Dear Friends:

I have been reading about Moses lately and find his story to be one of great encouragement. He became a great leader and is called a friend of God, but the beginnings of his relationship with God were not all that admirable. That’s why he is an encouragement to me. No matter how weak the beginnings of my walk with God may be, if I persist by the help of the Holy Spirit, my walk will get stronger and stronger. My goal is, at some point, to be walking in total sync with God Himself. Moses got there and I want to, too.

But the passage I am thinking on today shows us the early encounter that Moses had with God and his less-than-stellar response. You remember the story as it is told in Exodus 3: God gets Moses’ attention by appearing to him in a desert bush that was on fire but didn’t burn up. Once Moses realizes Who is speaking from the bush, he appropriately obeys the first command to take off his shoes. After that one act of obedience, things go downhill for Moses as his attitude turns into fear, self-focus, and excuse making. Some of us can relate!

But, what is interesting to me is the message that God gives in verses 7-8a of Exodus 3. He says,

“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 . . .”

I can just see Moses nodding and, if he were an evangelical, he’d be saying “amen”. ‘Yes, Lord, come down and rescue your people! That will be great! Just what I was hoping You’d do.”

But, we find that God, though He has the power to do whatever He wants in whatever way He wants, chooses to work through people. So, after God talks a bit more about the concern He has for His enslaved people, He says to Moses, “So now, go. I am sending you . . .” (v. 10a). That’s when Moses begins to protest.

Have you ever felt the way Moses must have felt? That God, in his power and infinite creativity, should reach down and solve the problems that exist on this earth? If He truly has seen the misery, has heard the cries of his people for help, and is concerned for us as He was concerned for the Israelites, why doesn’t He intervene to rescue those in this world who are suffering?

• Why doesn’t He do something, anything, to solve the worldwide financial crises we are facing? At least, why doesn’t He provide jobs for His own people who are unemployed and panic-stricken?
  
  
• Why doesn’t He do something about the AIDS epidemic in Africa? He heals the sick, why not AIDS? Or cancer?
  
  
• Why doesn’t He provide shelter and food for the homeless who are suffering in the streets throughout the long, cold winter?
  
  
• Why doesn’t He take away the desire for alcohol and/or drugs for those who are addicted?
  
  
• Why doesn’t He protect the lives of unborn babies who become victims of abortion?
  
  
• Why doesn’t He free the millions people in the world who are slaves in some way or another?
  
  
• Why doesn’t He stop the fighting in Israel and Palestine? It’s gone on long enough!
  
  
• Why doesn’t He stop the persecution of Christians in the Middle East and China and North Korea and Vietnam? Why, if He loves His children so much, would he allow them to languish in prisons or even die at the hands of those who hate Christ and His followers?

Maybe, just maybe, it’s because of Exodus 3:10: “I am sending you. . .” Doesn’t that take your breath away? It did for Moses. But because we know the rest of Moses’ story, maybe it shouldn’t be a shock that God would ask us to join Him in His work. Nor should we be surprised when He brings success to the tasks that He gives us to do.

God did not turn a blind eye to the sufferings of His people. Nor does He turn a blind eye to our suffering or to the pain in our world today. And He doesn’t want us to ignore these problems either!

The challenge to me is one that I am sharing with you. We are being sent. We are asked to partner with God in meeting needs in this desperate world. But the needs are great – what can we do? Here are some thoughts:

• Pray for God to open your eyes to need. Tell Him you are wiling to serve. Ask Him to make it very clear where He is sending you. Then begin to look for opportunities.
  
  
• You might start by reading through the list above. Is there any area of need that tugs at your heart? If so, get on-line and find out about organizations that are working in these areas and search for ways to get involved.
  
  
• Look around you. Where do you see needs that you have been simply overlooking? Do you have a friend out of work, a neighbor who is ill, a co-worker with a disabled child – you get the idea. Find a way to help.

I want to live a life of relationship with God as Moses did after he got past all his excuse making. I want God to be able to use me in powerful ways to lead people out of darkness and enslavement and into light and freedom. I want to see God change lives because I have been willing to serve on His team.

What is your response when God says, “I am sending you . . .”? It’s worth thinking about.

Blessings on your journey,

Bev
http://www.beverlyvankampen.com