Have you ever stopped to consider your place in the life of the ministry you are serving in?
If you're anything like me... probably not.
God is so clearly at work in the world - and on our campuses. But are we presently aware of the fact that He was present [in our ministry context] long before we arrived... and will be there long after we've left? Our perspective is too often limited solely to the season of ministry that we are present for and I think we need to be challenged to pull back and consider the larger picture.
The story of Moses and Joshua are helping to challenge me in this regard.
Moses could be considered the "big man on campus" of the Pentateuch, if not the Old Testament. Moses is the central leadership figure in the books of Exodus, Numbers and Deuteronomy - no other Old Testament leader had a ministry that spanned more than one book in duration. Moses was connected to some of the greatest miracles within the Bible - the burning bush, the 10 plagues, the Israelite' escape from Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, manna from heaven, water from a rock, etc., etc., etc.
Moses also experienced a close, personal relationship with God. Moses talked with God - numerous times. Moses heard the audible voice of God on a variety of occasions. Moses received direction from God.
Even with his intimate relationship with God, Moses experienced a lot of pain and hardship as a leader.He was consistently being met with resistance from the Israelites - questioned on almost every call he made - those he was leading attempted to thwart his every leadership effort. And the one time he really lashed out at them - and in doing so went against what God had commanded of him - he was penalized with the consequence of not being able to finish the task he had been given.
Moses ministry task - delivering the Israelites from enslavement in Egypt to freedom in the land God had promised - would not be completed by him. This meant that all of his years of service - as it would seem - would amount to DECADES of 'wasted time' spent leading a bunch stiff-necked people through a time of desert wandering. Moses would be allowed to see the Promised Land, from a distance, but never enter it.
It must have been so tough! I know when my Old Testament classes have studied the Pentateuch, and journeyed with Moses and the woeful Israelites from Egypt to the edge of the Promised Land (only to see Moses be denied entry), my students have really struggled. I would think that we all do.
But God used Moses in the ways He had desired... and while He may have originally desired to use Moses to conquer the Promised Land and establish a new way of life with/for the Israelites, his own disobedience (as small as it might have appeared), disqualified him from that chance.
We'll take a closer look at the ministry of Joshua tomorrow, but for now, reflect on these questions:
Where does your ministry leadership fall in the timeline of your ministry context?
How does this realization change your perspective on the ministry you are currently engaged in and the relative "success" or "struggle" you are currently experiencing?
How would you attempt to faithfully live out your calling if your ministry was riddled with the painful kinds of challenges that Moses' was?
I'd love to hear your thoughts!
And if you haven't made it over to the BLOGFERENCE that some of the Campus Crusade folks are hosting you should really check it out! Some GREAT conversations happening around the world of college ministry.
Grace and peace.
