Apr 08
Today’s Truth
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.
Philippians 4:13
Friend to Friend
In my last devotion, we looked at Moses’ encounter with God at the burning bush in Midian. God began by saying:
The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them (Exod. 3:7–9, emphasis added).
This was sounding good to Moses! (And it sounds good to me!)
God sees!
God hears!
God is concerned!
God will rescue!
I imagine Moses’ heart was pounding, his pulse was quickening, his neck hairs prickling. Hope was rising! This was great news! Until the next few words rocked his world.
“So now go. I am sending you to the Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt” (Exod. 3:10, emphasis added).
Can’t you see Moses backing away from the bush . . . holding up his hands as in, “Whoa. Hold on here. You’ve got the wrong man for the job.”
His exact words were: “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt” (Exod. 3:11)?
Every insecurity in Moses’ emotional storehouse rose to the surface. And in his fainthearted and half-hearted objections we discover answers to what keeps us stuck in milquetoast faith—what keeps us from moving forward to the land flowing with milk and honey, what keeps us from experiencing the wall-tumbling, giant-slaying, mountain-moving, lame-man-leaping, blind-man-seeing, loaves-and-fishes-multiplying, thriving faith.
Moses was stuck in the muck and mire of inferiority, insecurity, and inadequacy. He allowed his past failure to stand in the way of his future success. His measuring stick had gotten him stuck as he saw others as more qualified, sanctified, and fortified to do anything meaningful for God. He had lost his confidence and God was about to show him how to get it back. But this isn’t just Moses’ problem; it is a potential problem for you and me as well.
Did you notice that before God told Moses what He was going to do, He reminded Moses who He was? “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.”
Then Moses replied, “Yeah, I got that, I know who You are, but who am I?”
That question is one of the most important you will ever ask. Your answer will affect the way to you look at life, tackle your troubles, and frame your circumstances. The answer to that question will determine your destiny. It can give you the confidence to accomplish your calling or take away your courage to even begin. If you don’t answer that question with the truth of God, the devil will answer it for you with his bag of lies.
What do you think ran through Moses’ mind when God said, “Now go, I am sending you to the Pharaoh?” I imagine his life flashed before his eyes and he saw all the ways he had disappointed people in his past, not to mention the way he had disappointed himself.
You’ve got to be kidding! I am a murderer! I am a coward! I am a dirty rotten scoundrel! I am a wanted man! I am so messed up, used up, and fed up! No. No. No. You’ve made a mistake. You’ve got it all wrong. You’ve got the wrong man for the job.
How many times have I reacted similarly to Moses? Perhaps you have too. As soon as God reveals what He has planned for you to do, the devil reminds you of your past failures and missteps. And I’m not talking about just the mistakes you made before you came to Christ, but also the ones you’ve made since you came to Christ. The times you did not flee from temptation but walked right into it, did not hold your tongue but lashed out in anger, did not wait on God but rushed in to take matters in you own hands. Those are the ones the enemy really likes to throw in your face.
And we ask the questions:
Who am I that I should go to the Pharaoh?
Who am I that I should write a book?
Who am I that I should start a business?
Who am I that I should start a ministry?
Who am I that I should be a teacher?
Who am I that I should help orphans overseas?
And God replies, “You are who I say you are.”
So here’s your question for today…will you believe Him?
Let’s Pray
Lord, so many times I’m like Moses. I sense you calling me to do something wonderful, something risky, something beyond my ability. And then I say, “Who am I that I could…?” Lord, help me to believe that I am who You say that I am, and that I can do what You say I can do. Help my unbelief, my shaky knees, and my weak hands. For I know that my weakness is made perfect in Your strength.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
Now It’s Your Turn
What is one time when you sensed God calling you but you ignored the call because you didn’t feel qualified?
What is one time when you sensed God calling you and you move forward in faith even though you didn’t feel qualified?
I’d love to hear your answers. You can email me at Sharon@sharonjaynes.com.
More from the Girlfriends
Today’s devotion was taken from my new book, Take Hold of the Faith You Long For: Let Go, Move Forward. Live Bold. On the outside, many of us are well-put-together churchgoers with trendy shoes, beautiful families, and wide, white smiles. On the inside, we’re little girls hesitating at the edge of the playground, wishing we could join in, but feeling something’s not quite right. We don’t know how to truly take hold of the “life to the full” that Jesus offers us. So we settle for a life that’s . . . less.
But a mediocre, mundane faith is not your destiny! In Take Hold of the Faith You Long For, I reveal the most common reasons we get stuck in our Christian faith. I show you how to break free of all that holds you back, move forward with all that God promises, and live the adventurous faith of bold believing. It’s time to leave behind feelings of inferiority, insecurity, and inadequacy that hold you hostage and take hold of the mountain-moving faith God intends. Let’s uncover untapped sources of confidence and courage, and see how to move from simply knowing the truth to actually living it out boldly in a life marked by true freedom and expectancy. It’s time to get UNSTUCK! Click on the book cover to discover free bonuses when you order before May 1, 2016.
Loved this article. I’m in a season right now where I’m feeling overwhelmed, to say the least, but learning to ground myself again in my identity. My identity in Christ. Learning to trust that I am who He says I am. That was powerful.
Thank you. God bless.
THANK YOU!
Beautiful reminder of who God is and who I am in Him.
So true, I can do it all for He gives me the strength.
Amen!
And Ladies, thank you for doing it all specially this beautiful ministry you gives us daily.
We truly appreciate every word you all write.
God Bless!
Leading a women’ retreat next weekend. Want to run away like Moses, yet I know I can and will do a good job because God calls me to use the gifts he has equipped me with. Very, very timely piece for me. Thanks a ton.
Hi Sharon… I’ve sent this same comment to others and your devo this morning hit on my questions. Boy would I love someone seasoned in His calling to give me some wise counsel. I enjoyed your encouraging Gig devo this morning!!! I have shared my testimony, my dream of what I believe God is calling me to do, and would love some next steps. Steps you took when you knew God called you to begin speaking, writing, blogging, and most of all sharing your past for His purpose and glory…this is me and who He has called me to be…the pain I have endured(much JOY intertwined)was allowed bc He knew I had the gifts to GO and share how I overcame trials/bondage with faith that only comes from Christ! Please let me know what you would do if you were me and how you began? I have so many ideas and journaled many of them over the past 2-3 years.
It would be so appreciated!
My husband and I and children(15,18) are very involved in our church.. from Sunday School Teachers, deacon, HS ministry, mission trips, etc…and hoping to start an Organic Mentoring Ministry. Now that I have recently given my testimony to 200 HS students and adults, and shared this new ministry idea with ministers….God has confirmed the calling He has for me. But life happens and that calling is put on hold bc you know you can’t give it your all. It’s way past time as I’ve made excuses and it’s time to just GO! BUT…I don’t feel qualified in the word though my Bible is marked up like a coloring book. As I get older, I’m finding out that this undiagnosed ADHD 50 year old:), is still having a difficult time recalling scripture when needed or even remembering the details of some of the main bible stories we hear all of our lives. So, WHO AM I to GO when I know God has called me when retaining information can be the devils way of holding me back. I have the biggest heart for hurting women trapped in the bondage of their past and present and lost trying to figure out their purpose…as I came from a broken home(but a family with the biggest hearts you would ever know and a daddy who brought other’s to Christ), depression, anxiety and suicide in our family(but I’ve overcome everyone one of them by God’s grace), eating disorders, failing college only to go back and finally graduate at 29, miscarriage, failure, regrets, and other things I can’t even mention publicly, etc..
But wow the true freedom in the joy of the Lord when we reach the end of ourselves! That’s where I’m at and want to share it with so many broken women! They are all around us if we pay attention! They are silently suffering with nowhere to go or maybe that’s what they think bc they don’t know Jesus!
Do I take some courses in theology, psychology, counseling, etc… Where do I start? I need to acquire some knowledge of what He has called me to do and I’ve been patient but ready to go boldly and quickly to that next step! Any advice would be wonderful!
In His Love,
Amy Wallis Hood
Trussville, AL
Hi Amy,
I read your comment and I saw some of myself in what you wrote. Not too long ago I felt God calling me to a different place in my life. I had the similar thoughts of returning to school. getting a degree, doing what ever I could in the natural to meet his expectation for me. Then I realized….I was “doing”, and not “letting” God. If God is calling you to something, it is He who qualifies you. When He called Moses to go to Pharaoh and demand that He free His people, Moses didn’t take speech classes or even develop outlines of what he would say. God put the words in his mouth. God moved the heart of Pharaoh! God did it!!! All Moses had to do was show up. So don’t get caught up in looking at your self and your ability. The truth is, most of us are not qualified, we are not good enough, we do not know enough, but through Christ, ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!!! What God does in someone else’s life is for them. What God has for you is for YOU! Keep looking up and seeking His face, and what ever He called you to, He will equip you in every way to accomplish it. God Bless You!
And… all in His timing!!!!! Be still and know that He is God! Wait on the Lord for His timing is perfect!
I found it more difficult to relate to today’s message. As a new follower of Christ, I joined this email subscription to learn more about God. I’m in a transition period of my life, as I just graduated from college last year and moved away from my family to a new city a couple months ago.
I want to hear from God and I want to know what He wants me to do and has planned for me, but I just feel like I can’t hear him. This devotion mentioned feeling a sense that He is calling – what is that like? How will I know if He is calling me or not?
Hi Taylor,
I remember asking this question when I rededicated my life to Christ about 15 years ago. I heard so many seasoned Christians saying, “the Lord told me”. I would think to myself, “what does the Lord sound like?” What I soon learned is that when you spend time in the Word of God, not only are you getting to know His voice, you are getting to know Him! He is the Word! The more you read the Word, pray, and meditate on the Word, the more familiar with His ways you become. Eventually His ways will become yours…that’s the goal. God desires a relationship with each and everyone of His children. When you begin to develop this, you will be able to differentiate His voice from your own and the enemy. God is always speaking! We sometimes don’t hear Him because we are not familiar with His voice or we don’t like what it is He is saying and so we ignore it or doubt it. Spend time with the Lord daily, meditate on His word day and night. He will give you revelation, He will reveal Himself to you. God is not hiding and He will honor those who are truly seeking Him and His will for their lives. Welcome to the family my sister! I will be praying for you. God has great plans for you and for your future! God Bless You!
at first was very hesitant to look at your page. I have been fighting a inner demon for years..which has cost me dearly I am now without a job 2 daughter’s to raise an a marriage on its way out,when I married my husband 8 years ago he was so sweet then the nightmare started ,the physical the mental the verbal…then 4 years ago I put my foot down an said no more hitting…an it stopped but the others are still there.so now I’m at my point that I’m trying to give it all to god .cause I am a child of God’s was not put here to be someone’s rug.I am to be loved an cherished .this is examples I tell my daughter’s you are to be loved unconditional. .you’re devotion an readings help me day by day to get stronger…thank you for your inspiration
God sees!
God hears!
God is concerned!
God will rescue!