Anxiety

(Recommended Reading – Exodus)

In Exodus 1 – read about how the Israelites were captives and oppressed in the country of Egypt.  In Exodus 2 – read about the birth of Moses how he grows up in the house of the Pharaoh & eventually flees out of fear for his life.  In Exodus 3 & 4 – read about Moses’ encounter with God and how God sends him back to Egypt to rescue his people.  In Exodus 5 through to 12:30 – read about all the plagues that God caused to fall on Egypt in order to bring Pharaoh and all  of the Egyptians to the point they practically forced the Israelites to leave.  Exodus 12:31-33 says:  “Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron during the night. ‘Get out!’” he ordered. ‘Leave my people—and take the rest of the Israelites with you! Go and worship the Lord as you have requested. Take your flocks and herds, as you said, and be gone. Go, but bless me as you leave.’  All the Egyptians urged the people of Israel to get out of the land as quickly as possible, for they thought, ‘We will all die!’”

Things had gotten so bad that Pharaoh and the Egyptians called out to them during the night – they didn’t even want to wait for morning to send them away.  And how odd that Pharaoh asked them to bless him as they left!  After all he’d done to the Israelites and all of his disregard for God as Moses and Aaron had spoken to him, he still believed he deserved a blessing!?  I love verses 35b-36:  “…they asked the Egyptians for clothing and articles of silver and gold. The Lord caused the Egyptians to look favorably on the Israelites, and they gave the Israelites whatever they asked for. So they stripped the Egyptians of their wealth!”  How awesome is that!?

Exodus 13 – Here begins the tale of the Israelites journey into the wilderness as they head toward their promised land.  At this point, if you didn’t read my article last week (”Detour On The Road Less Traveled”), you might want to check it out, because I discuss this particular chapter and the “detours” they had as they wandered in the desert, and why God chose to do it that way.

Exodus 14 – Now God had placed the Israelites along the shore of the Red Sea – He had a master plan.  In verse 4, God says:  “‘And once again I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will chase after you. I have planned this in order to display my glory through Pharaoh and his whole army. After this the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord!’ So the Israelites camped there as they were told.”  But when the people saw the Egyptian army approaching, what did they do?  They panicked, they were afraid and anxiety set in.  Verses 10-12:  “As Pharaoh approached, the people of Israel looked up and panicked when they saw the Egyptians overtaking them. They cried out to the Lord and they said to Moses, ‘Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Weren’t there enough graves for us in Egypt? What have you done to us? Why did you make us leave Egypt? Didn’t we tell you this would happen while we were still in Egypt? We said, ‘Leave us alone! Let us be slaves to the Egyptians. It’s better to be a slave in Egypt than a corpse in the wilderness!’”  They called out to the Lord it says, but then they turned on Moses and were declaring ridiculous ideas instead of believing God could once again deliver them.

Exodus 15 & 16 – The people did a lot of complaining about not enough water but God provided.  Then they complained about not enough food.  They didn’t look to the Lord to miraculously provide for  them as he’d done with the water.  No, they got impatient and once again anxiety set in.  Verses 16:2-3:  “There, too, the whole community of Israel complained about Moses and Aaron.  ‘If only the Lord had killed us back in Egypt,’ they moaned. ‘There we sat around pots filled with meat and ate all the bread we wanted. But now you have brought us into this wilderness to starve us all to death.’”  They seemed to have forgotten the very difficult days that they served as slaves.  I suspect their proclamations about what they had are likely inflated too.  

Exodus 17 – They once again reach a point where there’s a shortage of water.  Do they recall how God provided water to them before and seek His help again?  No.  Verses 2-3:  “So once more the people complained against Moses. ‘Give us water to drink!’ they demanded.  ‘Quiet!’ Moses replied. ‘Why are you complaining against me? And why are you testing the Lord?’  But tormented by thirst, they continued to argue with Moses. ‘Why did you bring us out of Egypt? Are you trying to kill us, our children, and our livestock with thirst?’”  Neglect to seek God, impatience and anxiety results.  Later in this chapter they went to battle against the army of Amalek and God gave them a resounding victory – that should’ve been another big matter of encouragement for them in the future.  God was with them! 

Exodus 18 – Moses is reunited with his wife and children and receives some very wise counsel from Jethro, his father-in-law, regarding the division of leadership.  This lightened the load on Moses and helped to expedite issues to be settled among the people.

Exodus 19 – The Israelites set up camp at the base of Mount Sinai and Moses climbs the mountain to meet with God.  Verses 3-8a:  “Then Moses climbed the mountain to appear before God. The Lord called to him from the mountain and said, ‘Give these instructions to the family of Jacob; announce it to the descendants of Israel: ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians. You know how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to me. And you will be my kingdom of priests, my holy nation.’ This is the message you must give to the people of Israel.’  So Moses returned from the mountain and called together the elders of the people and told them everything the Lord had commanded him. And all the people responded together, ‘We will do everything the Lord has commanded.’”  They seemed to have a clear understanding of what God expects from them and what He’d do in return.  

Exodus 20 – Moses presents the Ten Commandments given to him by the Lord for the people.  In verses 22-23 are these instructions:  “And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Say this to the people of Israel: You saw for yourselves that I spoke to you from heaven. Remember, you must not make any idols of silver or gold to rival me.’”  This is a very clear directive from God delivered to all the people.  Will they remember and heed this?

Exodus 21-24 – God issues more guidelines for the Israelites to follow with a promise of His presence, protection and blessings – 24:3 says:  “Then Moses went down to the people and repeated all the instructions and regulations the Lord had given him. All the people answered with one voice, ‘We will do everything the Lord has commanded.’”  Then 24:7 says:  “Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it aloud to the people. Again they all responded, ‘We will do everything the Lord has commanded. We will obey.’”  Once again they seem to have a clear understanding of what’s expected of them and the benefits for their obedience.

In the latter part of chapter 24 then through chapter 31, God has once again called Moses up onto the mountain for more instructions and so that He can give him the Ten Commandments engraved on the tablets of stone and many, many details for the Ark of the Covenant and the construction of the Tabernacle and all the in’s and out’s they need to know about.  24:14-15 says:  “Moses told the elders, ‘Stay here and wait for us until we come back. Aaron and Hur are here with you. If anyone has a dispute while I am gone, consult with them.’  Then Moses climbed up the mountain, and the cloud covered it.”  Moses was up on that mountain for 40 days and nights while he received all of the detailed directions.    

Ohhhh, but Exodus 32:1 says:  “When the people saw how long it was taking Moses to come back down the mountain, they gathered around Aaron. ‘Come on,’ they said, ‘make us some gods who can lead us. We don’t know what happened to this fellow Moses, who brought us here from the land of Egypt.’”  What has happened here?  Have the people grown impatient?  Are they worried?  Are they afraid?  Are they doubtful?  They’re suffering from anxiety.  After their multiple declarations about how they will obey and do everything God has directed them to do – they’ve now turned to wanting “some gods” to lead them out of their anxiety.  Shamefully, Aaron – of all people – made them a golden calf to worship along with an altar, then declared a day of celebration around that altar and golden calf.  First God tells Moses to hurry down the mountain because of what the people had done, then He declares He wants to destroy them all and start over with Moses.  But Moses interceded for them and the Lord changed His mind.

There was a big price to pay for allowing their anxiety to cause them to seek wrong solutions for their fears, doubts and impatience.  Many of them died by the sword and others by a plague that God sent into their camp.  God sent them on their way to the promised land, but He said He would send an angel to go with them, because if He went with them Himself, He would destroy them because of their sinfulness.  However, Moses made his case with the Lord that He needed Him to go with them and to not make them move on if He didn’t.  God relented and promised to go with them and gave them more directives for the work they needed to complete.      

In Exodus 40 – God shows His glory to the people.  Verses 34-38:  “Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle. Moses could no longer enter the Tabernacle because the cloud had settled down over it, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle.  Now whenever the cloud lifted from the Tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out on their journey, following it. But if the cloud did not rise, they remained where they were until it lifted. The cloud of the Lord hovered over the Tabernacle during the day, and at night fire glowed inside the cloud so the whole family of Israel could see it. This continued throughout all their journeys.”

Did this signal the end of the Israelites suffering from anxiety?  Not hardly.  But this story reflects some examples of what most people might consider rational things that might cause anxiety (lack of water and food), as well as an issue that just spoke of nothing but a lack of patience (waiting on Moses’ return).  But they were things that nonetheless should have called them to prayer for wisdom and guidance rather than giving in to anxious thoughts.

Let’s face it – we’re no better than the Israelites were.  We allow far too many things to create fear and doubt in our minds; too many things to cause us to be impatient and to worry; too many things that create anxiety.  The world we live in today is a real mess and what we see around us is enough to cause all of those emotions to flare up in our hearts and minds.  But, our lives would be so much more pleasant and peaceful if we would choose to turn our eyes upon Jesus, in faith, believing that He’s got everything under control.  

Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV):  “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

1 Peter 5:7 (NIV):  “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

Psalm 139:23-24:  “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.  Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.”

Written by Karran Martin – January 15, 2026

[All bold emphasis is mine]

[All quoted scriptures are from NLT unless otherwise indicated]