“No Excuses”

Scripture: "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." The LORD said to him, "Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the LORD ? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say." -Exodus 4:10 - 12, NIV

If truth were told, each one of us have given someone an excuse. If you told someone you did not complete a task due to a circumstance or the fact you lacked time, that's an excuse. If you told someone that you did not call them on a birthday because you were so busy, that, my friends is an excuse. If you told a friend that you were coming to their house and because of something you did not, that’s an excuse. Within the Kingdom of God, our Father does not tolerate our excuses. He looks at it as this: disobedience. On today, the Father wants to encourage you to stop having excuses for not excelling in His Kingdom like you should! Some of you out there are profound preachers, but your excuse is that I do not know His Word like I should. Some of you out there are profound writers, but because of life's circumstances, that's your excuse to stop writing. Some of you are great encouragers, but your excuse is that no one encourages you, so why encourage them. God is tired of excuses, ladies and gentlemen! He is ready to receive you, broken and everything, to be used for His Glory! Today's text provides us with a great example of one who had excuses.

Our devotional setting for today is located in the second book of the Old Testament and the Law Books, Exodus. This book, along with the first five within the Old Testament, was authored by Moses. In the third chapter, Moses experienced a theopany (where God appears to humankind in some form) when he heard God through a burning bush that did not burn/consume the area it surrounded. Within this particular chapter, God and Moses are continuing their conversation from Chapter 3. God has shown Moses His power through Moses's rod turning into a snake, turning Moses's body from healthy to leprous and back to healthy in the same light. These things were done as mechanisms that Moses could show Pharaoh that he is representing the true and living God. However, like most of us, Moses had some other excuses. Let's learn more about his excuses and what God had to say about it.

Moses lets God know that "I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue". In other words, Moses had a stuttering problem. If truth were told, we know how embarrassing stuttering can be amongst your peers, co-workers, family, and friends. Within my own life, I actually took speech courses from K to 5 because of my slowness in speech, but at the end of the day, God blessed my efforts because I went through that journey and I know that I'm a lot better than what I was back then. If truth were told, many of us are not eloquent in some areas, tongue-tied in other areas, but God is still there to work with you and manifest His glory through you! With this being said, we find that Moses's excuse was his stuttering problem. What did God have to say?

He says, "Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say". Ladies and gentlemen, God does not care about our lame excuses! All He desires is that we would be willing vessels to take on His will for our lives! In the case of Moses and his stuttering problem, God was letting him know that He would help Moses with his speaking and give him the words to say. When it comes to getting out of debt, there are no excuses! God will give or send you the tools and teach you what to do to get out of debt! When you are trying to complete an assignment, there are no excuses! God will help or send you what you need to complete your assignment! When you are trying to lose weight, there are no excuses! God will help you to lose it by guiding you in your eating habits and letting you know when to leave food and stuff alone! When you are teaching/preaching God's Word, there are no excuses because He will give you the Word to preach/teach and the way you should attack the message/teaching. God is not concerned about your hang-ups because He has the hookup! He is not concerned about what you cannot do, but He is concerned that you are willing to step up and try!

In closing, Moses eventually went on to do what God called him to do, but God sent Aaron, Moses's brother, along with him for the journey. God will equip you with what you need to make it in life and be successful! He will equip you with the right people, the right tools, and most importantly, Him! Aren't you tired of giving God your excuses? If so, walk into your season of fulfillment and leave excuses at the back door!