What is that in your hand?

Then the LORD asked him, “What is that in your hand?” “A shepherd’s staff,” Moses replied. “Throw it down on the ground,” “The Lord told him. So Moses threw down the staff, and it turned into a snake! Moses jumped back. Then the LORD told him, “Reach out and grab its tail.” So, Moses reached out and grabbed it, and it turned back into a shepherd’s staff in his hand.

Exodus 4:2-4. 

In Tent International, it is commonly said that the longest phase in a tentmaker’s journey is the decision-making phase. At this stage, a lot of questions and a fear of the unknown come to the surface. Moses had similar problems. For a man like Moses, who had walked in the palace courts and probably sat in the council of leaders in Egypt, one would expect him to be bold and firm in accepting the task placed before him. That was not the case. Instead, Moses was filled with many questions, mostly because he was a fugitive. He worried a lot about how Pharoah would react to this message that was sent to him by God. He worried about acceptance from his people, and he worried about abilities he thought he lacked in carrying out the mission God had for him. 

God had to show Moses signs to prove that He was with him, assuring him of the great and mighty things he would work through the hand of Moses. Of all things that God will use to manifest His power was the shepherd’s staff, not a very prized possession. 

To his surprise, that dry old stick became a living thing, so much so that Moses jumped. It does not end there, when he grabbed the serpent by its tail, it became a rod again. This same rod was used in parting the Red Sea (Exodus 14:16) and to bring about the plague of hail (Exodus 9:23) in the land of Egypt. 

What is that in your hand? It does not need to be something extraordinary. It may be just a cheap ballpoint pen, some old scratch paper, the back of an envelope, a common skill, yet the Lord can transform it into something to bless the world. 

For David, it was a sling and five smooth stones (1 Samuel 17:40). Just a little insignificant nothing, yet yielded to God these became the means of blessing to the nation of Israel and glory for the Lord that has continued to this day. When a crowd of more than 5,000 people followed Jesus, there was a need for food. Andrew, one of the dicisples, said to the Lord, “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish but what are these among so many?” (John 6:9)  Humanly speaking this was not much, but in the hands of God it was more than enough.

 This all shows that God can use whatever we have in our hands, not because of what it can do but because of His power and plan concerning our lives. 

Reflect

What ido you have in your hand? God wants to use it and make meaning out of it.  

Pray

Dear father, help me to see what I have in my hand and teach me how to let you use it for your purpose. Amen