Each of us has our
own perspective on what Lent means and what we should do and accomplish during
these 40 days. Perhaps it's fasting,
or giving up chocolate, soda or beer or losing some weight! For me, Lent has always been the
procrastinators opportunity to follow up on New Year's resolutions. Not just a list of things to do better, but
an examination of what my goals really should be and answering the most
important question, what am I doing about it to insure that I move in that
direction. Am I capable?
To move in a new
direction requires us to do something different and to change. Self doubt and fear often hinder us from
making those changes. In our Old Testament reading, God is asking Moses to gather the Israelites and tell them
they will leave Egypt to a land of milk and honey. He also tells Moses he is to confront the
Egyptians and explain what they are going to do. Moses is not real comfortable with this
plan. He implores God, “What if they
don't believe me?” So God gives him a
few signs by turning a staff into a snake and back to a staff and making his
hand diseased then well again. Moses
still balks and says, “Listen God, even
with a couple of miracles thrown at them, what if they don't believe me? I'm just not good at speaking in front of
people and I don't like it!”
God is
getting a bit exasperated, but says, “ Just do it, I'll tell you what to
say!” (This next part requires reading
the next few verses in Exodus beyond the assigned reading). Moses isn't catching on and asks God please
find some one else! Exasperated, God
says to him, “Okay, your brother Aaron is good at speaking and you'll help him
with what to say, now get it done! Oh,
and don't forget the staff!”
Most of us aren't
asked to lead our people out of Egypt, but we all have our own little hurdles
to overcome to get to where we want to be. God says he'll always be there to help us through even if we don't think
we have the capability. In Psalm 118,
the Psalmist proclaims “The stone the
builders rejected has become the cornerstone!”
We all have God given gifts, even if we don't recognize them at the
moment.
Paul's letter to the
Romans is a prescription for living and succeeding together in community. He tells the community in Rome that
everyone has different gifts and that they should all use them accordingly. In
essence, if you are skilled at teaching, teach. If you are skilled at building, build. And just as importantly look to others with
humility and grace to supplement what you can't do well.
What ever challenges
we all face in achieving our goals, they probably aren't as daunting as the
challenge that Moses faced, even if we share his insecurity and lack of
confidence. But like Moses, God is
there to both push us and support us and to help us find the way out of our own
Egypt. And as Paul reminds us, usually
with a little help from some friends.
(David Simmons)
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