It’s Just a Stick

Last weekend, I listened to a sermon by Steven Furtick called The Sticking Point. You know how there are times when you listen or read something and you’re like, “That was nice and so and so should have been listening.” It’s useful information but mostly (in our minds) for someone else.

And then…

Then there are times when you listen or read something, and it is as if God were speaking directly to you.

This was one of those moments. I felt as though I was sitting on God’s lap and He was simply sharing His guidance with me.

Side note: years ago, I was asked to visualize what it would be like to have a conversation with God. Like a chill session, a time to just hang out together. I remember closing my eyes and picturing the room being refreshing (that’s code for really cold in our house). We were in front of a big fireplace on a fuzzy bean bag sort of chair and I was snuggled in on His lap. It is the most comforting image to me!

Side note to the side note: this is an exercise that I recommend you do. It will give you a heads up on how you see your relationship with God your Father. If you find yourself struggling with it or it makes you super uncomfortable, this is a good place to start healing your relationship with God. Let me know if you want to talk through it.

Ok, so the topic of conversation was about how God called Moses to lead the Israelites out of slavery and how Moses was giving God push back.

Exodus 4:1-2 Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you’? Then the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” “A staff,” he replied.

Here’s another You Know How moment – you know how we say God will provide? That is absolutely true but the problem we have is that we picture Him providing in the way we think He should. We think worldly and God thinks Heavenly.

In my own translation, God’s like, “Look Moses, I gave you a stick for crying out loud. What more do you need?!”

I love what happens next!

Exodus 4:3 The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.” Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it.

Moses is a FLIGHTER!!!!

Being that I am a FIGHTER, I totally would have kicked it!

God then tells Moses to “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail.” Moses did and the snake turned back into a staff.

Here’s what struck me as I went back and read through Exodus 4 – we cry out for help, God provides, we freak out over His provision because it scares us but God tells us to hold on to it because He is in control of it.

Other times, we look at the stick in our hand and our shoulders drop because it seems so insignificant to the world we are up against.

Both of these reactions stem from doubt. I don’t doubt God, I doubt myself. And so did Moses.

Exodus 4:10 Moses said to the Lord “Pardon your servant, 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.”

OMG!!! I seriously laughed out loud when I read this because Moses is trying his hardest to gently let God down without just flat out saying, I AM NOT CAPABLE OF DOING THIS!

I know God probably didn’t, but I can totally see Him rolling His eyes at Moses as He replies.

Exodus 4:11-12 The Lord said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord?” Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”

Being able to trust God goes back to how we see our relationship with Him. My God, who snuggles up with me in front of the fireplace isn’t going to leave me in times of struggle. He doesn’t promise to take the struggle away. He promises to never leave my side and that He will equip me with what is needed to fight the battles ahead.

So my prayer for all of us today is that we recognize the stick that God has placed in our hands, that we drop it when He tells us to, we pick it back up when He tells us to, we raise it high and claim victory when He tells us to.

Not in our strength, but in His.