Tag Archives: burning bush

September 5, 2024 · 5:30 AM

Trust Comes First

When I’m talking with someone who is a newly appointed leader, I don’t want to overwhelm them with a bunch of information. There’s really one thing they need to focus on with their new team, and that is trust. Without trust, nothing else really matters. You can give inspiring speeches, set daring goals and create easy to follow plans, but no one will do much until they trust the leader. Think of a leader in your life that has produced the most growth in you. They had your trust I’m sure. You would follow them anywhere they led because of that trust. People will follow any leader to the extent that they trust them. If there’s little to no trust, there will be little to no progress. The way you build trust is to say what you’re going to do, and then do what you said you’d do.

We often think of people as leaders, but the Bible is full of people who followed God and did amazing things. For each of them, there was a period where they learned to trust Him. Moses learned to trust God at the burning bush. He gave all kinds of excuses as to why he couldn’t do what God was asking because there was little to no trust. God answered them all and showed him many signs to build trust so that he could lead the Israelites out of Egypt. In a similar fashion, God had to build trust with Gideon. He was timid and afraid of his enemies when God called the mighty warrior out of him. He built trust by placing dew on his door mat. So much trust was built that Gideon trimmed down an army of 32,000 to 300 men in order to fight 135,000. It didn’t make sense to him, but because of that trust, he was able to lead them to victory.

How much do you trust God? You may not have had a burning bush experience or dew on your mat, but God has been doing things al, your life to build trust with Him. Proverbs 3:5 says, “Trust in the Lord completely, and do not rely on your own opinions. With all your heart rely on him to guide you, and he will lead you in every decision you make” (TPT). Trusting God completely is what we’re called to do, but like Moses, we tend to make excuses as to why we can’t. Or sometimes we’re like Gideon where we don’t see our own potential the way He does. Either way, you can only follow God’s leading in your life to the extent that you trust Him. If you’re not experiencing the growth or movement that you want, check your trust level. God is ready to lead you into a greater life and relationship with Him, but you must trust Him with all your heart first.

Photo by Sammie Chaffin on Unsplash

Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

February 13, 2023 · 5:49 AM

Quit Making Excuses

One of the things we’re pretty good at is arguing and making excuses. From the time we were young, we have learned to defend our shortcomings with excuses or to try and argue our way out of it. Another motivator for excuses is fear. When we’re afraid of not knowing the outcome, fear will often remind us of why we can’t do something and then excuses come out. We tend to do this as adults when God calls us to do something that’s outside of our comfort zone. Fear and feelings of inadequacy can cause us to give Him excuses why we can’t or shouldn’t do it. If you’ve done that, you’re not alone, but I want to encourage you to find a way to push through to saying “yes” to God.

In Exodus 3 and 4, were introduced to Moses. He was the son of a Hebrew slave in Egypt, but grew up in Pharaoh’s house. After he killed an Egyptian he fled for forty years. While he was tending some sheep, God appeared to him in a burning bush that wasn’t being consumed by the flame. He was told to go back to Egypt to set the Hebrews free. All of a sudden fear and inadequacy flooded his mind and he started giving God excuses. “They will kill me. I’m not a public speaker. No one will listen.” On and on the excuses poured out until,God had enough. Reluctantly he went after God got upset with him and shot down every excuse.

In Psalm 32:8 we find encouragement when we want to make excuses. “The Lord says, ‘I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.’” God will be with you and advise you just as He did Moses. If God has called you to it, He will guide you through it. Like Moses, you might get hit with set backs and resistance, but keep doing what God asks. He has chosen you and anointed you for the work He has called you to. Your inadequacies and fear will be met with His all sufficient grace. Remember the disciples gave Jesus five loaves and two fish and He fed 5,000. Imagine what He could do through you with what you give Him. He’s the one who does incredible things when we say yes to Him and offer ourselves instead of excuses.

Photo by Yosi Prihantoro on Unsplash

3 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

January 11, 2021 · 5:57 AM

No More Excuses

Any time we are faced with the prospect of doing something that we’re afraid of, we typically resort to a coping mechanism that is designed to get you out of the situation. They don’t always appear in ways that you may think. Sometimes you feel like you have to go to the restroom, or feel thirsty and need a drink. Other people all of a sudden think of something else to do that feels like it’s more important at the moment. The typical route our brains take is to hesitate, then procrastinate and then to make an excuse as to why we can’t do it. Almost every time you make an excuse to avoid doing something, it’s linked to fear. While people may accept our excuses, God doesn’t. He has a rebuttal for each one.

Some time after Moses fled Egypt, he had made a new life for himself and tried to forget about his past. The only problem was God had made a promise to bring the Israelites out of Egypt and moses had been spared to do the job. When God appeared to him in the burning bush, Moses was intrigued. However, when God asked him to go back to Egypt, fear showed up. Moses began to make excuses as to why he couldn’t do what God was asking. In Exodus 4:10 he gave this excuse, “O Lord, I’m not very good with words. I never have been, and I’m not now, even though you have spoken to me. I get tongue-tied, and my words get tangled” (NLT). I love God’s response to that in the next verse. He asked, “Who makes a person’s mouth? Who decides whether people speak or do not speak, hear or do not hear, see or do not see? Is it not I, the Lord?”

God is not interested in our excuses. He’s interested in our obedience. It’s easy to look at Moses and think he shouldn’t have made all those excuses, but we’re not so different. What excuses have you been giving to God? Have you told Him you’re not ready? You don’t have the funds? No one else is interested? There’s a pandemic going on? All these are excuses from doing what God is calling you to do. He created you for this moment and is aware of the things you have brought up, but He is also the one who has prepared you, will fund you, bring people to you and make a way where there seems to be no way. Is He not able? Most of the time, He’s waiting on us to get over our fears, to quit making excuses and to step out in faith before He meets those needs. Faith isn’t about taking a calculated risk or knowing everything is going to work out. It’s about obedience even when you can’t see what’s going to happen. Let your faith be stronger than your fear long enough to take that next step instead of making an excuse.

Photo by Mathias Konrath on Unsplash

4 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

January 22, 2019 · 5:56 AM

Partnering With God

The Story of Moses leading the Children of israel out of Egypt is one we’ve heard since we were children. It’s such a familiar passage that we are often tempted to just skim through it when we read it in the Bible. One of the verses that pops out at me when reading it comes from Exodus 2:25. It says, “He (God) looked down on the people of Israel and knew it was time to act” (NLT). I love this verse because it reminds me that God is not unaware of things going on in my life even though He isn’t doing anything about them. There also comes a time when He decides to step in and do something about it at just the right time.

As you know in the story, Moses was in the wilderness running from Pharaoh because he had killed an Egyptian who was beating an Israelite. While there, he meets Jethro, marries one of his daughters and becomes a shepherd. While watching his flock, God appears to him in a burning bush that isn’t being consumed by the fire. In Exodus 3:10 God says, “Now go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh. You must lead my people Israel out of Egypt.” I think this verse is important, especially as it relates to the verse above. When God sees a need here on earth and decides go do something about it, He looks to participate with us in that process.

God could have easily sent angels to deliver the Children of Israel out of Egypt, but he chose a person to do it. I believe God is wanting to act on injustices in the world today and He’s looking for people, like us to partner with. If we’ll hear His voice and trust Him to do the impossible, we can be the people He uses. Moses didn’t feel like he was ready or able either, but when he agreed, God did some amazing things through him. What God partners with you on may not be that large. It may be helping a stranger in a time of need or a person you know going through a terrible time. Be sure to say yes to whatever God is wanting to partner with you on today. Pray and ask Him to show you how He wants to use you today.

Photo by Woradanue Nakdee on Unsplash

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

October 9, 2013 · 7:53 AM

The Hiding Place

Do you ever feel like you’re just going through the motions in life? Maybe you had a bad experience and you found solace in routine. Maybe you moved away from the situation to start over and have been playing things safely ever since. Some people change careers, friends and who they are in order to not walk down that path again. It’s understandable, but at some point you have to get back to doing what you were made for and snap out of your hiding place.

That was the case with Moses too. He had discovered who he was and while trying to come to grips with it, made a costly mistake. When word got out, Moses ran from the situation. While running, he came to a well in Midian where he found his future wife and in laws. His career path changed from being in the Egyptian royal family to shepherd. He was running from where God had him and placed him as a child. He was playing it safe in his hiding place.

While he was content to be there, God wasn’t. He wasn’t fulfilling his purpose in the desert. He was running from it. While out tending the sheep in his mundane life, God met him in a way that got his attention. God appeared to Moses in a burning bush with a fire that didn’t consume it. There God called Moses to return to who he was created to be. Of course Moses gave every excuse he could think of to not go back. Life was easy and predictable in the routine he had found, but that’s not the kind of life God calls us to.

Moses decided to give up the mundane for the unpredictable. He chose to go with God’s way instead of his own. He left the security of his hiding place to trust in God’s provision. These were not easy choices to make. I imagine the fear and doubt that Moses must have gone through was overwhelming at times. It still took a lot of faith on his part to trust God and return to Egypt. It took guts to face his past and to willingly walk back. It was necessary because God had chosen him from the time he was a baby to set Israel free.

Now lets come back to you and me. Most of us can relate to some or all of this story. Some of us are running from God’s call on our lives. Some of us have taken refuge in the desert of life, hiding out as long as we can. All the while we know that our own burning bush experience is on it’s way. If you’re in that moment and you’re giving God push back, trust Him to lead you to the place only He can take you. If you’re on your way back to where you belong, take courage in knowing God is with you in your journey. Don’t give into fear.

God has a plan for your life that only you can fulfill. He’ll burn as many bushes as He needs to in order to get your attention. He’s not content to leave you in the desert hiding. He wants you back where you belong following the call He placed on your life. Today is the day to submit to that calling once again. It’s time to quit arguing and making excuses. Make the decision to get back to where He wants you. Leave a life of going through the motions behind and choose the adventure God has for you. You won’t regret it.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,