Exodus 3:1-5
Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And he led the flock to the back of the desert, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.” So when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then He said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.”
I would venture to say, a little over a year ago, most of us believed our sanctuaries held an anointing and power all its own. I sure did. It seemed to me there was something tremendously special and reverent glowing within the walls of the auditorium. It reminded me of fire. Like the fire Moses saw at Horeb. We wanted to be there. We wanted to see the move of God. And what better place than in our church sanctuaries?
Well, by now I think we all have discovered that we can’t wait until we get back in a church building to celebrate Jesus. We can’t depend on the choir and praise team to get us going. There’s got to be a praise in our hearts and worship in our souls that transcends our usual corporate expression. We have to find a way to the fire on our own.
The story of the call of Moses to ministry is instructional in a variety of ways. First of all, Moses wasn’t seeking to become this great leader or deliverer of his people. Moses was just interested in being in the presence of God. He wasn’t even sure what that presence looked like, but he instinctively knew something special was going on. Though it wasn’t normal, natural or something he was accustomed to, he still felt the urge to pursue it none the less. That willingness to pursue something new gained him a significant blessing.
May I digress for a few seconds? This story lets us know God can (and does) move anywhere and everywhere he desires. There’s no limiting his power or directing his actions to a specific place, time, space or individual. Though we might feel ever so comfortable in our traditional settings, never, ever think God is in any way confined to our limited imaginations or rehearsed liturgies. It appears to me God works better outside the auspices of organized religion. I’m just saying!
Okay, I’m back. The second thing I found instructional in this story is the posture of reverence God required from Moses, even in a wilderness setting. You might imagine that protocols and codes of conduct would be curtailed because God was in an unfamiliar place, but not so. God still demanded everything he always demands: humility, obedience and trust. No matter how curious Moses was to discover what God had in store, he would never have received the blessing unless he was willing to make a significant change. I know he was outside. I know it wasn’t normal. There may have been potential hazards and harmful things on the ground. He undoubtedly felt awkward, unprotected and possibly silly. But if he was going to confer with God, he had to bow, obey, believe and surrender. In other words, trust God, even in unfamiliar territory.
Dear People of God, though we have no idea what the near future holds, we are making every effort to ensure we can safely return to our churches. We have scheduled sanitation and cleaning services, blocked off seating to provide social distancing, created online registration to count attendees, and everything else that comes to mind. We believe we have a fairly good plan to have folk returning. But no matter how much we do, all is lost if the Holy Spirit is not there, and in control. If you can come, great. If you can’t come, that’s okay also. I pray we’ve learned, it’s not the location, but the Spirit that makes the difference. Whether in the church, at home, on the road, or in the wilderness, wherever God is, is holy ground.
God Bless
