The Red Sea

According to the Bible, the Israelites left their life of slavery in Egypt, crossed the Red Sea, wandered around the desert for 40 years (because they were intimidated by the tribes that occupied the land of Canaan), and finally got up the courage to cross over the Jordan River into the Promised Land. Each of these bodies of water represented a boundary. I’m not speaking about actual geography, but symbolic borders between different phases of life.

To me, Egypt has always represented a state of bondage to worldly values. I’ve never literally been to the country of Egypt, but I have gone through times where I was confined by the standards of the people around me. My identity, my sense of self-worth, and my contentment were tied up in worldly terms. When I ‘crossed over’ my personal Red Sea, I thought I would step straight into the Promised Land; but that’s not what happened.

You see, the Promised Land is described as a land of milk and honey—which I thought represented the ‘good life’, a comfortable, cozy existence. As I later found out, it isn’t that at all! The Promised Land is where you live according to God’s terms, completely dependent on His will. Well, once I found that out, I was scared. I decided I wasn’t quite ready for THAT yet!

So, I turned around and went into the desert of self-will. I would live according to my own terms. I would depend on my SELF. I’ve been wandering around in circles, living according to my own standards, under my own capacity, deriving my identity from my mediocre talents and accomplishments for years now. I’m occasionally tempted to go back and live according to the world’s terms—for after all, they aren’t much different than my own—and it’s exciting to have public affirmation. Yet, the Promised Land still beckons me. It promises freedom, abundance, an unearthly identity…but I’m still hesitant.