The surrendered staff!
Verse for Today: Thursday, October 25, 2012
Exodus 4:20 – So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey and started back to Egypt. And he took the staff of God in his hand.
It is God’s faithfulness to Moses that took him back to Egypt. He was once the heir apparent in Egypt, but God’s plan was for him to become the savior of the Israelites who were under bondage in Egypt. God had greater plan for him and had to prepare him to be the deliverer of His people from Egypt. He was earlier a learned genius in all the skills of Egypt and was excellent in speech. But God emptied him of it all and filled him with humility and brokenness. When God commissioned him for the greater task, He equipped him with a staff which was once his shepherd’s staff. But when God asked him to put it down, and as God started using it as an instrument for His glory, the staff became God’s. As Moses became God’s, his staff also became God’s to use the way He wanted for His glory. It is interesting to see that Moses had no assets at this time other than the staff. Even the sheep under his care were that of his father-in-law. God wanted him to surrender even the last asset he had in the form of a staff along with a surrender of his own will. When the surrender was complete, God showed him that he would be like the burning bush which would burn for the Lord, but would not burn off. When Moses completely surrendered, he was used mightily by God. His staff led a few sheep, but God used it to lead two million people and all their cattle for forty years. When he gave up his sheep, God gave him more than two million sheep. God took care of all his needs throughout the next forty years by giving direction, guidance, light, food, water, protection and all other provisions required for him as well as for all the people he led. God made Moses to think big because he was to follow a big God who is far beyond imagination. Today you and I have the privilege to follow this God to attempt great things for Him as we give up our petty things for Him.
Dear reader, does your situation demand that you keep some things like a small staff for yourself? Is there pressure in your heart to hold on to something for your security and provisions? Is God speaking to you about giving up all that you have along with surrendering yourself for Him to use you as it pleases Him? Today God wants to reassure you that your God and His resources are far beyond your imagination. Your God wants you to have a willing heart to give up all that you have no matter how big or small it might be. If you don’t give up even the smallest for God, it will stand as a hindrance for Him to use you in a mightier way than before. But remember, when you give up your small staffs for Him, He might give it back to you for His use in your hands. But it will remain God’s staff and not yours. That doesn’t matter because if you are fully God’s, your staff will also have to be God’s. And you will have the privilege to hold God’s staff in your hands to work for Him to accomplish His purpose. When God’s staff is in the hands of God’s surrendered servant, it will accomplish greater things. God’s staff in your hands is the constant reminder that God will meet all your needs in the physical, emotional and spiritual realms on all the days of your lives. Today God is challenging you to dare to drop all that you hold dear to our heart and all that you depend on for a livelihood. When all that we have and are remain as God’s possession, it becomes God’s prerogative to meet our needs as He uses us to touch others through our lives.
Psalms 23:4b – Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
Thought for Today
Anything that is not fully surrendered cannot be fully utilized for God.
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