UnstuckSample

Get Rid of Your Dead Moseses

As Christians, “stuck” can seem especially bad. Aren’t we expected to have the answers? Isn’t God supposed to show us the path, so we can walk it? If you’re like me, it’s particularly frustrating to think that all the answers we need are seemingly just a prayer away. Why does it sometimes feel like our prayers for direction or help fall on deaf ears?

Many of us wrestle with the big question about who we are. It’s not just an issue for teens trying to discover their identities. As a pastor, I meet people in their twenties who are wondering if they’ll have lives as good as the ones their parents had. I talk with people in the middle of their lives, and they wonder how they got where they are. I even meet older people who wonder what happened to their lives and if there’s anything left for them at their age. They thought their lives would be different, and they’re disappointed that their youthful dreams of what life would be like and even what God would do have fallen flat or ground to a standstill. People of all ages feel stuck and unsure about moving forward or what God has for their lives.

In this YouVersion plan, you’re going to discover how God sees you, what He has done for you in Jesus, and what that means. You are His workmanship—His masterpiece—created in Jesus to do the good things He has prepared for you. Read Ephesians 2:10—it puts it into better words than I ever could!

If you feel stuck, before we go any further, it’s time to pull out all of those things that you’d hoped for—yes, even the dreams that seem dead—and lay them down before God. If God put them in you, it’s not over yet. Even if your life feels like it’s in broken pieces, spread them out before the living God, and watch Him put them back together as only He can. We see that God can use even the most broken, most painful situations for our good in Romans 8:28.

In Jeremiah 29:11, we see that God has plans for prosperity in our lives. The trials and adversity we go through have purpose! God has beautiful plans. It’s up to us to follow Him and grab hold of them.

So what’s holding us back from grasping hold of God’s plan?

At the beginning of the book of Joshua in the Bible, God made a seemingly rhetorical statement to Joshua. Moses had died—God knew he was dead; Joshua knew Moses was dead. All of Israel knew. So why did God bother to say, “Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore, arise, go”? (Joshua 1:2, NKJV)

Now, if you just read the Bible like some other book, you might think that this was just filler the author wrote to sound official and, well, biblical. However, if you read the Bible like it’s God’s perfect Word, you’ve got to look at every single word and ask yourself why it’s there. What’s the point?

I believe God was trying to convey to Joshua that it wasn’t just Moses who was dead—it was the entire old way of doing things. It had died with Moses, and they needed to bury it with him . . . leave it behind in the wilderness. It was time for something new, and God didn’t want Joshua and the Israelites to get stuck in fear after the death of their longtime leader, Moses.

People get stuck after someone dies, and fear can easily paralyze them. It can be tough to move on, especially into the unknown. We get stuck after major events such as losing a job or a marriage. God knew that He needed to help Joshua along because now was the time not to be stuck but to arise and go. God also made a promise to Joshua—two, actually—in Joshua 1:3 and 5.

I don’t know about you, but when I get stuck, I must cling to the promises God has made to me. He’s given me His Word, and He has also whispered things to my heart. So when things get difficult, I pull them out to remind myself what He’s said. Let’s admit it: there are times we need God’s promises more than others. I feel like now is one of those times.

Fear will keep you stuck. However, God understands this, and He offers us a promise to go along with the first step of our recovery from being stuck: “Arise, go. . . . As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you” (Joshua 1:2 and 5, NKJV).

When you feel stuck, your first step may be small. It might be just getting up.

It’s time to get up. It’s time to take a step. Moses is dead, and while that scares you, it’s okay because God will always be with you. So, leave your dead Moseses behind, and take your first step into God’s promise for you today!