Whose Voice Will Get Space In Our Head?

Reflections for this date are based on the following scripture passages:
Mark 13	Mark 14	Mark 15	Exodus 3	Exodus 4	Psalms 23

Moses' encounter with God at the burning bush strikes a familiar cord for me. I can hear my voice in the voice of Moses as he makes one protest after another to the Lord for being incapable of doing what God was assigning him to do. The assignment? "I am sending you to Pharaoh so that you may lead My people, the Israelites, out of Egypt." (Exodus 3:10) Scary business going before the head of state of a large nation. Particularly when with his last encounter with Pharaoh, Pharaoh wanted to kill him. Was Moses just to waltz in before the man and not expect to be arrested on the spot?

Moses did not raise this objection, though. His first objection was his lack of ability, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" (Exo 3:11) Moses' next concern was a lack of authority which he raised in two objections. The first was, "If 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?' what should I tell them?" The Israelites were living in a culture that recognized multiple gods. Moses seemed concerned with rightly identifying the God who had sent him. Along with this he objected, "What if they won't believe me and will not obey me but say, 'The LORD did not appear to you'?" It is one thing to identify the God sending him, but altogether different to validate that he was indeed sent by this God. Further objections included his lack of eloquence to speak, and also pleading with the Lord to, "send someone else." (Exo 4:13)

By this point the Lord had lost patience with Moses. But God wasn't surprised by Moses' hesitance nor his objections, for He said to Moses, "Isn't Aaron the Levite your brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, he is on his way now to meet you." (Exo 4:14) Before God even spoke to Moses He had started Aaron on his way to meet Moses.

I empathize with Moses in all this for I have seldom felt adequate for the assignments the Lord has given me, suffering somewhat from low self-esteem. This is what I sense of Moses. But too much sympathy with Moses, or even myself, is not helpful. Low self-esteem or not, when allowed to control us it becomes disobedience. Moses' issue, or mine, or anyone else's, was, and is, an issue of focus. Focusing on his inadequacies, or at least perceived inadequacies, rather than on God's adequacy. The Lord said to Moses, "Who made the human mouth? Who makes him mute or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD?"

This brings a little perspective to the conversation. Suddenly Moses' objections become ridiculous. To whom was Moses raising His objections after all? The One who made him and gave him his abilities. God knew what he was capable of better than he himself. Plus, God could instill in him whatever additional capabilities required for the assignment. So what was Moses' problem? Lack of faith would be at the top of the list. But it probably also included an unwillingness to get out of his comfort zone. In other words, he simply didn't want to do it.

Having said all this, I haven't lost my empathy for Moses in his objections. I simply must tell it like it is for my own benefit. Fear, lack of faith, low self-esteem - whatever it is - cannot be allowed to rule the day! After all, it is the Creator of the universe who invites us to partner with Him. To object further is to listen to the voice of Satan rather than the voice of God.