FBT Daily Devotional: Exodus 4

FBT Daily Devotional

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Amen. Dear gentle Bible scholar, we continue in what one might call as the Bible turns, we return to a story already in motion, one that, if we recall, did not begin today. For in what could be considered yesterday's episode, as in Exodus three, we encountered Moses in the wilderness, drawn aside by a sight most unusual, a bush that burned yet was not consumed. There upon holy ground, he was called by name, commissioned by the voice of the Lord, and entrusted with a charge that would alter not only his life, but the course of a people. And yet, even then, questions begin to arise. And so we find him here. It is often in the reluctance of a person that destiny reveals its firm hand. Today we witness a moment in Exodus four, a man called Moses, standing at a threshold between fear and calling, questions the voice that commands him. He stands not in comfort, but in the wilderness before a bush that burns and yet is not consumed. The ground beneath him has been declared holy, and yet the heart within him trembles. Called by name, he is asked to return to the very place he once fled, to stand before power, to speak on behalf of a people, to lead where he does not feel equipped to go. And still he questions. Yet observe how God responds, not with dismissal, but with demonstration. A staff ordinary and worn from use is cast to the ground and becomes a serpent, alive and moving. A hand placed within his cloak emerges diseased, only to be restored at the word of the Lord. Even the waters themselves, it is said, would bear witness if needed. Sign after sign, not to impress, but to assure. And still hesitation lingers. For Moses does not only doubt the signs, he doubts himself. I am not eloquent, he confesses. Send someone else. That's Exodus four, verses ten and thirteen. Yet even here the response is not abandonment. Aaron is called brother, companion, voice where Moses feels he has none. Provision meets hesitation. Support meets insecurity. Purpose does not withdraw. And Moses, we find, is not alone in this experience. Gideon said, My plan is the weakest, and I am the last in my family. That's Judges six and fifteen. Jeremiah declared, I do not know how to speak. I am too young. That's Jeremiah one and six. Esther was reminded for such a time as this. That would be Esther four and fourteen. And Jonah fled from the presence of the Lord. Jonah one and three. Reluctance, questioning, hesitation, and still calling. And if we are honest, this pattern is not confined to scripture alone. It appears, beloved scholars, in the quiet spaces of our everyday lives. It looks like the individual who is asked to step forward, to lead, to speak, to act. And the first response is not confidence, but hesitation. It is the person who senses that he or she is being called to something greater, yet immediately begins to list the reasons why he or she is not enough. I don't have the experience, I don't have the words, I'm not ready. And perhaps most telling of all, someone else could do this better. And yet, just as we have seen in Moses and in Gideon and in Jeremiah and in Esther and even in Jonah, the call does not move on simply because we hesitate. It remains persistent, steady, unwavering, until the question is no longer, am I capable? But rather, will I respond? And so, beloved scholars, we are left not merely with the story of Moses, but with a mirror. The call does not wait for confidence. Purpose does not require perfection. And the presence of doubt does not cancel divine intention. It is perhaps the very place where it begins. Yours in observation and in faith, Lady Helena Adonna Ashcroft. And so with that, I have some questions that I'm gonna ask you, ladies and gentlemen, to reflect upon, and then we can proceed to our breakout rooms. So, question number one: When have you felt unqualified for something you were called to do? And how did you respond? And I'll repeat that since we have a little bit of time. When have you felt unqualified for something you were called to do? And how did you respond? Number two, what signs or encouragements have nudged you forward when you were hesitant? What signs or encouragements have nudged you forward when you were hesitant? Number three, how does facing your doubts shape your growth as it did for Moses or Gideon or Esther or Jeremiah? How does facing your doubts shape your growth as it did for Moses, Gideon, Esther, or Jeremiah? Number four, who has walked alongside you like an Aaron with Moses when you've needed support? Who has walked alongside you like an Aaron with Moses when you have needed support? And the last question before we go to breakout rooms is in what ways might your reluctance actually be a larger part of your purpose or part of a larger purpose? In what ways might your reluctance actually be part of a larger purpose? And with that, I will yield and we can go to breakout rooms.