Moses and Me

I was reading today about the call of Moses in Exodus 3 into a very tenuous leadership position.  My thinking rests on the premise that leadership in any shape or form is hard work.  Whether it is in corporate America, coaching, teaching, pastoring or any profession it seems to be getting more challenging by the day.  This is not about the "why" it is, it is more about in "what" the reality of the call rests.
God called Moses to help people in a very difficult situation.  It was not glamorous or positioned him for success in playing to his strengths.  The challenges were totally unknown when God appeared in that burning bush.  Through it all,  echoes a simple truth that "God will be with you!"  The dialogue goes something like this:

Moses says                                                    God says
Who am I to do this?                              I will be with you!
What do I say when asked?                    I AM WHO I AM sent you!
What if they don't believe me?               I will do miraculous signs!
                                                               Snake to staff / changed hand / blood on ground
I am not eloquent - send someone else!  Aaron will speak for you!

 Pharoh's initial response to Moses' request to let God's people go is to remove straw from the bricks and make the Israelites work harder! Now even the Israelites are ticked at Moses - "why have you brought this trouble on us?"  
It takes a 40 year journey of God daily showing up and providing and proving His love for His people time and time again.
WDTM for us?  We can throw all kinds of excuses and justify our frustrations when we are faced with overwhelming circumstances.  When do we decide to stay and fight or decide to flee? God simply proves to us time and time again that He is faithful.  It is as if He says... "will you humble yourself. remove your pride and recognize the calling I have on your heart?"  Can we clear away all the debris of the way our plans "should" unfold and simply use what God has given us to get His work done?  We are an icon of what is happening to the church in the west.  We tend to place our material and capitalistic values and reason above the calling.  What questions  would Paul ask me if he walked into my office today? What would he need to remind me of?  So what would we give up for the sake of knowing Christ?  Once again, God showed up in His word to remind me that "He will be with me!" - that's enough.

T'was the night of Halloween!

Our Halloween was the festivus event in the new neighborhood of Village Green.  Even I have to admit that it was a little on the crazy side for the first of its kind on Checkerbloom.  We got together with two of our neighbors and set up tables of chili, hot dogs, brats, and nachos along with three huge bowls of candy for the kids.  Oh yea, the kids.  Our next door friends even had a video going on their  garage door!  The reaction of our neighbors was one of surprise... not what they expected when the rounded the corner! We spent the entire evening talking and sharing with people as they walked by our house. Our Castle and Cooke sales person even accepted our invitation!  The thing that tickled me most was how my neighbors were engaged in conversations with people that they had never met before.   I'm proud of our first attempt of connecting with our neighborhood and building some endearing relationships. We are already talking about a progressive Christmas event! :) Way to go team Checkerbloom!