GOD CALLS HIS PEOPLE TO SERVE; WE SHOULD BE GLAD WHEN HE CALLS US

BIBLE PASSAGE:
Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law,
the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the
wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the
angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within
a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not
burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange
sight—why the bush does not burn up.”

When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to
him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!”. And Moses said,
“Here I am.” “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off
your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”

Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham,
the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face,
because he was afraid to look at God.

The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt.
I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am
concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them
from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land
into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the
home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.

And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the
way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now, go. I am sending you
to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” But Moses
said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the
Israelites out of Egypt?” And God said, “I will be with you. And this
will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you:

When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God
on this mountain.” Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites
and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they
ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” God said to
Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites:
‘I am has sent me to you.’”
(Exodus 3:1-14)

MEDITATION:
God calls people to do something, but they are so focused
on their perceived ability that they keep telling Him, “I just can’t”.
That kind of a response is considered a form of rebellion.
It is the same as telling the Lord He isn’t powerful enough to equip you,
and that His will being done on earth depends upon your natural ability.

On being called to lead the Israelites out of slavery,
Moses complained that he was the wrong person for the job
and offered an excuse of not being a good speaker.
Moses said to the Lord, “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been
eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant.
I am slow of speech and tongue.” (Exodus. 4:10)

God’s response underscores that not only was He
more than able to equip His chosen leader, but He also
planned to accomplish His purposes with or without Moses.

It is the Lord who gives us the ability to live within His will.
He has promised that if we believe Him and move forward in obedience,
He will show us what He wants us to do and then energize us to get it done.
Philippians 2:13 says that God Himself,
“is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”

There’s nothing to fear; you never have to take on His work
in your own strength, and He won’t ask you to do anything
that He will not enable you to carry out.
He is committed to equipping His children to do whatever He asks.

ACTION:
As a follower of Christ, you have a personal responsibility to say
yes when God calls and to let Him achieve His purposes through you.
He will never disappoint you or let you down.
Watching Him work through your life will strengthen your faith
and enhance the process of being conformed to the image of His Son.

Many years ago (40?) God called me to teach a bible class
and I thought, “Ugh, something else to do!”
But in a short time my thinking changed to,
“Wow, something to do for the Lord!”
I can’t imagine how disappointed I would have been if I ignored His call.

Then about 8 years ago He gave me an additional call to create
and distribute devotionals (and He provides the content).
Based on the feedback I have received, God is changing lives through
His devotionals and I get to have a ‘front row seat’ to watch Him work!

At times, thoughts like, “Is anyone really reading the devotionals?”
come to mind, and ‘out of the blue’ I will receive positive feedback
from someone (email or comments in my blog, or on Facebook or LinkedIn),
about how a specific devotional was exactly what they needed at the time.

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, forgive me for not considering that You will
provide all I need to answer Your call for me to serve. Forgive
me for the times I have procrastinated or made excuses for not
responding to Your call to me. Help me to boldly respond to Your
call with courage and confidence that I am able, because You are
able, and You are with me when I surrender to Your purpose for
me. Help me to overcome any thoughts and attitudes that it’s
good that You call other people to serve, but not me. I may not
‘feel’ worthy, but I can’t let that deter me from answering your call.”