Leader, It’s Time for Victory

Moving Forward in Faith: Lessons from Moses and God’s Command

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on." (Ex. 14:15).

When Pharaoh drew near, the Israelites saw their enemies behind them. They were terrified and blamed Moses. They thought they would be slaves again or die in the wilderness. Moses calmed them, saying that the Lord would fight for them.

Moses, their leader, spoke to the people, assuring them that God would save them from that danger. Then God asked Moses, "Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on!" This teaches us a powerful lesson. God was telling Moses: stop crying out and tell the people to look ahead and keep moving forward.

Sometimes, we need to stop crying out and start acting. Moses had already told the people that the Lord would fight for them. He was certain the Lord would keep His promise to bring them into the Promised Land. At that moment, Moses needed to act immediately: stop crying out and lead the people forward.

Even though he was a great leader who delivered the people from slavery and led them through the wilderness for forty years, Moses still had lessons to learn. Leaders today can learn a great deal from this. We need to understand what is happening and act quickly. In that moment, God wanted action, not more crying out.

A leader who stays close to the Lord knows that the tasks entrusted to him will be completed, because the Lord keeps His promises. The closer we are to God, the clearer it becomes when it is time to act.

Antonio Mendes