How has this Worked for You?

Then God said, “Put your hand back inside your cloak.” So he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh. Exodus 4:7

It’s not uncommon for me to get fitness advice from those who believe I’m doing something wrong or that I’m not doing something that I should be doing. If I’m unsure of the reliability of the suggestion, I often look at the fitness of the advice-giver. If it doesn’t appear to be working for them, then I’m probably not interested. If, however, I can see the positive evidence in their lives, then I’m more apt to listen. Basically, I’m more likely to take fitness advice from those who’re fit than those who’re unfit. I want to see the evidence in the life of the one dispensing the advice. How has this worked for you?

It’s the same with my faith and recovery. There was a time when I desired to point others towards faith and recovery, but a close inspection of my own life would have revealed that I wasn’t doing very well at either my faith or my recovery. My efforts to help others fell flat as they should have. I was trying to sell something that hadn’t been successful in my own life. How has this worked for you? That was a question I didn’t want to answer.

In today’s passage, God provided Moses with transformative evidence to convince others. In the story, God commanded Moses to go back to Egypt to free his people from slavery. Moses objected, insisting that no one would believe God had sent him. In response, God struck Moses’ hand with leprosy and then healed it, thereby providing a miraculous sign to convince his audience. Show them this and they’ll believe I’m working in and through you.

As Christians, we believe in God and we understand that we’re supposed to share our faith with those in need. To do this, we bear testimony to what God has done for us. Many of us though, just don’t have much to tell. Would your life look any different if you didn’t believe in God? For others to be convinced that we have the answer, they must see the evidence of its effectiveness our lives. If we’ve never let God touch our anger, lust, greed, pride, or addictions, then we simply may not have much evidence to show. If we claim to be Christians, then we must, by definition, follow Christ, which means we’ll be transformed by him. How has this worked for you? If we’re truly following God, the evidence will be clear.