What Is In Your Hand? – Part 1

The Leprosy Mission produces an internal daily devotional guide, The Bridge, for use in offices, hospitals, clinics and projects around the world. Current and former staff and trustees from many countries contribute to the guide. We will share with you contributions made by our staff team.

Exodus 2:11-13
Exodus 3:1-12
Exodus 4:1-4

I have 3 questions for you:

• What has God laid on your heart, or as Bill Hybel’s would say what is your holy discontent, what makes you angry, upsets, motivates or envisions you?
• What is in your hand? What life experience; resources, gifts; talents? How has God wired you? What has he ordained that only you can do?
• What are you going to do about your “holy discontent” with what is in your hands?

My first experience of our work overseas was a trip to Indonesia. The trip was arranged soon after I started to give me first hand experience of our work so I could promote it better. The majority of leprosy affected people I met on that trip were children. Up until then my main service for God was as a youth worker!

Can you imagine what that experience did to the heart of a youth worker? God was bringing together the strands of my holy discontent (injustice, stigma &poverty) together with my heart for young people together with His compassion for those affected by leprosy. With what God has laid on my heart and has put in my hands I will work in partnership with God to achieve a world without leprosy. The stakes are high.

I had always thought that Moses call to leadership came at the burning bush but it started much earlier. The burning bush was only an attention grabber. What Moses saw that day when the slave was being beaten, the thing that made him so angry that he took action, was the same as God had been seeing, hearing and watching? Neither could stand it any longer. God chose Moses because he had the same:

• Passion
• Emotions
• Capacity for action

God took that and harnessed it and used it for good:

The cartoon character Popeye is an underdog with a long fuse and a keen sense of fair play. This most unlikely hero falls for the least likely of sex symbols: Olive Oyl. Flat as a board, with a pickle-shaped nose and fickle heart to match, Popeye’s “goil” puts him through his paces. Her only real competition is spinach. After a can of spinach he was unstoppable.

Everyone identifies with him when he finally says, “That’s all I can stands, and I can’t stands no more!”

Moses had his “Popeye” moment when he saw the Egyptian treating the slave so badly – he had had all he could stands he could stands no more!

David had his “Popeye” moment when he heard Goliath slagging off his God – he had had all he could stands he could stands no more! Picked up his sling and killed Goliath.

We are moved to action when we can stands no more!

When Wellesley met people affected by leprosy for the first time he remembers: “I almost shuddered… yet at the same time [I was] fascinated, and I felt, if ever there was a Christ-like work in the world it was to go amongst these poor sufferers and bring them the consolation, the hope of the gospel”.– he had had all he could stands he could stands no more! What causes your ‘stands no more’? What are you going to do about it? Today? This week?