Exodus 14:15-22 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.

Then the angel of God, who had been travelling in front of Israel's army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long.

Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the LORD drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. (NIV)

Ever notice that when things are not going well, when you’re facing trials and difficulties, that life seems to conspire against you. Just when you think it can’t get any worse....

I remember a funny incident that happened in our living room in Saint John one busy Sunday afternoon. I was rushing to get back to the church for our evening activities and, quite frankly, I was not in a very good mood. That happens to ministers sometimes, too. As I was rushing, huffing and puffing, I noticed that Mark’s diaper was getting full. "I’ll ignore it and let Jan take care of it," I thought as I continued to rush around collecting my things. (Come on - give me a break, ‘cause you know you’ve done it, too). I should have taken the time to change it – it would have been a lot faster in the end. The next time I went through the living room where the boys were playing, the diaper had reached its capacity and its contents were all over the carpet. Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse...

Let’s look at the situation from the Israelites’ perspective. They were pressed against the Red Sea, and what did Moses do? He held his staff over the water. Can you hear the grumbling? "Like that’s going to do something (grumble, grumble). Moses is losing his marbles (grumble grumble)." Also, there were weird things going on. The pillar of cloud and fire, which had been travelling in front of them, was now behind them. "What’s that about – isn’t that supposed to lead us? We can’t go back that way!" At least it kept the Egyptians away. And, just when it couldn’t get any worse, the wind rose and their tents shook.

I've done a lot of camping. I was in Scouts, and my brother, Glen, and I had a pup tent when we were teens. For 3 summers I worked and camped in Cavendish, PEI, which is a summer resort area. Even now, we spend 3-4 weeks each summer in our hard-top camper. One thing you learn by camping is that it is impossible to sleep when its blowing. The wind howls and the tent shakes. Flaps flap. Guy ropes come lose. Pegs rip out of the ground. I remember going to visit the Scout jamboree on PEI in ‘77 or ‘78. A bad storm had shredded tents, dining halls, and outhouses. To go to the bathroom, friends had to hold up garbage bags for privacy.

As the wind rose at the Red Sea and the tents began to shake, how many people complained? "Just when we thought it couldn’t get any worse..." Its easy enough to do. I’ve done it.

In the irony of all ironies, while God was blowing away their tents he was parting the waters. Did anyone stop to think that God could work through a storm, of all things? The Israelites woke to find a new situation. Can you imagine the joy as people left their tents and saw dry land where water used to be?