DIFFICULT situation.

And if you’re not careful, you’ll interpret difficulty as confirmation that you made the wrong choice.

EVERY HARD THING THAT HAPPENS AFTER YOU OBEY GOD DOESN’T MEAN YOU MADE THE WRONG DECISION.

Whewww! 🙌🏽🔥

If you’ve been in bondage or stuck in a certain way of life for a long time, freedom can feel unfamiliar.

And unfamiliar can feel scary.

You knew how to survive back there.

You knew the routine.

You knew the people.

You knew what to expect.

It may not have been GOOD for you…

BUT IT WAS FAMILIAR.

Now you’re learning another way.

You’re learning how to trust God.

You’re learning how to live differently.

You’re developing new habits.

You’re leaving certain people alone.

You’re saying no to things you once said yes to.

You’re handling money differently.

You’re changing how you date.

You’re changing how you respond when you’re angry.

You’re trying to walk the straight and narrow path.

And let’s tell the truth:

LEARNING A NEW WAY OF LIFE CAN BE HARD IN THE BEGINNING—EVEN WHEN IT’S BETTER FOR YOU.

When our faith gets low, walking with God on an unfamiliar path can become scary.

It can even make us wonder:

“DID I MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICE?”

Let’s look at today’s Scripture together.

God had just brought the children of Israel OUT OF EGYPT.

They had been enslaved.

God delivered them.

They were FREE!

🙌🏽🔥

But then they looked up…

AND PHARAOH WAS COMING!

The Egyptian army was behind them.

The Red Sea was in front of them.

And the Bible says they were “sore afraid.”

Now they’re fussing at Moses! 😂🤦🏽‍♀️

Basically:

“YOU SHOULD HAVE LEFT US IN EGYPT!”

“WE TOLD YOU TO LEAVE US ALONE!”

“IT WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER TO STAY SLAVES!”

Oh my goodness! 😂

Wait a minute!

You were crying because you wanted to be FREE!

God frees you…

Trouble shows up…

And now you want to go back to SLAVERY?!

But before we judge Israel too quickly…

HOW MANY TIMES HAVE WE DONE THE SAME THING?

👀

God brings you out of a toxic relationship.

Loneliness hits.

“Maybe I should call them…”

NO! 😂

God delivers you from an old lifestyle.

Things get difficult.

“Maybe life wasn’t that bad back then.”

God helps you walk away from sinful habits.

Temptation comes.

“Maybe just one more time…”

God starts changing your circle.

Now you’re lonely.

“Maybe I should go hang with everybody again.”

God calls you into a new way of living.

It gets uncomfortable.

“Maybe I was better off before.”

DON’T SECOND GUESS YOUR FREEDOM!

👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

The Israelites made a critical mistake:

They saw Pharaoh coming and assumed freedom wasn’t working.

WHEWWW! 😮‍💨🔥

But Pharaoh chasing them did not cancel what God had already done.

THEY WERE STILL FREE.

And hear me:

Just because something from your old life is chasing you doesn’t mean you have to go back to it.

🙌🏽🔥🔥🔥

Old temptations may come looking for you.

Old people may call.

Old habits may start whispering.

Old opportunities may present themselves.

Fear may tell you that life was easier before you started obeying God.

The enemy would LOVE for difficulty to make you question your deliverance.

“See? You were better off before.”

“This God thing isn’t working.”

“Go back to what you know.”

NO!

DON’T CONFUSE FAMILIAR WITH BETTER.

Egypt was familiar.

BUT EGYPT WAS BONDAGE.

My, my, my! 🙌🏽

Moses told them:

“Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD…”

In other words:

DON’T RUN BACK.

DON’T PANIC.

DON’T LET FEAR MAKE YOUR DECISION.

TRUST GOD!

They couldn’t see how God was going to get them through what was in front of them.

BUT GOD ALREADY KNEW.

They saw a sea.

God saw a pathway.

They saw Pharaoh.

God saw an enemy He was about to deal with.

They thought:

“WE’RE GOING TO DIE OUT HERE!”

God was about to show them another level of His power.

HALLELUJAH! 🙌🏽🔥

Somebody reading this may be in that uncomfortable place between what God brought you out of and where God is taking you.

Don’t turn around just because the new road got hard.

Don’t go back to bondage because freedom requires faith.

Don’t reopen the door God helped you close.

Don’t return to sin because obedience became uncomfortable.

Don’t let fear convince you that you were better off bound.

YOU ASKED GOD TO BRING YOU OUT.

Now trust Him to teach you HOW TO LIVE FREE.

👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

The straight and narrow path isn’t always the easiest path.

But difficulty doesn’t make disobedience better.

DON’T SECOND GUESS YOUR FREEDOM.

Keep walking.

Keep trusting.

Keep obeying.

And when you don’t know what to do next…

“FEAR YE NOT, STAND STILL, AND SEE THE SALVATION OF THE LORD.”

God didn’t bring Israel out of Egypt just to abandon them at the Red Sea.

And when God leads you out, don’t let fear talk you into running back.

TRUST GOD! 🙏🏽💙

Reflect & Respond

What has God brought you out of that you’ve been tempted to return to simply because your new life became uncomfortable?

An old relationship?

An old habit?

An old lifestyle?

An old way of making money?

An old group of people?

An old sinful pattern?

Ask yourself:

“DO I REALLY MISS IT—or DO I JUST MISS THE FAMILIARITY OF IT?”

Then remind yourself:

DIFFICULT DOESN’T MEAN WRONG.

UNFAMILIAR DOESN’T MEAN UNSAFE.

And FAMILIAR DOESN’T MEAN BETTER.

Don’t make a permanent decision because of temporary fear.

DON’T SECOND GUESS YOUR FREEDOM.

Prayer :

Father God, thank You for everything You have brought me out of. When my new path becomes difficult, don’t let fear convince me to return to old bondage. Strengthen my faith when I cannot see what You’re doing. Help me trust Your Word, obey You, and keep moving forward. Teach me how to live in the freedom You have given me.

In Jesus’ name, Amen. 🙏🏽💙

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