“CHEER LEADER OR FEAR LEADER!”

EXODUS 14:7-31

8  The LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt and he pursued the Israelites, who were going out boldly.

9  The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh's horses and chariots, his chariot drivers and his army; they overtook them camped by the sea, by Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon.

10  As Pharaoh drew near, the Israelites looked back, and there were the Egyptians advancing on them. In great fear the Israelites cried out to the LORD.

11  They said to Moses, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us, bringing us out of Egypt?

12  Is this not the very thing we told you in Egypt, 'Let us alone and let us serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness."

13  But Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid, stand firm, and see the deliverance that the LORD will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you see today you shall never see again.

14  The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to keep still."

15  Then the LORD said to Moses, "Why do you cry out to me? Tell the Israelites to go forward.

16  But you lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the Israelites may go into the sea on dry ground.

17  Then I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them; and so I will gain glory for myself over Pharaoh and all his army, his chariots, and his chariot drivers.

18  And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have gained glory for myself over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his chariot drivers."

19  The angel of God who was going before the Israelite army moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from in front of them and took its place behind them.

20  It came between the army of Egypt and the army of Israel. And so the cloud was there with the darkness, and it lit up the night; one did not come near the other all night.

21  Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. The LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night, and turned the sea into dry land; and the waters were divided.

22  The Israelites went into the sea on dry ground, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left.

23  The Egyptians pursued, and went into the sea after them, all of Pharaoh's horses, chariots, and chariot drivers.

24  At the morning watch the LORD in the pillar of fire and cloud looked down upon the Egyptian army, and threw the Egyptian army into panic.

25  He clogged their chariot wheels so that they turned with difficulty. The Egyptians said, "Let us flee from the Israelites, for the LORD is fighting for them against Egypt."

26  Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the sea, so that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots and chariot drivers."

27  So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at dawn the sea returned to its normal depth. As the Egyptians fled before it, the LORD tossed the Egyptians into the sea.

28  The waters returned and covered the chariots and the chariot drivers, the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea; not one of them remained.

29  But the Israelites walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left.

30  Thus the LORD saved Israel that day from the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore.

31  Israel saw the great work that the LORD did against the Egyptians. So the people feared the LORD and believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses.

Do you remember the scene in the Wizard of Oz where the Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion are on their way to rescue Dorothy from the Wicked Witch of the West?  As they approach the witch’s castle it’s dark. They hear all kinds of scary sounds coming from the woods all around them.  Then they come to an ominous sign.  Do you remember what the sign said?  It said, “I’d turn back if I was you.”  Of course that’s exactly what the Cowardly Lion tries to do. For a moment his love for Dorothy is overcome by his fear. Fear is also what keeps a lot of people from succeeding in life. They get to the point where things get really difficult and they decide to turn back.

Think back and you may remember a time when you wanted to do that. Maybe you’d like to do that with a problem that you’re dealing with right now.   Maybe it’s a problem at work or a family situation or a personal demon that’s driving you crazy.  It happens all the time.  It happened to the people of Israel.

There they were beside the Red Sea. Their years of slavery were behind them.  They were on their way to the Promised Land.  Then things suddenly turned ugly…very ugly. They looked back and what did they see?  Off in the distance they saw Pharaoh and his chariots bearing down on them. 

That’s when the fear leaders came out.  They started to grumble and grouse.  They started to crab and complain. “Moses,” they shouted, “What have you done to us? Is this not the very thing we told you in Egypt, ‘Let us alone and let us serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.”

That happens a lot when it comes to a particularly painful or persistent problem.  Some people get overwhelmed with fear.  Others take things in stride like the elderly couple down in Florida who decided to get married.  Jacob was 92 and Rebecca was 89.  A couple of months before the wedding they went for a walk to the local drug store.  “Excuse me,” Jacob said to the man behind the counter.  “Are you the pharmacist?”  “Yes, I am,” the pharmacist replied.  Jacob nodded his head.  “We’re going to get married. Do you sell heart medication?”  “Yes, we do,” the pharmacist replied.   “How about medicine for circulation problems?” Once again the answer was yes.  “How about medicine for arthritis and blood pressure?”  Once again the answer was yes.  “How about vitamins, sleeping pills, Geritol and medicine for Parkinson’s?” Once again the answer was yes.  “Do you carry wheelchairs and walkers?” The pharmacist smiled and said, “We have them in all speeds and sizes.”  “That’s great,” Jacob said enthusiastically. “If it’s okay with you then, we’d like to use your store as our bridal registry.”

Unfortunately, that cheerfully optimistic attitude was hard to find that day beside the Red Sea.  The fear leaders came out and got everyone all worked up. They wanted to give up and go back to Egypt.  Instead of pushing on to the Promised Land they wanted to go back to being slaves in the Land of Goshen. 

That’s what happens when fear gets the best of you.  You tell yourself that the problem you’re facing is too big for you to handle.  You tell yourself that tackling the problem isn’t worth all that aggravation.  You tell yourself that maybe it’s better to just leave well enough alone.  You get tired of people being angry with you.  You get tired of beating your head against the wall. You get tired of the fear leaders saying, “I told you so. I told you this is what would happen.” 

That’s what the fear leaders said that day while they were standing beside the Red Sea.  Fortunately, there was a cheer leader there that day as well. His name of course was Moses.  Now Moses didn’t panic.  Instead he turned to the people of Israel and cheered them on.  Moses cried out, “Do not be afraid, stand firm, and see the deliverance that the LORD will accomplish for you today…”

Now what was it that made it possible for Moses to be a cheer leader that day? The answer is simple.  It was faith. Moses had faith that God was going to see them through to the other side. Instead of looking back at the Egyptians or ahead to the deep blue sea, Moses looked up to God.  Moses knew that God wasn’t about to let them down after bringing them this far.  In the words of the Apostle Paul, Moses also knew that God does work for good in all things with those who love him.  (     ) 

So, instead of becoming a fear leader, Moses became a cheer leader that day.  The fear leaders focused on the problem.  Moses, the cheer leader focused on God and what God can do with and through those who love him. That’s what made the difference.

Unfortunately, focusing on God doesn’t happen as much as it should these days.  Recently, I came across a telling story that took place many years ago when Pope John Paul I visited San Francisco. Father Vazken Movsesian, a priest in the Bay area went to the papal mass that was celebrated at the old Candlestick Park.  Some time later he gave his congregation a behind the scenes glimpse into what he experienced.  He told them how he was escorted to the 49’ers locker room.  There he met with representatives of other Christian Churches.  From there they went into the ballpark where 70,000 people had gathered for the papal mass.  Father Movsesian said the warmth and the grace that filled the ballpark was overwhelming and the message that the pope gave was incredibly inspirational.  After sharing the experience with his congregation, Father Movsesian asked if there were any questions.  Immediately, a young voiced from the back of the hall piped up, “Hey Father, did you get to see Joe Montana’s locker?”

Focus on the problem and fear will bring the worst out in you.  Focus on God and faith will bring the best out in you. You can see that in everything that’s happened the last few week down in New Orleans and Biloxi and all along the Gulf Coast. In a way it’s ironic.  The situation is exactly the opposite of what happened that day beside the Red Sea, but the results have been identical. With Moses and the people of Israel the water turned into dry land. With the people down along the Gulf Coast the dry land turned into water.  Both of those situations though brought out the best and the worst in people.

No matter what the circumstances may be…you have a choice. It’s the choice between being a fear leader or a cheer leader. It’s the choice between the fear that brings out the worst in you and the faith that brings out the best in you.  It’s the choice between letting the fear make you turn back and the faith that makes you go forward.

That’s why it’s important to always work on your faith.  That’s why it’s important to spend time with God in prayer. That’s why it’s important to read the Scriptures and see what God can do.  That’s why it’s important to join with others in making a joyful noise unto the LORD.  It deepens and develops the faith that you need when you come face to face with one of those painful and persistent problems.   It’s what makes the difference between being a fear leader and a cheerleader.

A mother was reminded of that one day while standing outside a Target department store with her six year old daughter.  The little red haired girl with the freckles on her face was a picture of innocence.  Because it was pouring when the came out of the store they found themselves waiting with quite a few other shoppers for the rain to let up a little.  Some waited more patiently than others.  The mother was mesmerized by the rainfall.  Suddenly she hypnotic trance was broken by the sound of her daughter’s voice.  “Mom,” she said, “let’s run through the rain.”  “What?” the mother exclaimed.  “No, honey. We’ll wait until it slows down a bit.”  A minute or so later the daughter spoke up again.  “Mom, let’s run through the rain.”  The mother still wasn’t sold on the idea.  “We’ll get soaked if we do,” she said.  The daughter wasn’t so sure.  “No, we won’t,” she said.  “That’s not what you said this morning.”  The mother was perplexed.  “When did I say we could run through the rain and not get wet?”  “Don’t you remember?” the daughter said rather emphatically.  “When you were talking to daddy about his cancer.  You said, “If God can get us through this, he can get us through anything!”  All the shoppers standing there were silent as the rain continued to pound the pavement in front of them.  After thinking about it for a moment the mother smiled and said, “Honey you’re absolutely right.  Let’s run through the rain.  If God let’s us get wet, well then maybe we just needed washing.”

 So, off they ran, laughing and jumping over and into puddles.  They held their shopping bags over their heads, but still got soaked.  Funny thing though. They were soon followed by a few others who laughed and shouted like children all the way to their cars.

A fear leader sees the problem at hand and wants to turn back.  A cheer leader see God’s love waiting to do its best in the problem at hand and wants to go forward. 

Rev. Dr. Richard A. Hughes
September 11, 2005