“I’ve asked you five times!”
Daily Reading: Exodus 4, Psalm 54, Acts 10, Proverbs 23
Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you’?”
Then the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?”
“A staff,” he replied.
The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.”
Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it. Then the Lord said to him, “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail.” So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a staff in his hand. “This,” said the Lord, “is so that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has appeared to you.”
Then the Lord said, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” So Moses put his hand into his cloak, and when he took it out, the skin was leprous—it had become as white as snow.
“Now put it back into your cloak,” he said. So Moses put his hand back into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was restored, like the rest of his flesh.
Then the Lord said, “If they do not believe you or pay attention to the first sign, they may believe the second. But if they do not believe these two signs or listen to you, take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground. The water you take from the river will become blood on the ground.”
Moses said to the Lord, “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.”
The Lord said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”
But Moses said, “Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.”
Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses and he said, “What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and he will be glad to see you. You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth; I will help both of you speak and will teach you what to do. He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him. But take this staff in your hand so you can perform the signs with it.”
Exodus 4:1-17
Yesterday we read the story of Ananias in Act 9, and how he was immediately faithful to God’s calling to go to Saul, who was currently persecuting followers of Jesus.
“Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel.”
That was all the coaxing that was necessary for Ananias. God said, “Yup, that is the guy I want to use…” and it was good enough for Ananias.
Today we see a much different picture with Moses.
Over and over again he questions God.
What if the Israelites don’t believe me?
Surely you have the wrong messenger for this task?
Shouldn’t you find someone who is a better speaker?
We will see this trend continue throughout the life of Moses. God called Moses to be one of the most influential figures in all of history. The Lord appeared in a burning bush. He spoke directly to Moses. He performs miracles for Moses. He performed miracles through Moses.
And over and over again Moses doubted himself. Repeatedly Moses didn’t believe he could be used effectively by God.
And he got a burning bush when called by God!
It is easy to read the story of Moses in the Bible and wonder how he could have so little faith.
I think we have all probably been like Moses at various times in our lives.
We feel God’s prompting in some area of our life. Maybe this is through a sermon we hear, the voice of a friend, or in personal quiet time with God.
In these moments, I want the posture of my heart to be one of, “Thank you Lord! How is it possible that the creator of the universe would notice me? Thank you for letting me be part of your story. Thank you for your desire to use me in this way!”
However, frequently I know that I can fall into the posture of Moses.
“Are you sure God?”
Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses…
I imagine God frequently feels towards us the same way parents feel when they have already asked their child to do something 5 times, and they are still debating why they need to do it, dragging their feet, or doing it half-heartedly with a bad attitude.
“I’ve asked you five times!”
Here is the good news. The Bible is filled with characters like Moses, who struggled to feel worthy to be used by God. It is filled with reluctant heroes that thought God had the wrong person, asked for God to choose someone else, or questioned whether God’s will was truly going to work.
God’s anger might have burned…but his love is also patient and kind. He still used Moses and so many others that we will read about this year.
He still wants to use us.
So, this year, let’s try to be more like Ananias, but if we have our “Moses moments”, let’s not give up. God would prefer your immediate “yes”, but he will also take your “yes” after the fifth prompting if necessary!
Daily Reflection & Dialogue
Is there anything in your life currently where you might be acting a bit more like Moses and less like Ananias when it comes to God’s calling?
