When Moses was in Egypt during the first forty years of his life, he was young and powerful. He grew up as the son of the Pharaoh's daughter. He tried to do the right thing in helping his Hebrew brethren, but he failed miserably. When he saw an Egyptian mistreating his Hebrew kinsmen, he killed him and hid him in the sand. However, his actions only brought more sufferings to his people. He fled to the Midianite desert. There he learned to work in the power of God's Spirit.
   

After his encounter with God on the mountain, he would never be the same. He went back to Egypt and was God's instrument to bring freedom to his people. But he didn't return in the power of his own strength. He came back to Egypt in the authority and might of God's Spirit. It was only then that he became a useful instrument in the hands of a mighty God. It was only when he had learned to work in the power of God's Spirit, that he was enabled to be all that God wanted him to be.

When I first became a Christian I had the opportunity to hear Dr. Billy Graham. I had heard that he was being used as God's man for this generation. I traveled to Houston, Texas, to listen to Dr. Graham speak in the huge indoor stadium, the Astrodome. As I listened to him speak, I must admit, I thought to myself, "What's so special about this guy? He's a decent speaker, but he's not that great." I had been trained in public oratory, and I didn't see anything special about Dr. Graham.

When he came to the invitation for people to come to Christ, I remember praying, "Oh, God, help him not to feel too bad if no one comes forward to accept Christ." Was I ever surprised! Thousands of people went to the front of the platform to pray with Dr. Graham. I'm ashamed to admit what I thought next. I thought if thousands of people were coming to Christ through a somewhat better than average speaker, then the whole world would turn to Christ when they heard me speak!

I was in for a second great surprise! Not long after that I had the opportunity to preach an evangelistic meeting myself. I used all of the oratory skills that I could possibly muster. I had an intriguing introduction, a solid body of thoughts, and a very dramatic conclusion. I used all of the right voice inflections and made gestures at the right moment. When I gave the invitation, do you know what happened? Nothing!

You see, there was something that I didn't know that Dr. Graham knew. The work of God must be done in the power of the Holy Spirit and not the power of the human flesh. It's not our abilities, but His abilities that will get the job done. Our responsibility is to be available to Him. He will use us if are available. Just as Moses had to learn that the work of God had to be done in the power of the Holy Spirit, I, too, had to learn this great lesson.

Many of us want to work for God. If we are to be effective in the kingdom of God, then we must learn to work in the power of the Spirit of God. Our walk in the Spirit enables us to live victoriously. Our work in the Spirit enables us to accomplish His will. The end result is joy in seeing His will accomplished through our works and His enablement. What God said to the prophet of old is still true today - it's "not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit" (Zechariah 4:6).