Kerry Shook - Embrace The Place
Are you at a place in some area of your life that you don't wanna be? Maybe it's a place of pain that you're just ready to be out of it. Maybe it's a place that you're stuck in that's filled with the problem that you're ready to be done with. Maybe it's a place of confusion and conflict or a place of despair and depression or a place of anxiety and fear. Or maybe you find yourself today in a place you never expected to be. I mean, you would never wish this on anyone and you're at a place that you never thought you'd ever be at in life, and it's a place so painful that nothing seems to make sense, and you can't see a way out. Or you're in a place of pain in some area of your life that you're just ready to be out of.
I call it the place of in between. It's in between where you used to be and where you wanna be, and much of life is lived in the in between. We hate the place of, in between. I don't know about you, but I hate the place of in between because it's a place of uncertainty. We're uncertain about how long we'll be in that place. We feel uncertain as to whether we'll ever get out of that place. But today, I want you to see that the place of in between is where God gives us his greatest blessings, and teaches us his greatest lessons. The place of uncertainty is where we learn that God is faithful. It's in the place that feels so bad where we learn that God is good. It's in the place of in between that we discover God's greatest miracles in our lives.
Whatever place you find yourself at today, you're in the very place where you can experience God's greatest blessings. So how do you embrace the place of in between? Because you can hate the place and still embrace the place. I mean, you can hate the place where you're at right now and you can not understand why and it feels so painful, but you can still embrace the place. God, I hate this place you've got me in, I don't get it, but I know you're good and you got a purpose and I'm watching for your blessing. Because if you don't embrace the place of in between, you'll race right past the place, and you'll miss the miracle God wants to give you. You'll miss the powerful lesson God wants to teach you.
So today we're gonna look at how to embrace the place. And we're looking at Moses in the Old Testament. Moses was supposed to be the great deliverer to deliver the people out of slavery in Egypt. But he fails miserably. He makes a mess of it and he ends up in the desert and that was Moses place of in between. He finds himself in the desert for years tending sheep, the lowest job there was in that day. But God shows up in his place of in between and he meets him through a burning bush and it just changes everything in Moses life. And I believe with all my heart, God wants to show up right now in your place of in between and he wants you to embrace the place so you can experience him today. God wants to show up for you today right in the middle of your pain, in the middle of your uncertainty, and give you his miracle.
So today we're gonna look at how to embrace the place so we don't miss the miracle. So would you stand in honor of God's Word, Exodus 3, 3 through 5. After God catches Moses attention with this burning bush as Moses just doing his normal thing, tending sheep, boring job, this lowly job, God gets his attention. So he thought, why isn't this bush burning up I must go over there and see this strange sight, "When the Lord saw that Moses had come over to see it, God called to him from the bush, 'Moses, Moses!' And Moses answered, 'Here I am!' God said, 'Don't come any closer! Take off your sandals because this place where you are standing is holy ground.'" You can be seated.
So God meets Moses in his place of in between. And he says, Moses, I want you to know the place of in between is holy ground because I'm here. He says Moses, right where you're standing, it is holy ground. Have you ever been to a place that's considered sacred ground? Chris and I have been to Mount Moriah in Jerusalem. That's the temple mount. It's considered sacred by the Jews because it's the place where the temple once stood. It's sacred ground. And of course, it's also a sacred ground to Muslims because the dome of the rock shrine and Al Aqsa Mosque is on Mount Moriah there.
Now, Moses didn't realize that he was on holy ground at first. He thought he was on godforsaken ground, that God had totally forgotten him. He thought as he looked around the desert, he was on desolate ground. He used to live in the palace and now he's living in the desert. He thought it was hopeless ground, but God shows up and turns that ground from hopeless ground to holy ground. And he says Moses, the place of in between is holy ground because I'm here. God speaks a few words and turns that place of hopeless ground into holy ground.
And I want you to know today, you may feel like your feet are standing on shaky ground. Maybe you feel like you're on uncertain ground, not knowing what's gonna happen next. Maybe you feel like you're standing on anxious ground, or fearful ground, or maybe you feel like you're standing on lonely ground, and you just feel all alone in your pain, or maybe you feel like you're on hopeless ground. I want you to know God shows up right now in your place of in between, and he says, you're not standing on hopeless ground. You're standing on holy ground. God says, because I'm here in your place of in between. And I turn it from desolate ground to divine ground.
You need to realize the place you're standing right now, that may be really painful. That place that you hate is really holy ground because God is there. And he can take any ground you're standing on and turn it into holy ground. God shows up greatest in the place of in between. God works his greatest miracles in the place of in between. That's why you can't look past it. You got to embrace the place so you won't miss the miracle. So how do you embrace the place? Because you don't wanna waste the place, you don't wanna waste the pain. You know, in the last lines of the Gettysburg Address that defined our nation.
Lincoln said these words, "We here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, that this nation under God shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government by the people for the people shall not perish from the earth". What was he saying? He was saying, we're not gonna let those who have died die in vain. He would say we're not gonna let the pain be in vain. And the reason why we have to embrace the place of in between is because you don't wanna go through the pain in vain. You embrace the place so you don't waste the place.
So many times I've wasted that place instead of getting better, instead of receiving the miracle God had for me, I'm looking ahead going, when am I gonna get out of this place? I hate this place. And I haven't embraced the place. And if we don't embrace the place instead of getting better and growing in the Lord, we get bitter and we move away from the Lord. And God says, I want you to learn what I have for you in this place, because it's a place that's holy. It may not feel holy, it may feel like hard ground, but trust me, it's holy ground.
See, hard isn't the opposite of good. You know, we've believed a lie all of our lives and especially, I think Christ followers, we tend to fall into this line and believe it. That if I'm going through something really hard, it must not be in God's will. If I'm going through something really hard, it's definitely not good. But heart is not the opposite of good. It may be painful but it's purposeful. I mean, you can hate that place and it's ok. I hate it when I'm in the place of in between. And I tell God that, but then God turns me to, I hate this place God. I don't like where I'm at. Makes no sense. It's painful, but I know you're good.
And so I don't wanna waste this pain. I don't wanna waste this place. I'm watching for your miracle because you turned this hellish ground into holy ground. And so I'm looking to you, I don't wanna miss the lesson you're trying to teach me. I don't wanna miss the miracle you're trying to give me. I don't wanna miss the blessing that's coming my way. You see, it may be painful but it's purposeful. God has a purpose and God has a plan. So how do I embrace the place? Well, I want us to look again at Exodus chapter 4. In Exodus 4, verse 2, it says, "So the Lord asked him, 'What are you holding?' 'A walking stick,' he answered. And the Lord said, 'Throw it on the ground.' When Moses threw it down, it turned into a snake, and he ran away from it".
And so God asked Moses, hey, what's that you're holding on to? And God knew what it was, but he wanted Moses to answer. And Moses said, oh, this? This is just a walking stick, God. I mean, I found it in the desert several years ago. I've been whittling on it ever since and I'm kind of proud of it, because I whittle it into a shepherd's staff and it just helps me in my work each and every day, but it's no big deal, God. And God says, well, if it's no big deal, then throw it on the ground, surrender it. Give it to me.
See, I think that Shepherd's staff was one of Moses last possessions because he had lost everything. He was no longer in the palace. He was in the desert in the wilderness, tending sheep, doing this lowly job. But at least he had his staff and just maybe it represented to him the last part of his dignity. I don't believe he wanted to give it up at first. You see, I believe God was saying to him, Moses, I want you to surrender everything you've got to me because I love you. And I want you to learn to trust me with everything in your life. The most important things to the least important things.
I want you to surrender everything to me. I want you to give everything to me because it's only when you surrender everything to me that you can experience my power and my peace and my provision in your life. So the first thing you have to do in that place of uncertainty is you got to learn to let go. It's one of the hardest things that we ever do. But it's one of the most blessed things that we do. You embrace the place by surrendering to God's power, because the only way to experience joy in the in between is when you come to the place of surrender and you give up and you give everything to the Lord and you say God it yours.
I can't do this anymore. I can't control this anymore. I can't worry about this anymore. You see God looked right into Moses heart and he said, what are you holding onto too tightly? Because God saw Moses heart and God looks right into your heart and he asks you, what are you holding on to too tightly? And God looks right into my heart, and he asked me, what are you holding on to too tightly? And he knows, he already knows. He just wants me to recognize it. And I said, oh, this? It's no big deal God. We then throw it down.
You see when you surrender everything to God, he provides exactly what you need. The Lord will provide. So I have to learn to let go in the place of in between. So Moses surrenders his staff and it turns into a snake. Then God says, pick it up and Moses runs away in fear. But God gives him some courage and give Moses credit. He comes back and in this next passage, Exodus 4:4, it says, "So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned to his staff into his hand". He obeyed God and he took hold, and he was afraid, he didn't want to do it. I mean, you don't pick up a snake, especially by the tail, but he did it.
You see he obeyed God, he took hold. First, God says, let go, surrender. And then God says, now take hold. And he obeyed God and he took hold of the snake, and it turned back into a staff. So you surrender everything to God and you let go, then you take hold of all that God has for you. When Moses picked up that snake and it turned into a staff, it was no longer an ordinary walking stick. God changed it. It was now that staff that the Almighty God used. It was the staff of Almighty God, the same staff that Moses would later use to touch the Nile River and it would turn to blood. The same staff that Moses would later raise up over the Red Sea and it would split in two and the Israelites walked over on dry ground. The same staff that Moses would raise up over the enemies of God, and they would be defeated and Israel would be victorious.
You see, it was no longer an ordinary shepherd's staff. It was now the staff of Almighty God. And that's what God does when we surrender something to him. If it's a house, he starts using it for his purpose, it becomes God's house. He used it for his glory and his purpose. And that's what he did with Moses, that ordinary walking stick became the great staff of Almighty God. You see God says, let go. God wants us to let go and give it to him, because when you give something over to God, he either gives it back to you with a whole new purpose, a whole new meaning, a whole new joy, or he gives you something better, and we have to trust him with it.
Sometimes we don't see that it's better, sometimes it feels painful, but God has a purpose. He always has a plan. He's a good God that we can trust and we can surrender our lives to him. And once we surrender to him, then we're to take hold of all that God has for us. And I believe with all my heart, it's time to take hold. For some of you, it's time to take hold. It's time to surrender and let go. But it's also time to take hold. You let go of everything that's holding you back so you can take hold of all that God has for you.
You see, you can't take hold of all that God has for you, when you're holding on too tightly to things that don't matter. Or when you're holding on too tightly to things you deeply care about. When you give it over to God, the burden is lifted, he fills you with a new love and a new care. And it's time for some of you to take hold of God's promises to stop living in fear and to live in faith. It's time for some of you to take hold of God's blessings that he has for you. He's waiting for you to take hold of them, but you can't take hold of them when you're holding on to everything else. You gotta let go, so you can take hold of God's promises.
You take hold of God's blessings, you take hold of his grace and you breathe and live in his grace, in his peace, in his purpose. It's time to take hold Woodlands Church, of all that God has for us. And we're gonna take hold of all that God wants to give us so that we step out in faith to do all that God has for us, because where God guides, God provides. And we need God's love to take over this world today desperately. That's what the world needs is Jesus Christ. Woodland Church, we're gonna take hold of all that God has given us and step in faith into it, and where God guides, God provides. We're gonna surrender it all to him, and we're gonna take all that he has for us.
Now, Moses was supposed to be the great deliverer, but he ended up in the desert, in that place of in between. He was there in the desert for years tending sheep, this terrible job just thinking that God had forgotten him, and that God was a million miles away and can never use him again. But God meets him right there in the place of in between, through a burning bush. And I believe God wants to meet you right where you are today. He wants to give you a burning bush experience and he does that in the place of in between because he gets our attention there. When you're going through pain, it makes you look for help and it turns you to God.
God wants to give you a burning bush experience where you're never the same again. God wants to meet you right in your place of in between. But you have to realize in the desert that God is there. You see, you have to realize in the desert, Moses didn't know he was in the place of, in between. He thought he was in the place of it's all over. He thought he was in the place of no hope. He thought God had forgotten about him. It's like God's forgotten me. God's never gonna use me again. God's a million miles away, but he wasn't in the place of no hope. Moses wasn't in the place of it's all over. He was just in the place of in between just where God wanted him to be. Because in the place of in between is where God gets our attention, so we'll turn to him.
And maybe today you feel like you're in a place of it's all over that God has forgotten you that God will never use you again, that you've ruined the plan that God have had for you. That you fell so miserably, you're in the desert, and God has nothing else for you. You feel like you're in the place of no hope. I want you to know, you're not in the place of no hope. You're not in the place of, it's all over. You're just in the place of, in between. You've got to realize that. It's not the place if it's finished, it's in the place of in between, and God's gonna bring you through it. That's why we need to embrace the place. That's why you need to embrace the place you're in, because if you don't embrace the place, you're gonna miss God.
And most of life is lived in the, in between and the tensions of life. We miss the miracle in the moment because we're always thinking, if I could just get out of this place, if I can just get out of this awful place, everything's gonna be great. If I can just get through this season, then everything will be smooth sailing. And we miss our burning bush experience. We miss God's miracle. We miss the work God wants to do in our lives. I want you to look again at Exodus. Exodus 3:5, because here we see that Moses starts to come close to the burning bush. And God says, "'Do not come any closer,' God said. 'Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.'"
God says to you today, embrace the place I have for you because you're on holy ground. But you're saying it looks like uncertain ground to me. This is the most painful, most hurtful ground I've ever been on. But God says this hurtful ground is holy ground. You know the word holy means set apart. And God says, I'm gonna take this ground you're on, I'm gonna set it apart and I'm gonna set you apart for a new place, a new purpose that's coming. I'm positioning you for a new purpose.
You see right now, you're at the right place at the right time for God to do something great in your life. God says, it may be the most painful place you've ever been, but you need to realize you're in a sacred place. It's a place of miracles. It's a place of life change. It's the place where you can experience my power and my presence the most God says. And God says, Moses, I want you to take off your shoes and stay a while. I know you wanna run past this place. I know you never wanted to be in this place. Stop trying to race past this place and stay a while. Take a deep breath and embrace the place because you're in a place of healing.
I say to you today, take off your shoes and stay a while because you're in a place of grace. You're in a place that is holy ground. I don't know what place it is, but I know God's gonna meet you right there and he says, take off your shoes, don't race past the place. Embrace the place and let God bring healing in your life. God wants to heal your deepest wounds and truly make you into the man or the woman that he created you to be.
So today don't run past the place of healing. Some of you just need a day just to take a deep breath. Okay God, I give it up to you. I'm ready to take hold of all that you have from me. I'll take off my shoes and stay a while and I'll just let you do what you wanna do, because I've tried to keep my running shoes on and I keep hitting a brick wall, so I'm gonna stay a while. Don't run past the place of healing. Let God show you the places in your life where you need healing, where you need restoration.
Embrace the opportunity that the pain in your life is giving you right now. The opportunity to sit with God, to not run from the pain and anesthetize the pain, but let it push you toward God who loves you and wants to restore your soul. But Moses still acts like he's in this place of it's all over because he makes these excuses to God. Moses tells God you got the wrong guy. God, remember I tried to be the deliverer and I failed miserably. I'm not cut out for the job. I don't have what it takes. I'll never be enough. So no, God, you pick someone else.
And one of the excuses Moses makes is God, the Egyptians aren't gonna listen to me. And not even my people the Israelites listen to me. If I go back to the Israelites and tell them I'm supposed to be their leader, their deliverer, they're gonna say who appointed you, who sent you? Then Moses said, and by the way, if I do go, who should I say sent me? What's your name anyway? And here's what God says in Exodus 3:14, "God said to Moses, 'I AM WHO I AM. This is what you're to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.'"
God says: you wanna know my name, the name I like to go by. My name is I Am, I Am. He was saying Moses, I Am the God of the present place. I am the God of the present tense. So Moses, you can stop regretting your past because my name is not, I was, my name is I am. And Moses, you can stop fearing the future because my name is not I will be, my name is I Am. I'm the God of the present tense, and I'll give you the power and the present tension that you're in right now. I am the God of today. I'm the God of the here and now, and I wanna meet you here and now in this moment, in this place. I Am the great, I Am the gray, I am wants to meet you here and now in this moment, right where you are.
And I'm so glad God is the God of the now. I don't need him five years ago, I need him now desperately. And the amazing thing is He says my name is I Am, but that's just my first name so you can add the last name. I am whatever you need now.