Exodus chapter 4

1 Moses answered, What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, 'The Lord did not appear to you'?

How many times do I tell myself that I am imagining things, that God really isn't speaking to me, that there is no way He would want me to do that because I am just not capable of it? Yet God does use each one of us, even when we think we can't do the job or have no confidence in our abilities.

Here, Moses is adamant that he can't go back and act on behalf of the Israelites and comes up with a number of reasons why.

Firstly, he says they won't believe him or listen to him, and even if they do, they won't believe God has spoken to him. So God gives him three signs, using Moses' shepherd's staff, his hand and water. Basic things that are on hand, ordinary things used for an extraordinary purpose.

Secondly, Moses says he isn't very good with words, he is "slow of speech and tongue" so God reminds him who has given him his mouth, his speech, his hearing and sight. If God has called us to do a job, then He will equip us (and I wonder if He would equip me with Photoshop CS4, lol, or am I being really cheeky in asking for a copy?!!).

Then finally, Moses comes right out and asks God to send someone else. And God gets angry. After telling Moses he is the man for the job, equipping him with the necessary tools and telling him He will be with him, speaking through him, He knows Moses can do the job but just lacks confidence. So he agrees to let Aaron speak for Moses, but Moses will tell Aaron what God has said.

Don't we all do this at times? Suffer from a lack of self confidence and belief in our own capabilities when God as called us to do something? It is easy to compare ourselves with others and see our shortcomings (just as it is easy to compare ourselves and find faults or sins in others that we would never do…..and yet what faults/sins do we have that are just as bad, or even worse?) yet if we have been asked by God to do something, asked by the One who created the Universe and all that is in it, that causes the sun to rise in the morning and set in the evening, who knows us inside out, warts and all, knows our strengths, our weakness, our faults and flaws, our skills, our sins, if He has asked us to do something, then He must have a reason for picking us. It may not seem like it to us, but nothing God does is without reason, and He knows the master plan, can see the results of what we have been asked to do, and He has the confidence in us, the faith, so why do we not trust in Him likewise?