moses Archives - Margaret Feinberg

Have you ever felt as though you’re not a first-draft selection when it comes to being used by God? Have you ever felt there are other choices that just make more sense? People who are smarter, better looking, or more gifted?

If so, you are not alone! At times, we all feel hints of insecurity and self-doubt. But when God looks at us, he doesn’t focus on what we can’t do; he sees what he can do through us. In fact, sometimes the individual whom God chooses can be surprising–not only to us but also to the one chosen!

Consider Moses. He has a profound encounter with God in Exodus 3 in which God chooses him to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and into the freedom God had for them. Moses doesn’t throw his hands up in the air and say, “I’m here and ready to go!” Instead, he argues with God, offering up a laundry list of weaknesses and doubts. Moses reminds God he has a speech impediment and can’t speak in public very well. He is not a confident leader. Yet God sees past Moses’ anxieties and knows he is the best choice. No one is probably more surprised than Moses!

Another example is Jeremiah. When God speaks to Jeremiah in Jeremiah 1, appointing him as a prophet to the nations, Jeremiah is surprised! His immediate concern is that he doesn’t know how to speak, and he is so young that no one will listen to him. But the Lord reminds Jeremiah not to allow his youth or insecurities to get the best of him. Instead, Jeremiah is to obey God with courage.

God has an amazing way of surprising us with what He’s asking us to us do! Throughout the Bible we read of men and women who save nations, lead thousands to freedom, perform miracles, and follow Jesus to their deaths. All are surprised by what God calls them to, but they still choose to answer the call.

Though you may not feel as if you’re the obvious choice for honoring God with your life, no one qualifies according to their own merit. God uses a responsive and willing heart to do amazing things.

What is something that God is calling you to that seems impossible?

Do you think that God calls the qualified? Or qualifies the called?

**Photo courtesy of here

Listening for God isn’t easy.

Maybe that’s one reason I write about the topic so often. I want to hear from God, really, I do. But so many other voices cloud my mind and emotions. The noise of busyness, distraction, and competing ideas make it hard to separate God’s voice from the countless other voices that fill the airwaves of our world.

For the past several weeks, we’ve been looking at the attributes of God by diving into The Organic God book and Bible study together. We’re looking at God as Natural, Pure, and Essential to all of our lives-and in the process discovering that as we pursue God it’s hard not fall in love with God all over again.

One of the facets of God’s character that stands out to me is that God is surprisingly talkative. God speaks in the most surprising moments. This reappears throughout the Scripture-one of the most notable is in Exodus 3.

After killing an Egyptian in a moment of anger, Moses runs to the wilderness for safety. One day, while shepherding his father-in-law’s sheep, Moses spots an unusual sight. Exodus 3:2 says,

“And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing fire from the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, yet the bush was not consumed.”

Moses decides to explore this flaming mystery. When the Lord sees that Moses turns aside to look, God calls out to him from the middle of the bush. God chooses to call out something unique to Moses he can’t mistake that the calling is intended for anyone else: “Moses, Moses!”

Moses replies, “Here I am.”

I love this story. Through a burning bush, our talkative God calls Moses to be the leader of the Jewish people and changes his life course. From this conversation, Moses returns to Egypt and rescues the Jewish people from a 400 yearlong history of slavery, shepherding them to a land God promised.

But sometimes I wonder how many burning bushes I pass by unaware.

How many times do I miss the moment?

My hunch is more than I ever imagined. But I don’t want to miss God. I don’t want to miss that which at first glance might appear everyday but on closer inspection is a divine moment-an opportunity to encounter God.

Let me ask you: How has our surprisingly talkative God revealed Himself to you?

What has God been saying to you?

May God’s voice echo in your Spirit. May God’s Word come alive in fresh ways. And may you not miss the moment the next time God wants reveal Himself to you.

**Photo courtesy of: here.