In chapter 2 of the Book of Exodus, we hear how Moses, enraged by the injustice around him, murdered an Egyptian for beating a Hebrew. He flees to Midian. There he is given the tedious task of tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro. This week's text gives us insight into how God works in Moses' life while he is slaving away for his
father-in-law.
Moses, with all his troubles, comes to a holy place on the far side of the desert, Horeb, the mountain of God. Perhaps Moses was hoping for some encounter with God after all he had been through. Perhaps Moses had no idea that he would find God by crossing the desert. Maybe he was intentionally seeking God or wanting to escape God – we don't know. But,
we read, Moses did encounter God in the most peculiar and unexpected way: in a burning bush that wasn't burning!
This time of Lent invites us to make a journey across the desert to our holy place. Our journey might look and feel different to Moses' one. That doesn't matter. The important thing is that we choose to make the Lenten journey well. This might be through our intentional prayer, generosity to others, fasting or doing something else, which indicates our
journey.
In the symbol of the burning bush, Moses discovers that God's fire of love is boundless. Even though he has murdered someone, God still invites him to do something great: to lead the people of Israel from bondage to the freedom of the promised land. He discovers God's fiery love and desire for him, God's confidence in him, something he had probably
lost touch with (or given up!) because of his sin. It is quite remarkable how God uses the ordinariness of a burning bush to attract Moses, reassure him and give him a new task.
Despite what he may have thought, Moses is not determined by his past. God is a God of the future.
We are invited in this time of Lent to hear the God of Moses reminding us of the fire of love that burns for each of us. Of the confidence that God has in us and the fact that God calls each of us to help others and our world to move from bondage to freedom through our words and actions. We, like Moses, are not determined by our
past.
Take time today to become aware of God's fiery love for you. You might want to reflect on what you might hold against yourself, from your past, that God invites you to let go of this Lent.
