Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.  And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. Exodus 14:21-22 ESV

In our walk of grace, we sometimes begin to think that since nothing happens without God’s approval and that everything comes to us by grace that we have no role whatsoever in God’s plan. Nothing in the Bible however gives us any indication that such thinking is accurate. All of the heroes of faith listed in Hebrews chapter eleven are linked to action! Abel offered a sacrifice, Noah built an ark, and Abraham left his native land. Moses was hidden by his parents and Rahab protected the spies. Not only these brave men and women but in fact all of us who belong to God’s family have a distinct, active and essential role to play.

Notice the order of the verses we are reading in Exodus: Moses stretched out his hand, and then the Lord drove back the sea. The people of Israel passed through the sea then God closed the waters over their enemies. The staff Moses carried wasn’t some mystical gift from an angel or a golden scepter which he had taken from Egypt.  Moses’ staff was simply the tool of his shepherding work. When the people of Moses’ time saw the staff Moses lifted up, they didn’t think of it as something quaint or impressive in any way. The fact that God chose to honor his simple obedience had nothing to do with the staff and everything to do with the humility of surrender. What are the tools of your daily life? Whether you carry a chain saw or a laptop to work, God can use anything you surrender to his command. Stretch out your hand! God is waiting on your surrender to open a path through the sea!