Meanwhile, Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro,[a] the priest of Midian. He led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb,[b] the mountain of God. Then the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire within a bush. As Moses looked, he saw that the bush was on fire but was not consumed. So Moses thought, “I must go over and look at this remarkable sight. Why isn’t the bush burning up?” When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called out to him from the bush, “Moses, Moses!” “Here I am,” he answered.

 Exodus 3:1-4 CSB

God is doing remarkable things in our communities, our lives, our towns, our world, our neighbors, and our families every day. He is at work in powerful and transformational ways all the time. The trouble is, though, that I am often letting my life go so fast that I don’t even see those things and ways; and then (because of the speed of life) may not even stop and look more closely. There’s significance in the statement “when the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called out to him…” Will I step aside from the busyness and the distractions, set aside the screens and other hindrances, and look at what God is doing? What God is doing is a “remarkable sight”! Will I slow down enough to see?

After the pleasantries of “Hi! How are you? I’m fine, how are you?”, I can’t tell you how many times my conversations with people continue with “Busy!” It’s like we wear this phrase (and its accompanying lifestyle) as a badge of honor, a status of our importance (to at least ourselves), and a symbol of fulfilling the American spirit.  Why? Why do we answer “busy!” like it’s a positive quality? In our busyness, we often lose sight of what’s truly vital, and then often miss the remarkable work of God that is framing every aspect of life around us. And when we miss it, we miss Him. We miss what He wants to say to us, do in us, and accomplish through us. All because we won’t stop. Hit pause. Be quiet. Take a breather. Relax. God shapes us in profound and meaningful ways when we pause and look at Him. 

Just because our society values speed, busyness, and packed schedules, let us value something different. Stopping. Seeing. TRULY seeing. Truly seeing Him. And then listening to what God will say when I look at His remarkable actions in my incredible world. How – when – will you hit pause this week so you can see God and what He wants to say?

“I’m walking through a garden of a thousand burning bushes, looking up to heaven for a sign.”

Andy Gullahorn, Burning Bushes