“But he said, ‘Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.’”
Exodus 4:13
When I think about Moses, I think about miracles like the burning bush, parting the Red Sea, manna from heaven, and many more incredible stories like those. What I don’t often think about is how Moses’ ministry began. He was a vigilante, on the run from Pharaoh after killing an Egyptian. He wasn’t even living among the Hebrews in Egypt. But God appeared to him one day in the form of a burning bush and called him to lead his people out of slavery and into the promised land.
What was Moses’ response? “Please send someone else.”
If you haven’t read the full story of Moses in Exodus, this may be a surprise to you. It certainly was to me the first time I read it. How could a man like Moses, one of God’s greatest prophets, have started his ministry this way? But there’s something incredibly important that we can learn from this.
God doesn’t call the qualified, he qualifies the called.
Moses had plenty of excuses for God not to use him. He couldn’t speak well. People wouldn’t believe him. He was a murderer, after all. He offered excuse after excuse of why God should choose someone else, but God didn’t waver. Why? Because God isn’t afraid of our weaknesses, he redeems them.
God doesn’t choose the most obvious person for the job. He chooses the lowly, the weak, the unexpected. Think of the story of King David, or Gideon, or Rahab, or any number of biblical characters. God uses the weak, the small, the scared, the unfit, because through them he is able to show his true power.
God took Moses, a man afraid of his past, his own people, and his own insecurities, and turned him into one of the greatest prophets that ever lived. He spoke to God face to face. The law came entirely through Moses. Any number of miracles were performed by him. He delivered the Israelites out of slavery and into the promised land. And it all started with, “Please send someone else.”
God is calling you. You may not like it, and you may be scared like Moses, but still he calls. Don’t dwell on your excuses, your weaknesses, your insecurities. Instead, have faith in what God can do through your weakness.
Prayer:
Father,
Give me the courage and boldness to answer your call, even when I am afraid. Help me to say, “Here I am!” not “Send someone else.” Use my weakness for your glory. I am here, lead me where you would have me go.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
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