All That You Need

Unlocked: Daily Devotions for Teens

READ: EXODUS 3:1-15; 4:10-17; GALATIANS 5:22-23

Inadequate. Unworthy. Unequipped. As I spent my first few days counseling at a local Christian camp, these words were never far from the edge of my thoughts. It was as though the devil were whispering discouragement into my ear. Who are you to be here, trying to speak the truth into the lives of these children? You always have trouble trying to find the right words to convey your thoughts. Who are you to be an example of Jesus to these kids? Each day you struggle to live out His example in your own life.

Moses struggled with similar doubts. When God appeared to him in the wilderness, calling him to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, he protested, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring the Israelites out of Egypt?...I have never been eloquent— either in the past or recently…Please, Lord, send someone else” (Exodus 3:11; 4:10, 13).

In our culture today, we might expect God to say something like, “You are enough, Moses. Just dig down deep inside and you will find all that you need.”

But no. God answers, “I will certainly be with you” (3:12). “I AM WHO I AM” (3:14). “Who placed a mouth on humans?…I will help you speak and I will teach you what to say” (4:11-12). Then God also sent Moses’s brother Aaron to speak to the people for him.

On our own, we are unqualified, unworthy, and unequipped. But we serve a God who loves us and provides all that we need. We are not enough. But He is. He fills us with the fruits of His Spirit and He “gives the Spirit without measure” (John 3:34). He does indeed call us to serve Him, but those He calls, He equips. • Julia Faith Steward

• On our own, we are not enough. We fall short of God’s goodness. That’s why Jesus came to die for our sins and be raised from the dead, making the way for us to be with Him forever. If we’ve put our trust in Jesus, His Holy Spirit lives in us and gives us “everything required for life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3). We aren’t enough, but God is. In what ways have you been trying to follow God out of your own strength instead of relying on Him? Consider spending some time in prayer, confessing this to God and asking Him to remind you of His generous provision.

• When Moses struggled to speak, God promised to teach him, and He also sent Aaron to partner with him. Who has God given you to partner with as you pursue God’s calling in your lives?

His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 2 Peter 1:3 (CSB)