Following God’s Nudge

Jackie knew she shouldn’t have even left her home. A headache had been pounding for three days, and she was exhausted from working overtime too many nights to count. Her mood was morphing from tame housecat to wild lion.

But the fridge was empty, and dinner had to be cooked. So my grumpy friend trudged to the grocery store, where anyone in her way bore the brunt of her bad mood. Even the sweet checkout girl only received short grunts from Jackie in reply to her kind questions.

Wading through her purse on a hunt for her wallet, Jackie felt a familiar nudge. Lord, please, not now. I’m in no mood to be nice. Plus, You know stuff like this makes me nervous. Let me come back tomorrow with a friend who can do the talking. The Holy Spirit urged Jackie to invite the girl at the register to church. Grumpiness trumped obedience and she left without saying a word. But she only made it halfway to her car. With a racing heart, Jackie headed back into the store.

Imagine her surprise when she saw Karen, a friend from church, checking out at the very same register! Talk about God’s grace, huh? The checkout girl asked how they knew each other, and their conversation naturally flowed for Jackie to invite her to church. As it turns out, she had just moved to town and had been looking for a new place to worship.

2 Corinthians 5:20a tells us, “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us.” (ESV) We are all leaders in one way or another. Whether we lead by example by showing consideration during heavy traffic, or by teaching our children how to share, or by not gossiping at work … we are all ambassadors for Jesus Christ. Sometimes we blow our opportunity, but when we do, we can seek forgiveness and God’s grace.

The Lord graciously gave Moses another chance after he sinned. God had every right to turn His back on Moses and just walk away. But as our key verses show, the Lord stayed. “Then the LORD said to Moses …” (Numbers 34:1) and “Then Moses to the Israelites …” (Numbers 34:13)
These verses overwhelm me with gratitude and awe for the Lord’s grace. It shines brightly through the words. Moses’ sin did not destroy his relationship with the Lord. The Lord still spoke and Moses still obeyed. The Lord continued to trust Moses to complete the assignment and Moses continued to lead.
What does God’s grace toward Moses teach us? We can mess up and God will not turn His back on us. He will still allow us to be part of His great story. How humbling! God’s grace is a thread woven throughout Moses’ whole life. From rescuing him in the Nile to parting the Red Sea, the Lord consistently showed favor toward Moses. This fostered a great deal of reverence and love for God, which Moses exuded as a leader.

Moses is a leader we can look up to. He never argued with God about his punishment of not entering the Promised Land. He never let himself get down and wallow in the aftermath of his sin. Moses did not play the “I am unworthy to be used by God anymore” card. He continued to lead with authority, confidence, obedience, and reliance on the Lord through the grace of God.

May we depend on God’s grace to lead in such a way that those who see us, see Christ in us.