Moses stood before Pharaoh and ordered the powerful ruler to release the Israelites. The confrontation must have seemed a ridiculous spectacle, even to the slaves Moses had been sent to rescue. But, after ten plagues and many dealings with the Egyptian leader, Moses brought the country to its knees with a shepherd’s staff and his faith in God.
It’s easy to be misunderstood when you choose to walk by faith instead of living on the basis of feelings, opinions, and logic. Our actions may appear unreasonable to others, and sometimes even to ourselves. But what could be more reasonable than allowing our all-powerful Father to guide us? Just like Moses, we may find our talents and abilities to be inadequate for certain tasks. But Second Corinthians 12:9 says God’s power will accomplish through us what needs to be done. The Lord isn’t always “reasonable” as we interpret reason. But He works out our circumstances through our obedient actions. We can be confident that He who used a shepherd to challenge a Pharaoh is trustworthy.
Living by faith requires releasing our human sense of what’s best and reasonable in order to fully rely on God. This involves obeying when the Lord indicates we’re to speak or act. God wants us to trust His plan for our lives. He’s constantly directing circumstances and people to ensure His purpose is achieved.
Whatever the challenge, you can be successful by choosing to depend entirely upon God. He’ll place you before your personal Pharaoh and make you victorious.
Book: My Utmost For His Highest
by Oswald Chambers
Living Simply— Yet Focused
Look at the birds of the air . . . . Consider the lilies of the field . . .
Matthew 6:26, 28
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin"— they simply are! Think of the sea, the air, the sun, the stars, and the moon— all of these simply are as well— yet what a ministry and service they render on our behalf! So often we impair God’s designed influence, which He desires to exhibit through us, because of our own conscious efforts to be consistent and useful. Jesus said there is only one way to develop and grow spiritually, and that is through focusing and concentrating on God. In essence, Jesus was saying, "Do not worry about being of use to others; simply believe on Me." In other words, pay attention to the Source, and out of you "will flow rivers of living water" (John 7:38 ). We cannot discover the source of our natural life through common sense and reasoning, and Jesus is teaching here that growth in our spiritual life comes not from focusing directly on it, but from concentrating on our Father in heaven. Our heavenly Father knows our circumstances, and if we will stay focused on Him, instead of our circumstances, we will grow spiritually— just as "the lilies of the field."
The people who influence us the most are not those who detain us with their continual talk, but those who live their lives like the stars in the sky and "the lilies of the field"— simply and unaffectedly. Those are the lives that mold and shape us.
If you want to be of use to God, maintain the proper relationship with Jesus Christ by staying focused on Him, and He will make use of you every minute you live— yet you will be unaware, on the conscious level of your life, that you are being used of Him.
