Reflection: A Wasted Life?

By T. Thomas Ebenezer

“Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.” (Exodus 3:1, KJV)

In Exodus chapter 3, we encounter an individual whose life, up until that point, may be considered to be a wasted one. At around 80 years old (Ex. 7:7), his present status will evoke pity even from those who are meeting him for the first time and know nothing of his past life. 

At this point in his life, Moses' primary responsibility was to care for his father-in-law's sheep. Despite being married for around forty years, he had failed to accumulate any personal wealth, which marks him as an incompetent individual. He was likely an embarrassment to his wife Zipporah, and their children, Gershom, and Eliezer. This is in stark contrast to one of his forefathers, Jacob, who was able to amass great wealth in a much shorter time frame while doing the same job, even exceeding the riches of his own father-in-law, Laban (Genesis 30:25-43). Moses seems to be past his prime and, in modern terms, "underemployed." Clearly, a wasted life.

However, the more we learn about him and his past, the more we might lament, 'What a wasted life!' Moses was born into the most adverse circumstances, marked for extermination as a baby, but through a fortunate turn of events, he was raised as royalty, as the son of Pharaoh's daughter. In the first 40 years of his life, he learned the skills expected of royalty. Though it was unlikely he was a contender for the position of Pharaoh, he was undoubtedly on track for a prominent role in Egyptian society. However, in a moment of presumptuous hot-headedness, he committed murder, and this changed his life forever. Now he was occupied in a job that he was least prepared to handle.  For the Egyptians, the role of a shepherd was abhorrent (Ex. 46:34), and as someone raised in this paradigm, his present occupation would have been repugnant to him at first. This great loss in stature perhaps explains his extraordinary humility later in life (Num 12:3). 

Here, we have ample opportunities to examine an 80-year-old Moses and draw moral lessons for our own lives. Look at where hot-headedness can lead you, we might say.A person who once held tremendous potential is now employed in a humble occuptation he is clearly ill-suited for. What a wasted life!

Fortunately, the story does not end here, and our moralizing may appear myopic. Something happened that would change not only an observer's perspective on Moses's wasted life but the course of history itself. At Horeb, Moses had an encounter with the living God, and we suddenly see that his life was far from wasted. Rather, it was a painful but divinely ordained act of God to prepare him for a specific mission that required a unique combination of skills that would have been difficult to acquire otherwise.

To lead His people out of Egypt, God required someone who could blend two distinct skills: that of an administrator and a shepherd. The former skill was best acquired in the schools of Egypt, while the latter was best honed in the pastures of Midian. Only through a unique and painful experience could both of these skills be mastered and a leader for the children of Israel could be moulded.

Many times we are compelled to assess our own lives and lament, 'What a wasted life!' So often we change course, invest much effort and time, and then abandon it for greener pastures. 'If only I had started tending sheep at a young age,' Moses may have thought to himself, 'I could have had a flock of my own by now.' Some of these disruptions may indeed result from our own foolishness. However, this need not trouble us unduly. After all, it was Moses's own foolishness that compelled him to relinquish a cushy government job. 

Let us take heart from the fact that God can use even our foolishness, accidents, and mistakes that appear to lead to a wasted life, to craft a unique life, designed for His glory. Have you considered this possibility in your own life? If so, rejoice, and submit yourself to His will! Or do you still consider that yours is a wasted life?