Now
therefore, go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall say.
Exodus
4:12
The story of Moses is one of my
favorites from childhood. I imagined him
as a superhero, cape and all, commanding pharaoh to release the Hebrews, in a
fearless booming voice. However, the
Bible describes him very differently at the beginning of Exodus. Moses had a weakness. He was afraid to speak to people. Right after God speaks to him from the
burning bush asking him to speak to Pharaoh, Moses tries to talk God out of it.
Moses asked God,
“Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the
children of Israel out of Egypt?” Exodus 3:11.
Later, in Exodus 4:10, he describes himself as “slow of speech and slow
of tongue.” Is this the same Moses who
is later used by God to bring the plagues to Egypt and part the Red Sea? Was he just an ordinary person with weakness
just like you and me?
Being a shy
person, I can relate to Moses’ fear of public speaking. I come from a long line of shy people,
starting from my grandma who described herself as “painfully shy” when she was
young. In high school, the thought of
public speaking sent me into panic attacks.
When I first felt
the call to write a novel, I thought, this
is the perfect job for me. I don’t have
to talk, right? Wrong. I learned very quickly at my first writer’s
conference that speaking is necessary. I
found myself terrified once more. What?
I have to talk to editors? I have
to speak in public? I felt like
Moses, asking God, “who am I?” Was this really God’s plan for me?
I love the
Lord’s response to Moses’ excuse of being slow of speech. He said, “Now therefore, go, and I will be
with your mouth and teach you what you shall say,” Exodus 4:12. God required Moses to step out of his comfort
zone and trust Him. During the
conference, I realized that God required the same thing of me. When I turned it over to Him, he gave me what
I needed. He sent friends to pray with
and encourage me. Then he gave me the
courage to speak, and the words to say.
No, Moses wasn’t
a superhero, but God was able to do extraordinary things through him. He wants to do extraordinary things through
us too. We just have to muster the courage to trust Him.
Thank you for
reading and keep shining for Him!
Rachel, You remind me so much right now of your grammy, my mom, Olive Fowler Webster. God gave you and her the gift of Courage to push forward and have faith that God will be right there with you. Grammy was indeed "painfully shy" but when she would witness to people and preach the word of God and visit the sick, it was as if she was a different person. God is with us all the time...in our darkest hour as well as our brightest moments, we have but to look up and keep the faith. Thanks once again for your uplifting posts dear daughter.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Mom. I am blessed to have such Godly women for examples in my life. The things Grammy taught me will always be treasured in my heart and you are an inspiration to me as well. :)
DeleteSo very thankful that God empowers us to do what He calls us to do -- especially when it means stepping out of our comfort zones! :)
ReplyDeleteYes, I am thankful for that too. It is amazing to look back and see what God has done in my life. He is an awesome God. Thank you for commenting, Cheryl.
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