What Is In Your Hand?

Introduction

CALLING

1. Last week we spoke about the story how God called Moses from the burning

bush to become the deliverer of the Israelites from the Egyptian slavery. It was pretty

strightforward matter: God provided something to get Moses´ attention; kind of

fireworks = burning bush; something spectacular - I marvel how much really God

knows us - and as Moses get closer God introduces Himself and told Him how much

He cares for Moses´ people miserabely living under the heavy arm of the Egyptians.

2. Moses is finally called to become what actualy was the purpose of his whole

life. He was born for this purpose, although until now he did not have a clue; didn´t

even dream that he is supposed to be a leader of his people. Often we do not

understand God´s plans for our lives and we´d known today what God has in His

sleeve for us in the future, it wouldn´t do any good to us.

Once we´ve given our lives to our Lord Jesus Christ, everything that happens

to us is part His great plan of salvation; and our personal life is just one piece of a

puzzle; one piece of His awesome plan. We cannot comprehend the whole puzzle; we

cannot be given the whole picture, because we wouldn´t understand anyway.

If Jesus would say to His 12 disciples: Come on, follow me and you will be

murdered because of me and the church I will establish through you will in 2000

years have 2 000 000 000 (2 billion) followers. Would they bieleve Him and follow? I

don´t think so. But He just said: Follow me. And they did. At the time they did not

need to know more than that. Don´t worry about the rest; you just follow Jesus -

that´s the only thing that matters, after all; nothing else. Are you first of all following

Jesus, or are you all the time just trying to figure out what your life will turn out to

be; what school/job to choose, which girlfriend, boyfriend to date, where and how to

get the money, what car, house to buy....? etc. etc.

EXCUSES

1. Now God calls Moses. And what is Moses´ answer? "They will not believe me!

They will not listen!" Moses fears rejection and failure.

How many times you felt God is calling you to do something, but you did not do it

because you were afraid it´s not going to succeed? How many times although you

knew, it is a good godly thing, you did not proceed, because you thought: people will

not understand; people will not like it; people will not listen; will not believe....?

If you live your whole life to please people, you are a failure! We are not here

to please anybody else but our Lord and Saviour Himself. Colossians 1,10 says: "that

you may walk worthy of the Lord, FULLY PLEASING HIM, being fruitful in every

good work and increasing in the knowledge of God."

Moses said: "But what if they will not believe?! What if they will not listen, or

understand?!"

And you may say the same. And you know what is God´s answer to that? God says:

"So what?! Is that your problem, or mine? If it is me, who called you, why is it you

who wants to constitute the job description?! If I am God, who called you to do this,

do not come with the list why it is not possible, but folow me and just do what I have

told you to!"

God doesn´t need your list of "what ifs". He is not interested in it at all. Why

should He? If He really whould like to know why His plan couldn´t work, couldn´t

He Himself, with His mighty wisdom, come up with the awesome list of all

impossibilities?

2. Moses doubted because of his past failures. If you just keep remembering past

mistakes and failures, your future will bring nothing more but passive resignation

into the hands of fate. But your past failures - if given to the Lord - are forgiven; they

are forgiven; their power is quenched, taken away and you are risen with the Lord

Jesus as a new creation and the old things passed away; they are no more and have no

power over you. (2 Cor 5:17nn)

C/

God´s question: What is in your hand?

A/

Simple question.

1. God turns Moses from tomorrow´s fears; He turns him away from "what ifs"

and brings him to the realities of today. Doesn´t matter what you messed up in the

past; if you let God to be your Lord, He will turn your future into His future, because

He will dwell in you, He will dwell in your life; He will change the bad circumstances