| Then the Lord said to him [Moses], “What is that in your hand?” “A staff,” he replied. “Take this staff in your hand so you can perform miraculous signs with it.” |
| —Exodus 4:2, 17 |
All of us can probably recount some of the ways God used Moses’ staff (or rod) in the Book of Exodus. The plagues God sent on Egypt began with his raised staff in obedience to God’s commands. The parting of the Red Sea and the water from the rock came as a result of Moses’ use of his simple staff.
Then, we can recall the story of Sampson, the judge God used to help Israel defeat the warring Philistine army, through the use of a simple jawbone of a donkey, as recorded in Judges 15. He used this available instrument to wage war and kill a thousand Philistines.
The men of Gideon, as described in Judges 7, used torches and trumpets at God’s command. In Judges 6:14, we read:
The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?”
In yet another example, the boy David used a slingshot to defeat Goliath, as recorded in 1 Samuel 17. This is a famous event that most all of us have heard about.
Scripture tells of many more heroes. In each case, God used these heroes to do His work through something simple. Maybe you think God can’t use you because of some real, or perceived, weakness, some handicap, some lacking of finances, or the lacking of some special talent. Maybe age has crept up on you, and you wonder if God has finished using you. Do not be discouraged.
Instead, just remember the Bible stories where, in spite of weakness and lack, God used those individuals to great purpose and great power. Remind yourself of what the Apostle Paul said about the Lord’s message to him, as recorded in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10:
He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Well said, Paul. Thank you for these words of encouragement!
