Burning Bushes

What do we have in common with Moses? (Exodus 3: 1-15)

This week it dawned on me that I have had several burning bush experiences in my life thus far.

This may sound bombastic, but I believe we have all had burning bush experiences and if we don’t own them, what is that saying about God…about ourselves, and about our ability to make a difference today?

I remember Ryan, Steven, Julie, Angela and so many other students in my grade 5 and 6 classes at school. I longed for each one to be able to shine in their own way. To love learning, to feel a sense of agency, and to find their unique way to express their learning. This was not happening for many of them and I was yearning for a way to lead them to more joy and freedom in learning. That’s when the Holy Spirit drew my attention to Multiple Intelligences, a way of teaching that honours a wide range of learning modes. (https://www.wtc.ie/images/pdf/Multiple_Intelligence/mi10.pdf )

The story of Moses and the burning bush in the Bible makes it sound so momentous and out of the ordinary that it makes it hard for us to identify with burning bushes and God-encounters. To be clear, God does call individuals and groups to do momentous things…to lead history-changing movements toward a more just and healing society, like Martin Luther King Jr. But that doesn’t mean that God ONLY acts in that way. God acts with and through ordinary people all the time. But at certain times, it’s a “burning bush” moment when there is something outside of us that connects with something inside of us that gets our attention, and, like Moses, we “turn aside to see”.

Interesting that in the Moses story, it is after Moses has stopped and turned aside to see, that God calls
and commissions him. Life has its challenging times, but when God speaks, can we stop and “turn aside to see”?

What have been your burning bushes? What is burning now?

The Peace of Christ be with you.

Rev. Jan