MOSES: TURNING ASIDE
As many of you know, Mary and I run a Christian retreat facility in our home which we have called “Mishkan”. Mishkan is the word used in the Bible to refer to the Tabernacle, but it also means “residence” or “dwelling,” as well as a structure intended for hosting others. The whole concept of what we do at Mishkan is to host the presence of the Lord, and to provide a space for those who come to turn aside from the daily schedule of life and seek after Him.
Turning aside from the daily round of life is much more difficult these days in our fast-paced and consumeristic society, but it is essential if we desire to hear the Lord’s “still small voice” and His direction for our lives. Consider Moses:
Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” 4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” (Exodus 3:1 – 5)
Notice that it was only after Moses turned aside to see the strange sight of a bush not being consumed by fire, that God spoke to Moses. It is often the same for us. God uses things in the natural world to catch our attention. Maybe a chance conversation, a sequence of events, a comment in a sermon, a dream, a Bible verse….. God uses so many ways to get our attention, to be receptive to His voice above all the hubbub of life, but due to our busyness, we often fail to spend quality time with our Heavenly Father. However, when we do acknowledge His presence and invest our time with Him, it is holy ground – a special, separated space where we stand before an awesome Almighty Father who delights in revealing and undertaking amazing things in our lives.
Following a discourse with Moses, God equips Moses to become the leader of Israel:
2 Then the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” “A staff,” he replied. 3 The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.” Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it. 4 Then the Lord said to him, “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail.” So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a staff in his hand. (Exodus 4:2 – 4)
Moses’ staff represents the stuff of life – he used the staff as part of his equipment in leading the sheep that Jethro owned. Whilst it remained in Moses’ hand it was just a staff, but when the staff was cast down into the holy space where God met with Moses, the staff sprang to life.
It is the same for us; when we turn aside and offer to God all that we have, and invite Him to invest in our abilities, intellect, money, what we own……., He brings it to life in the way of His choosing, and for the outworking of His purposes through us.
So today, will we make time to turn aside and listen for God’s word in our situations, and if so, will we lay all at His feet so that He can invest His purposes in our lives for the extension of His kingdom?
