Power in Weakness.

Seeking guidance is a menial task, yet carrying it through can often be both monumental and petrifying to say the least. As Christians, we know the significance of seeking guidance and direction from the Lord, but once that guidance is laid before us, it can be challenging, and scary, to carry out. In fact, Moses experienced this distress of carrying out the Lord’s daunting requests in Exodus 4:

“Moses said to the Lord, “O 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.”

Does this questioning, hesitant attitude sound familiar to you? After all, we’re only frail humans, and truthfully, we lack any capacity to fulfill such overwhelming responsibilities that the Lord may and probably will hand us. But take a look at the Lord’s response to Moses:

The Lord said to him, “Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the Lord? 12 Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”

This passage is a perfect demonstration of the Lord’s promise in 2 Corinthians 12:9 when He says, “My strength is made perfect in weakness.” It seems as though the Lord wanted Moses to realize that he did lack the ability to carry out the Lord’s instruction. See, he wanted Moses to understand that he was utterly incapable. But why? Because often, it’s the only way that we will profoundly trust Him and not rely on our own capability. See, if Moses had thought himself independently sufficient, it’s likely that he wouldn’t have seen his desperate need for the Lord, much less rely on God's power to work through him. The Lord desired for Moses to trust that He would most assuredly step in, to trust that He would fight for him, and most importantly, to trust that He would ultimately bring victory. Once Moses recognized his incapability was one of the very reasons God chose him, he had no choice but to trust God and let Him do His work through him. And then when the Lord finally brought victory and delivered the Israelites from their bondage, Moses couldn’t – even for a second – take the credit for himself. He knew that he was feeble, and God was able. Therefore, he was able to recognize that the ultimate victory was God’s and not his own. What a beautiful documentation of the Lord’s great power in our insufficiency.

I encourage you to allow the Lord to work through whatever your insufficiency is today. Because it’s through our incapacity that we see the Lord’s great and perfect power most clearly and profoundly.