Who Are You, Lord?

Last night in our ladies Bible class, we were studying about Moses and the burning bush.  Moses was reluctant to do what God was asking him to do.  He asked God what he would say if the Israelites asked him who sent him.  (Exodus 3 and 4) God explained to Moses that He is the 'I AM' and the 'LORD' - meaning Yahweh.  He revealed His personal name to Moses.

We used  this poem along with our study.  The author is unknown.

Who Are You, Lord?

While praying one day

A woman asked, "Who are you, Lord?"

He answered, "I AM".

"But, Who is I AM?", she said.

And He replied..."I Am Love, I am Peace,

I Am Grace, I Am Joy

I Am The Way, Truth, And The Light...

I Am The Comforter,

I Am Strength, I Am Safety,

I Am Shelter, I Am Power, I Am The Creator,

I Am The Beginning And The End,

I Am The Most High".

The girl with tears n her eyes looked

Toward Heaven and said,

"Now I understand."

"But Lord, who am I?"

Then God tenderly wiped the tears

From her eyes and whispered,

"You are Mine."

If You Say Go....

If You say go, we will go

If You say wait, we will wait

If you say step out on the water

And they say it can't be done

We'll fix our eyes on You and we will come

Your ways are higher than our ways

And the plans that You have laid

Are good and true

If You call us to the fire

You will not withdraw Your hand

We'll gaze into the flames and look for You.

(Lyrics by Diane Thiel)

Last week I began teaching ladies Bible class again after several years away and teaching only children's classes. I'm really excited about this new study! We're using a book called Lady BUGS (Ladies Better Understanding God). It's written by Denell Dennis, and examines the life of Moses.

The first lesson began with the story of the burning bush, when God speaks to Moses from the bush and tells him He wants Moses to do a job for Him. Moses is reluctant. He doubts. He makes excuses. He doesn't feel worthy.

But Moses said to God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” Exodus 3:11

The song lyrics above were used in the lesson. The acapella group, Hallal, sings this song in a beautiful way! But read the lyrics. The lyrics are saying the opposite of what Moses said, aren't they?

You and are are often just like Moses. We doubt. We make excuses. We procrastinate. We're reluctant to do what God wants us to do. What if we change our NO to YES! What if we make the lyrics above our "motto" for today? For this week? God can do great things in our lives if we will allow Him to direct our paths. We just have to be willing to GO!

Trust in the Lord with all your heart

and lean not on your own understanding;

in all your ways acknowledge him,

and he will make your paths straight.

Proverbs 3:5-6

Excuses, Excuses, Excuses

Do you ever make excuses?  Do you make excuses to God?  I've been studying about Moses when God speaks to him from the burning bush.  (Exodus 3:1-4:17) God tells Moses that He wants him to go to Pharoah and ask him to let the Israelite people leave Egypt.  Think about this:  God is speaking to Moses.  He is speaking to him from a bush that is burning, but not burning up.  Then, He tells Moses what He wants him to do, and what happens?  Moses makes excuses of why he can't do what God asked him to do!

Let's look at what Moses says:
Excuse #1:  "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" Exodus 3:11

Excuse #2:  Moses answered, "What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, 'The LORD did not appear to you'?" Exodus 4:1

Excuse #3:  Moses said to the LORD, "O 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." Exodus 4:10

Final plea:  But Moses said, "O Lord, please send someone else to do it." Exodus 4:13

Ask yourself these questions:
What is God wanting me to do that I don't want to do?
Am I making excuses that keep me from doing what I need to do?
Am I allowing God to use me for His purposes?
Am I too afraid to get out of my comfort zone to do what God wants me to do?

God spoke directly to Moses and told him exactly what He needed/wanted him to do, but Moses didn't just say "Yes!" like it seems to us he would have.  But, many times, we're just like Moses.  We have God speaking to us through His Word.  He tells us what He wants us to do and how he wants us to live.  However, sometimes, by what we say, how we live, and by the choices we make...we are saying "NO!" to God...just like Moses did.

God told Moses something very important in Exodus 3:12.  God said to Moses, "I will be with you."  God will also be with us.  Whatever He wants us to do....whatever He needs us to do....He will not leave us.  He will be right there beside us.  We just have to be willing to "Go".