Principles to live by while in a crisis:

By Mr. Black

Around the end of November last year I began a series on “Why God arranges a crisis”. Never could I have imagined where we would be today with our current ‘world’ crisis with Covid-19. In wrapping up that devotional, I mentioned that I would share some principles for you as a teen (and I as an adult) to learn so that we can better understand God’s purposes for our crisis.  One principle that I observed in the passage was that we must remember the promises of God. As you and I walk through a crisis, it is best for us to immerse ourselves in the Word of God (even more frequently) so that we are reminded of what God has promised to us that He will do.  In Exodus 13:3, Moses states “Remember . . . The LORD brought you out [from Egypt]”.  He then goes on to remind them TWICE what the LORD promised to do next. “When the LORD shall bring thee into the land. . . which He sware. . .to give thee” (v. 5 and 11). Moses then goes on to set up a day that God had ordained to be one of remembrance and celebration that they were to observe every year “IN THE LAND” for His deliverance. God was not hinting at what He might do, He was telling them what was going to happen and He had already planned the yearly deliverance party guidelines for them to follow!!  For 16 verses, Moses could not have been more clear in reminding the people of what God had said He would do for them. Now they were facing a crisis that seemed as if it would put an end to God’s plan. Remember! It did not! So, the first principle that we must live by in a crisis is to get in God’s Word and be reminded of His promises.  Another principle we should live by is that God is the one who will work out the solution for the crisis.  In Exodus 14, God tells Moses that He was leading them to a place where Pharaoh would think they were trapped (too bad the people believed the same thing to be true) so that God would be able to honor His name and that the “Egyptians may know that I am the LORD.” (Exodus 14:4) Well, we know how it went. The people cried and complained that Moses had led them into the wilderness to die. His response? “Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will show to you today.” (Emphasis mine) God’s response? “Speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward.” (Emphasis mine) This crisis did not even slow down God’s plan for ONE day.  And think of the story the children of Israel were able to tell - how God led them through the Red Sea with walls of water on either side and then how He drowned all of the enemy - and all in one afternoon! God gives the promises and then provides the solutions to our crisis and He will do so faithfully every time. So - fear not, stand still and watch God work.  There are definitely some more principles that we can learn, but I must leave them for another devotional.  Take some time in God’s Word today and look for the promises for YOUR crisis and then trust God that He will provide the solution to use your crisis for His Glory in your life.  Then stop and thank Him for all that He is doing and has done.  Catch you guys next time! And stay safe.