Getting out of a rut

I was thinking about Moses the other day, and his experience with God in the burning bush. I thought there are some principles to be found in that story that will probably help someone who is stuck in a rut. The Bible does not say that Moses was in a rut, but, look at the situation. Moses was the adopted son of the daughter of Pharaoh, raised as royalty, educated and groomed to possibly be the next Pharaoh, ruler of the most powerful nation of the world. He had all the worldly possessions, power, esteem that anyone could want.

And, he knew where his roots were. He was a child of Abraham, a son of the chosen people, specially chosen and loved by the creator God. He was positioned to have all of the divine influence and blessings.

He lost it all when he was 40 years old, and he killed an Egyptian slave master and had to run. He ended up in Midian, married the daughter of a Midianite shepherd, and spent the next 40 years working for his father in law as a shepherd, a bottom of the barrel kind of occupation. No power, no prestige, no esteem, no divine influence, no blessing. 

He must have had some hard times, considering all that he had, all that he lost. After 40 years of this mundane life, he might have felt disappointment and disillusionment. All of that changed with one divine, amazing, miraculous encounter. I think we can learn some principles from his story.

Exodus 3:1-3

 Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, "I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned."

First principle: Stop long enough to investigate.

Moses was busy, at work, going about his business. As far as he knew, this was just another day of shepherding, another day of work. It's significant that God calls people who are busy: Gideon was threshing grain (Judg 6), Samuel was serving in the tabernacle (1 Sam 3), David was caring for sheep (17:20), Elisha was plowing (1 Kings 19:19-21), four of the apostles were managing their fishing business (Mark 1:16-20), and Matthew was collecting taxes (Matt 9:9). This was not Sunday, not a special day of any kind, not a day set aside to hear from God, but, in the midst of his day, he stopped to check out the unusual occurrence.  Although we desperately need to set aside time to be alone with God, to be still and know Him, to quite our minds and ears to hear from Him, often, he comes to us when we don’t expect.

I wonder how many things we miss just because we don’t stop to find out.

Ex 3:4-5

4 When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am."

When God saw that he took notice of the burning bush, and turned aside to see it, and left his business to attend it, then God called to him.

Second principle:  If we want to hear from God, we have to pay attention when He speaks, even if it is not convenient or not what, where, or when we expect.

Moses reply, “Here I am.”

Such a simple response to such a magnificent experience. God called to him out of the bush. Moses seemed to fully accept this, even though it had never happened before.

Third principle: Be open even when your concepts are challenged.

I often hear Christians comment about another person’s experience, saying, that can’t be God, because God doesn’t do things like that. In the past year or so, I often wonder about that statement, because it seems to me that if people in the Bible had that attitude, we wouldn’t have much of a Bible.

I think that if this had not happened to Moses, what would happen if I came in here and said, “Hey, today I was out in my back yard doing some work and I saw a bush with fire coming out of it. I stopped to check it out, and God called out to me from the fire, Jeannette, Jeannette.”  I pretty much think you all would think I was crazy. Think of the crazy things God did, things that had never been done before.

Told Noah to build a huge boat, when it had never even rained before.

Jacobs dream of angels ascending and descending, revealing that God was with him.

Spoke to the prophet Balaam through his donkey.

Told Abraham to kill his son.

Hundreds of examples…….

Moses did not hesitate, did not question whether this was truly God or not, he just said, Here I am.

I want that to be my response.

Ex 3:5-6

5 Then he said, "Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground." 6 And he said, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

Moses had to respond to God’s holiness. God called to him, but then instructed him to stop, to not come quickly or rashly, but to remove his shoes.

Fourth principle: A visitation from God requires a proper response.

When God comes to us, speaks to us, calls us by name, reveals Himself in any way, that visitation requires a response.

If God speaks to me from the word as I spend time with Him, He expects a response from me. Moses was required to acknowledge God’s holiness.

I love to read. Often, as I read the Bible or a book about God, I feel God speaking; He ignites something in my spirit based on what I am reading. Often, I struggle to stop to listen and respond. I am excited, and just want to continue reading, to hear more.

Maybe God doesn’t want to speak to me until I respond to what he has already said. I need to understand the holiness of the ground I am standing on.

When God speaks, that is a holy moment and requires a response.

Then, God reveals himself…I am the God…

We need to hear from God. We need his words. Jesus said, man lives by the word of God…the fresh speaking.

Ex 3:7-12

7 Then the Lord said, "I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, 8 and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 9 And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10  Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt." 11 But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?" 12 He said, "But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain."

Fifth principle: Don’t give up. God doesn’t forget our prayers.

“I have seen.” God has come to answer prayer…not Moses prayer, but the cry of the Israelites in Egypt.

Prayer is not limited in time space.  God is ready to move, ready to come to the aid of His people. He is offering Moses the assignment of a lifetime. Moses had dreamed of being the deliverer of his people, but he had blown that 40 years ago. He had resigned himself to life in the shadows, a fugitive, living as a Midianite, with no connection to his people.

God has appeared in a dramatic, unexpected way and called Moses.

But it all started when Moses took the time to investigate a strange sight.