Encouragement for a lifelong journey of faith

October 20, 2020 — Sheep

Today’s Bible reading

Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” – Exodus 3:1-5

More thoughts for meditation

“Reverence requires a certain pace… The bush required Moses to take a time-out, at least if he wanted to do more than glance at it. He could have done that. He could have seen the flash of red out of the corner of his eye, said, ‘Oh, how pretty,’ and kept right on driving the sheep. He did not know that it was an angel in the bush, after all. Only the storyteller knew that. Moses could have decided that he would come back tomorrow to see if the bush was still burning, when he had a little more time, only he would not have been Moses. He would just have been a guy who got away with murder, without ever discovering what else his life might have been about. What made him Moses was his willingness to turn aside. Wherever else he was supposed to be going and whatever else he was supposed to be doing, he decided it could wait a minute. He parked the sheep and the left the narrow path in order to take a closer look at a marvelous sight. When he did, the storyteller says, God noticed.”  — Barbara Brown Taylor, An Altar in the World

Suggestions for action

Take a few minutes to walk outside, if you’re able, or open a door or window. What do you sense (see, hear, touch, taste, smell) that suggests the presence and power of God? 

Collect one small object before you return inside or choose an inside item before you close your door/window. Add this object to the altar you began yesterday, or begin creating your altar if this is your first object. As you move through your day, pause to look at your altar to remember God’s power and presence.

1 Comment

  1. Anita Brown

    I was given a Mother Mary statue pulled from the trash heap by a high school classmate who came for a few meditation and healing sessions. She said my Mother energy required me to have it. How poignant!! Mary the Mother of God in the trash

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