By Mary Carothers

Pharaoh’s daughter drew Moses out of the river and adopted him as her own.  However, while he was very young, he stayed with his own family.  Daily, at his mother’s knee he must have heard the story of God’s Divine intervention in saving him from death.  At a very early age he must have been fully persuaded that God had a special plan for his life.  Later, growing up in Pharaoh’s palace educated as a prince, he probably wondered often about his destiny.

When Moses was grown and saw the sufferings of the Hebrews, he was sure that he should deliver his people.  When he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, he immediately put into action what he believed to be God’s plan.  But like many of us, his understanding of God’s plan for his life was something less than perfect.  For one thing, his timing was a little off.  (Did I say a little off? How about 40 years off?!) For another thing, he tried in his own power to accomplish that which only God could do.  Originally, he raised his own arm to fight to Egyptians.  Eventually, God has him raise only his rod – God’s mighty arm was raised to set His people free.

Although he was God’s chosen vessel, he needed a lot of preparation to be useable.  Forty years of “preparation” was spent in humbling this mighty man of God.  Numbers 12:3 tells us that Moses was the humblest man on earth.  When Moses was convinced that he could be of no use whatsoever to God, then God was able to use him most effectively.  He indeed became the savior of his people, a picture of the coming Messiah – the Savior of the world.

Do you feel that you are also of no use whatsoever to God? Don’t you believe it! There is a desperate need for you to pray – for our country, for Christians who are persecuted around the world and for the body of Christ to be faithful and not compromise with the evil ways of the world. We are urged in I Thessalonians 5:17 to pray with ceasing. That’s our call to be used by the Lord in a might way. You, like Moses, can be a chosen vessel, useful to the Lord. Someday when you stand before God, you can hear those words: Well, done, good and faithful servant…enter into the joy of the Lord (Matthew 25:21). (Reprint from June 1998)