Monday, January 23, 2012

God Uses Real People for Real Ministry

Scripture Verses that Caught my attention today: Exodus 6:10-12 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, 11 “Go and tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the Israelites go out of his land.” 12 But Moses spoke to the LORD, “The Israelites have not listened to me; how then shall Pharaoh listen to me, poor speaker that I am?”

Observation: Moses had just spoken to the Israelites, telling them that God was going to rescue them. But the Bible says that they would not listen to Moses. Now God wants him to speak to Pharaoh. It’s no wonder the Moses is hesitant.

Application: It’s hard to speak when you feel that no-one is behind you. And, in fact, we tend to view with suspicion those who do endeavor to speak out on their own without some kind of group backing them. Lone rangers, more often than not, tend to be a little delusional and/or self-absorbed. It wouldn’t surprise me if people felt that way about Moses.

But here’s what I really like about the story. Moses is very self-aware. He is aware that his own people aren’t listening to him, he is aware that speaking to Pharaoh will be an uphill battle, and he is aware of his own lack of speaking ability. This is a picture of a very human and realistic Moses.

It is also a reminder that God uses real people for real ministry. God will use some as leaders and others as more hands-on servants, but God uses real people, not surreal people.

Prayer: Lord, help us to be the kind of real people you can and will use. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

(Readings included: Exodus 6-8 and Luke 23)

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