Harnessing the power within; Overcoming self Doubt.

Key Text: Exodus 3:11-19

Exodus 3:11–19 NKJV

But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” So He said, “I will certainly be with you. And this shall be a sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.” Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” Moreover God said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.’ Go and gather the elders of Israel together, and say to them, ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared to me, saying, “I have surely visited you and seen what is done to you in Egypt; and I have said I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, to a land flowing with milk and honey.” ’ Then they will heed your voice; and you shall come, you and the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt; and you shall say to him, ‘The Lord God of the Hebrews has met with us; and now, please, let us go three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’ But I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not even by a mighty hand.

Introduction.

As we know, this year we are studying around the theme of Giving yourself the permission to succeed. Moreover, as I thought of this subject, one of the major reasons to why people do not succeed isn’t because they are not capable, it is because of their own self doubt.

Most of the time, when we think of doubt we may think of the negative aspect of it. Moreover, Doubt is a very natural thing. It prevents us from reaching hasty conclusions or making commitments to unreliable and untrustworthy resources.

A lot of times, we have been taught to view doubt as the enemy of faith, but it only becomes it if we give it the permission to become unbelief.

Q. Why do we often struggle with self-doubt?

There could be many reasons to why people struggle with self doubt, which include:

A. Past experiences.

Maybe it is because they tried and failed at something important, therefore they lack the confidence.

Maybe because they never had a framework to work off of. Those who have had influence in their lives, or experiences they have been exposed to have caused them to doubt if they would become successful in whatever endeavor they set themselves out for.

B. Comparing ourselves to other people’s success.

C. The fear of the unknown, not knowing if they will be successful or how other people will react to them.

Context.

As we look to the scripture and also throughout history, the greatest leaders are often people who had to overcome self doubt and give themselves permission to be successful. For instance, one of the greatest leaders in the bible was also one that doubted himself. This was Moses.

Looking at Moses’ life, we understand that he was the one who would lead the people of Israel out of the oppressing hand of the Egyptians, who enslaved Israel for over 400 years. Moreover, before he would become this great leader, he had to overcome insecurities within himself. At this particular moment in Exodus chapter 3, Moses had already fled from Egypt to Median out of fear for his life since he killed an Egyptian who he caught miss treating a Hebrew slave.

Due to the tramma of his now past, he viewed himself as incapable to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt and into the promise land. Due to his past, he did not think the people would accept him as a leader, he lied about not being able to speak eloquently. Moreover, whatever the case was, God did not look at his past to predict his future. He saw himself as a failure, when God saw him as a leader of his people.

Moreover, in chapter 3, we see God encounter moses at the burning bush. This was a place that would change his life and move him from serving as a shepherd in Jethro’s house to a leader of God’s people. The burning bush (Midian) was a place where Moses would not only encounter God, but serve as a “mini wilderness,” and serve as a place where Moses would discover God, and rediscover who he was.”

Message:

As we look at Moses’s story, we see three keys that are critical when overcoming self doubt and giving yourself the permission to become successful. These keys include: 1. Learning to Trust God, 2. Clarifying the Mission, 3. Knowing your support system.

I. Learning to Trust God.

Learning to trust God is the most important thing to do regarding giving yourself permission to succeed.

A. Here are a few bible passages that speak about trusting God.

Proverbs 3:5–6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”

This passage reminds us to submit our plans to God and in exchange finding peace in his plans. Gods plans are prefect. We must remember that God sees the big picture when we only see things in part.

Psalm 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”

When we trust God, we can learn to have peace even in the midst of hard times.

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

As we learn about Moses’ story, we see how Moses had to learn how to trust God. It was here that we learn how he fled to Midian, where Moses would have his own “wilderness experience.” It is here where he learned how to gain peace in trusting God, gain a bigger perspective, and where he learned the purpose for his life, leading to a more meaningful life.

B. Three reasons we must learn to trust God.

When we learn to trust God, it will bring us peace.

The reality is worry is something that is very natural. We naturally can worry about things, but if we worry too much it can be something that causes us to become dis eased. Worry is something that can cause us to become anxious about life, relationships, our finances, and in exchange it impacts our physical, relational, and even mental health.

For Moses, he dealt with a lot of insecurities. He was anxious about how people would receive him. He was not confident in his abilities. This is why God had to continue to assure him that “I Am that I Am.” In essence God was trying to get him to trust in his abilities, and not be so anxious about his insufficiencies.

2. When we learn to trust God, he can give us a better perspective.

A lot of times when God calls us to do something big, we can be so focused on our limited perspective that has been shaped by our past and what we understand to this point. However, when God looks at us, he sees us from an eternal perspective. When he sees us, he looks at what he has purposed for us and why he put us on this earth at this particular moment in time.

For Moses, God speaks to him at this moment in time because he heard the Israelites cry for over 400,000 years.

3. When we learn to trust God, we learn to trust God’s bigger purpose.

Purpose is something that brings meaning in life.

Dr. Myles Munroe once said “The greatest tragedy in life is not death, but life without purpose.”

For Moses we could get a glimpse of his purpose by his name, because his name meant to “draw out” since he was drawn out of the water. Similarly, he was to draw the Israelites out of Egypt.

Just as God had a purpose for Moses, he has a purpose for your life. And it is important that we learn how to trust God in discovering our purpose. In other words, our “why.”

II. IN order to overcome self-doubt, we must clarify our mission.

As we read Exodus chapter 3, God was specific on what he wanted Moses to do. His mission was simple, it was to bring the people out of the oppressing hand of Egypt.

By doing this, God paints the picture of a clear vision. A vision where his people are no longer under the oppressing hand of the Egyptians, but living in a land he promised Abraham. A land flowing with milk and honey.

A. Three things clarifying our mission will do regarding overcoming self doubt:

When we clarify our mission, this allows us to enhance our focus.

This is done by providing a clear direction, causing us to concentrate on what truly matters and reduce s distractions.

It will boost your self confidence.

When we clearly define our mission, we caan gain confidence by aligning our purpose with our actions and core values. This helps us contradict feelings of uncertainty.

It increases our motivation.

When we know our mission, it can energize us and serve as a motivational anchor, helping us push through challenges and self-doubt by reminding us of our ultimate goals.

B. For moses, he didn’t struggle with the “What” it was the “How.”

As we read Exodus chapters 3 - 4 we see God show Moses the “What” but Moses struggled with How.

He was worried about how he was going to approach Pharaoh.

He was worried about if the people would accept his leadership.

He was worried about what he would say to the people.

There was a laundry list of Moses being worried about how things were going to be done. But every time Moses asked God about the “How,” the answer wasn’t so much what Moses would do, but what God will do in and through him.

Conclusion

III. Understand who is with you and what is in your hand.

A. Who is with you.

Defining who is with you is essential to harnessing the power within you.

When you define who is with you and a part of your support system, there are three things your support team will do for you:

It will boost self confidence and reduce self-doubt.

A supportive team helps affirm your abilities and provides encouragement when you face challenges and doubt yourself.

They provide constructive feedback and shared wisdom from trusted individuals, helping you make decisions with clarity and assurance.

A healthy support system provides accountability and motivation.

A healthy support system enhances problem solving and clarity.

Collaboration brings fresh perspectives and innovative ideas you may not have considered your own.

A healthy support system allows you to soar with your strengths, and manage your weaknesses.

Soaring with your strengths will help you maximize potential and productivity.

Soaring with your strengths builds confidence

It promotes collaboration.

As we read the story, God constantly assures Moses that he will be with him.

When it comes to overcoming self-doubt, we must understand this. GOD IS WITH US. Moreover God is not only with us, HE IS IN US!!

In reality, when we fully understand that God is with us, we should also understand that no-one can stand against us.

Romans 8:31–32 “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?”

1 John 4:4 “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”

Although God assured Moses that he was with him, Moses needed further assurance to who was on his team. That is where Aaron comes in.

Although the greater one is with us, when it comes to overcoming self-doubt and harnessing the power within, we must understand who is on our team.

As we read Moses’ story in Exodus, we see Moses really provide excuses to his inability to speak. Therefore, the reason to why God mentions Aaron. However, if we are going to harness the power within us to overcome self-doubt, it is healthy to recognize our strengths and weaknesses.

This is where understaning our team comes in play. When we know our strengths, we can soar in those areas, but in our weaknesses that is when we can delegate and allow others to speak for us.

This was Aarons role. He was one who could go between Moses and Pharaoh, or Moses and the people.

Aaron would be one who would be one of the first priests.

B. What is in your hand?

Often times the thing God will use for your breakthrough, and cause you to harness the power within, is the thing that is within your hand.

What does this mean? This means God will use the resources that you have access to.

For the woman with the jar of oil, her resources was the oil in her house. It was when she followed the instructions provided by Elijah that activated the power within, causing her not only to pay off her debt, but to live off of the rest.

For Moses, the thing that was within his hand was a staff. This represented his power and authority as a shephard. Moreover, he at the time did not understand its power. He just saw it as a staff, but when it was put in God’s hands, God used the staff to do miracles, signs and wonders.

God will often use the resouorses that you have access to. Although you might not see its potential, when we put it in the hands of God, he can do amazing things with it.

When we put what is in our hands in Gods hands, this will shift our perspective and overcome self-doubt and what seems to be an obstacle in our lives. For Moses it was his staff, For the woman who had to doeal withe creditors in Elijah’s story, the resorces she had was a jar of oil.

What is in your hand? God will use what is in your hand.

Finally, it is when we learn how to trust God, clarify our mission, and understand who is with us and what is in our hand, that is when we can learn how to harness the power within and overcome self-doubt.