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Just Stay Calm

"The LORD himself will fight for you. Just stay calm."
Exodus 14:14

So for a bit of disappointing news, the 5k I intended to run this Friday was cancelled due to a lack of volunteers. There is another 5k on Saturday, but I still haven't decided if I should go ahead and run or wait for the free 5k I'm signed up for next Friday. I'm really anxious to get through my first race, so I may just sign up for the one this weekend!

I feel like I'm just full of disappointing news today. On top of a cancelled 5k, I had the bright idea to run an hour after eating six chocolate chip cookies and drinking a Coke. Can you say bad idea? I don't usually drink caffeine after lunchtime, but for some reason, I lost my mind tonight. I was only able to jog for 18 minutes before the pain under my ribs became too much for me. Luckily, I didn't beat myself up too much for quitting. I learned my lesson and won't be making that mistake again!

A friend and I recently began a Bible study together and I have to admit, I'm really enjoying it. It's all about new beginnings and fresh starts, which is quite an appealing topic, even if it isn't the beginning of the year. For about a week now, we've been reading the devotional content and Bible chapters on our own and then messaging our thoughts to one another. For today, we had a short devotional and then just a memory verse, Exodus 14:14, "The LORD himself will fight for you. Just stay calm."

You know, I've read through Exodus several times in my life. How often have I decided I'm going to read through the Bible, made it to Numbers, and then quit? I read Genesis and Exodus many times before I ever actually accomplished reading the Bible in its entirety. But even after reading the book of Exodus so many times, this particular verse never struck me until today. This is one reason why I love so much that Bible is the LIVING WORD. Reading it once isn't enough. The Lord has something new for me every day, whether I've read the Bible once or 100 times!

Exodus 14:14 is short, but so powerful. The LORD himself will fight for me. I find it hard to remember sometimes that the enemy is not actually people who have done things to hurt me. The enemy is, in fact, Satan. The Bible clearly states in 1 Peter 5:8 that my great enemy is the devil. He prowls around, seeking out my weaknesses, waiting to devour  me. But with just a short verse in Exodus, the Lord has assured me that He will fight for me. Not only will He fight for me, but he wants me to remain calm. The Lord is basically saying, "Have no fear. I've got this!"

So no matter the circumstance, I should rest easy. Because even though "the thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy, the Lord's purpose is to give me a rich and satisfying life." (John 10:10)

The Lord himself will fight for me. 

I need to just stay calm.


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