Oh, to Stop Fighting

As I slowly read through the book of Isaiah again, I sense the Lord taking me a bit deeper into the behaviour and attitudes of the Israelites at this time. They failed to run to God for help and persistently sought assistance from mere mortals, either in their own strength, or, as we see in this passage, from Egypt. To help defend themselves from Assyria, they sought the support of Egypt’s horses and strong horsemen. They sought comfort and protection in human strength and mighty horsepower.

This verse spoke volumes to me. When we face our battles in life, what do we do? Whom do we go to first?

It reminded me of the illustration of a drowning man, who is struggling for his life. His fear makes him panic uncontrollably, and if you try to rescue him in this state, he will take you under the water with him. The best option is to wait until he is almost unconscious, exhausted, and helpless. Then you can rescue him safely.

This can be likened to our own battles. God will not intervene while we are struggling in our own strength. He waits patiently until, in our utter exhaustion and despair, we turn to Him.

I wonder what we do first when we are fearful and struggling. Do we panic like the drowning man? Do we fight for survival? Do we reach out for the nearest rescuer? Or maybe, in our independence, we try to swim to shore on our own.

The book of Isaiah tells us God is waiting for the Israelites to stop fighting their own battles and to turn to Him for help. So many times, in the first half of Isaiah, the Israelites are reminded of the promise of God to help them, if only they will seek Him first. I am reminded, as I read, that this promise is for us too.

Maybe today, through fear and panic, we are clinging to others, who, like the men of Egypt, seem strong. Maybe, in our past, we have had to develop an inner survival instinct, which now kicks in automatically. Or maybe we feel we need to defend ourselves because nobody else will.

Verse 3 goes on to say, ‘But the Egyptians are mere mortals and not God; their horses are flesh and not spirit’. I am not saying that we should not receive human help and support in our time of need. But we need to take our battles to the Lord daily and seek His guidance.

Today, let us offer our battles afresh to the One who can help. Let us not panic and struggle until we are exhausted, as the drowning man. Let us seek our one true rescuer, the Holy One of Israel, our Lord and Saviour.