After the Israelites crossed the Red Sea (as recorded in Exodus 14) what followed could be likened to kids coming home from a week of Christian camp in the summer. Often, the campers are on a “spiritual high,” infused with excitement for hearing God’s Word and spiritually well nourished by the quiet time that was set aside each day for devotional reading.

Sadly, due to a lack of encouragement, a change in their routine and surroundings, or, in some cases because the changes were only emotional or were made in the moment or under pressure to be like the other campers, these changes are often known for being temporary. When the faith these young campers were learning to develop and nurture is tested, it fails. (By the way, church leaders of theirs, parents, and friends, when kids come home from camp, help them keep the momentum going by continuing to disciple them and train them so that they can take the next spiritual step on their faith journey. Your influence and example matter!)

When Moses and the Israelites left on a spiritual high from “Camp Red Sea,” they headed into the wilderness of Shur (see Exodus 15:22). Three days in, they still could not find water. This was not good. However, they journeyed on, still in search of water.

When they reached Marah, they found water, but it was bitter. Thankfully, Moses took the problem straight to the Lord (Exodus 15:25). The Lord showed Moses a log (“tree,” KJV); Moses threw the log into the water; the water became sweet. Yum. Problem solved.

Or so you would think, based on the outward appearance of things.

Inwardly, however, the Israelites were still on the bubble when it came to their faith in the great I AM. Their faith needed to work its spiritual muscles and be exercised a bit.

James 1:2–3 states that when our faith in Who God is gets tested, it often produces the quality of patience within us. The Amplified Bible states James 1:3 this way: “Be assured that the testing of your faith [through experience] produces endurance [leading to spiritual maturity, and inner peace].”

In other words, as your spiritual muscles are tested during a change or trial (to see if they are there), the exercise required for making it through the change will strengthen them!

Unfortunately, instead of allowing their faith to be strengthened by their latest change in location, the children of Israel basically hovered over zero on the “faithometer.” God had very recently wiped out the entire Egyptian entourage that had followed them into the Red Sea. Did they actually think that He couldn’t provide food and water for them?

When change enters the room (or wilderness, in this case), it provides an opportunity for our faith to be exercised. We can choose to complain, or we can start exercising what we know to be true about our great God. Which one will you choose?

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This post is, in part, an excerpt from Brenda’s seven-lesson Bible study, Choosing to Change when Change Happens (“Lesson Four: Change Can Exercise Our Faith”), which is suitable for individual or group study. Click here to learn more and to order your copies.

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