Every Good G S ift
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Entrepreneur Taking a leadership lesson from Moses ByDavid Bowman — Executive Director, Tarrant Baptist Association in Fort Worth, | www.biblicalleadership.com |Image courtesy:istock
“Korah son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and certain Reubenites—Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth—became insolent and rose up against Moses. With them were 250 Israelite men, well-known community leaders who had been appointed members of the council. They came as a group to oppose Moses and Aaron and said to them, ‘You have gone too far! The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the LORD is with them. Why then do you set yourselves above the LORD’s assembly?’ When Moses heard this, he fell facedown” (Numbers 16:1-4).
There have been many times in my life when I have been driven to my knees in urgent prayer. There have been a handful of times when I have been driven facedown in emergency prayer. We see Moses fall facedown twice in this chapter (verses 4 and 22).
What was Moses doing as he lay facedown? He was praying. He sought God’s wisdom. He surrendered his will to God’s will. He presented God with the facts and let him sort out who was right, who was wrong, and what should happen next. In verse 22, Aaron joins (Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else Moses in this most humble posture of prayer. Together they sought on the face of the earth.) (Numbers 12:3) God’s mercy and forgiveness for the entire assembly of people when only a few rebels were the problem. Parenthetically, what do people say about you? What would their tagline about you say? A well-known leader was talking about prayer. He is a bit of a neat freak. His clothes are always pressed and fashionable. He said he has (She is the Bossypants Award Winner for 2022.) a hard time kneeling in prayer. He talked about lying facedown in prayer. He said all he could think about was when was the last time (He is a legend in his own mind.) the carpet was vacuumed. He settled on sitting in his favorite chair and writing out his prayers of confession and repentance, interces(Yes, I would like fries with that.) sion and adoration. Numbers 12:3 is no random observation. This is a title well-earned. This is a title applied by others, not a role Moses applied for himself. How does a person become humbler and kinder? What was Moses’ secret?
This is a good habit. This is a good prayer pattern. However, there will come times in our lives when sitting in a comfortable chair is not an option. We will not care about wrinkling our pants or when the carpet was last cleaned. We will seek God with passion and purpose. We will discover new depths of relationship with God than any There is no secret. There is, however, an observable truth. Moses we have heretofore known. spent a great deal of time in God’s presence. The more time we spend with God, the less impressed with ourselves we become. We see our How can avoid the Bossypants title? How can we flee from the tempfaults and failures and mixed motives much more clearly in the light tation of becoming a legend in our own minds? We can see God for of his glory and grace. Moses spent so much time in God’s presence, who he is. We can see ourselves for who we are. We can confess our he glowed. (See Exodus 34:29-35.) How many people do you know sins and we can seek God’s highest and best for the difficulties and who glow with God’s radiance? darkness driving us to our knees or laying us facedown. We can surrender all of our hopes, dreams, fears, and failures to our Sovereign If you read Exodus and Numbers and pay attention, you see Moses God and Loving Father in heaven. go to his knees or lie down facedown again and again. When you have problems pop up during your day, do you speak first, or do Join Labeouf on your knees. Join Moses and Aaron on your face you pray? Do you bow up with pride and power, or do you humble before God. In moments of utter abandonment of self-seeking beyourself before God and seek his wisdom and way? havior and absolute dependence on God, God does what only God can do. In the movie True Grit, Mattie Ross and the Texas Ranger Labeouf discuss their denominational affiliations. Mattie is Cumberland Our Father, you see more clearly than do I. You know more fully Presbyterian. Labeouf is an Episcopalian. Maddie replied to this rev- than I. Your purpose is greater than my best desires. What do you elation with a curt, “I figured you for some kind of kneeler.” say about this situation? How should I respond? What should I say? How can I stay out of your way as you do what is right, just, fair, and What kind of kneeler are you? loving for all concerned? Amen.
TT 145 | MAR 22nd - 28th | 2022
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