Faith Moved Him to Act

WHEN Jehovah commissioned Moses to lead the nation of Israel out of Egyptian bondage, Moses at first begged off, saying: “Excuse me, Jehovah, but I am not a fluent speaker, neither since yesterday nor since before that nor since your speaking to your servant, for I am slow of mouth and slow of tongue.” (Exodus 4:10) Yes, Moses did not feel qualified for such a weighty assignment.

Similarly today, many of Jehovah’s servants at times feel inadequate to fulfill the duties that they have been assigned. For example, one Christian overseer named Theodore relates: “Of all the things Jehovah asks me to do, the field ministry is the hardest. When I was young, I would quickly walk up to the door, pretend to ring the doorbell, and quietly walk away, hoping no one would hear or see me. As I got older, I stopped doing that, but the thought of going from door to door made me physically ill. Even to this day, I get sick before going out in the ministry, but I go anyway.”

What is it that enabled Moses and modern-day Witnesses like Theodore to cope with such fears? The Bible answers: “By faith he [Moses] left Egypt, . . . for he continued steadfast as seeing the One who is invisible.”—Hebrews 11:27.

Indeed, by exercising faith in Jehovah, Moses was able to overcome his feelings of inadequacy and fulfill his assigned duties as judge, prophet, national leader, mediator of the Law covenant, commander, historian, and Bible writer.

In like manner, when we have faith like Moses, we will walk as if ‘seeing the invisible One.’ Such faith inspires courage, enabling us to shoulder our Christian responsibilities—even when we may feel inadequate.