GOD IS AT WORK THROUGH YOUR WEAKNESS

The Bible contains many examples of God using inexperienced people. Moses, Joshua, and Gideon all struggled with feeling inadequate to accomplish God’s plan. I relate to Moses because God’s strength was made perfect in his weakness.

God had a plan for Moses since infancy. God spared his life and called him to lead Israel out of slavery. God told Moses, “I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt” (Ex. 3:10, NASB). Doubts and questions filled Moses’s mind. He wondered, “Who am I to fulfill such a task?” Moses felt inadequate, ignorant, insecure, inferior, and insignificant. However, God did not respond by affirming Moses. Instead, God replied, “I will be with you.” God did not boost Moses’s self-esteem or ego. Rather, He assured Moses of His character, presence, and promise. God revealed that He is the great “I AM,” the God of Israel’s fathers, and He had chosen Moses for this task.

Nonetheless, Moses continued to object, claiming he could not speak. However, God promised Moses that He could use him despite this disability. In Courageous Faith, Ed Hindson notes that, in a sense, God was saying to Moses, “I want to use you despite your limitation so that you will bring glory to Me. I will be your mouth, and I will put the words in your mouth to let you know what to say.”

There are many ways in which I relate to Moses. Like Moses, I am not comfortable speaking in front of crowds. I would rather hide in the background and let someone else take the stage. However, there came a time when I knew I had to speak in front of hundreds. As a Christian, I knew I needed to obey Jesus’s command to publicly proclaim my faith through baptism. I had written my testimony, but when the moment came, I feared I could not read it in front of the congregation. However, as I walked into the water, I felt God’s peace come over me. As I opened my mouth to share, I felt the Holy Spirit speaking through me. This moment reminds me of God’s promise to Moses, “I, even I, will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say” (Ex. 4:11). I am comforted to know that God will give me the words to say and the confidence to proclaim what He has accomplished in my life.

Forty years after Moses’s calling, he passed the baton to Joshua, who most likely felt the same as Moses did years earlier. He reminded Joshua, “Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or tremble at them, for the LORD your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail you or forsake you” (Deut. 31:6). Moses still experienced doubt and weakness in the years to come, but one thing changed. He had finally learned that he could face anything in life because the Lord was with him, guiding him every step of the way.

When I am overwhelmed and discouraged, instead of relying on my abilities, I can turn to God and trust in His strength to enable me and carry me through life’s challenges. In the future, I will face more uncertainties and challenges. But my hope is rooted in God’s character, presence, and promises. Through it all, I pray that I will faithfully serve the Lord and remember, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:13). God delights in working through weakness for His glory.