Originally published Wednesday, 26 February 2014.
Moses had no idea that today would be a different day than the ordinary of yesterday and the years of ordinary before that. But when a fire caught his eye, he goes to look–and finds God. And when we meet God, when something shifts and we find ourselves standing in a different place–when we hear or see or experience something that catches our curiosity and leads us to God–well, we’ve found holy ground.
This weekend, I watched God take something ordinary and make it sacred.
He let a room packed with women be moved together– and let a big room feel small. He let us share an experience together that felt–can I say it?–like holy ground. And in that holy place, God always compels us to act.
In Exodus, Moses approaches the burning bush as God calls to him. And then God has Moses do the most curious thing–stop, stoop, untie his sandals. I wonder why he had to take off his sandals. Perhaps God desired for him to remove his shoes as a sign of vulnerability–removing the protection that shoes provide feet, removing the covering that we provide ourselves. Maybe God wasn’t interested in Moses tracking any of his normal life into his presence. He was interested in making him something new. Because the day Moses decided to investigate that fire was the day everything changed.
If you’ve experienced something new this weekend, if you’ve felt that sense of holy ground for the first time or you’ve sensed that you need to come back home to your Father, then don’t let this moment pass without being obedient to the change. Grip onto it, grip onto grace, that anchor for our soul that makes life make sense. Here’s a few ways to do that:
Read your Bible everyday.
I cannot say this enough. I know it can be intimidating and I know there’s parts you don’t understand (there’s tons of parts I don’t understand!) I know that it can seem boring but I am telling you friend, you MUST get into God’s word if you are going to know His voice. Start in Psalms–they are easy chapters to read. Read the book of John–it’ll help you know Jesus. You can also pick up Praying God’s Word Day by Day by Beth Moore (we sell it at Hope or you can get it anywhere).
Write it down.
If you want to find grace, you’ve got to make a stop at truth. Start with honesty. Get so honest with God that you scare yourself. Whether it’s by talking to Him while you go for a walk or writing it all out, make it real. Don’t drift away when you are in that holy place of truth. Tell him how you are really doing. He can handle it. You know you are getting to truth when you feel teary or scared. Do it anyway. Write down your prayers and then take a verse or two that’s stuck out to you and pray those too. Tell God the truth and then repeat the truth about who He is. He is faithful. Check out Psalm 115:1: Not to us, but to your name be the glory, because of your unfailing love and faithfulness. Find your banner verse and get a white-knuckled grip on it. Don’t let go.
Worship.
Jesus makes a way for us to worship and worship sets our hearts free. Get yourself some good worship music and sing along. Sing yourself into a new place. You can check out Hope’s worship CD or Hillsong or All Sons and Daughters –some of my favorites. Fill your house and your car and your life with worship.
Get yourself to church.
Get to church. Get to a church where they teach from the Bible. Make yourself go. Go as many times as you need to, we’ve got new believers at Hope who come two or three times a weekend! Get there. The church was God’s idea and it’s what He gave us to be with one another. It’s never perfect but it’s people honestly seeking God together. Get there.
You need friends.
You need friends who need God too. So whether you join a group or Bible study or you find your own, you’ve got to be in relationship with others who can help you find the truth. If you’ve never been in a Bible study, just think of it as a book club. You and some friends get together, you read the Bible together. Maybe you get some help from a book or DVD study that can lead you along the way. (I like Restless by Jennie Allen–it’s about the life of Joseph so a great followup to Undefined). I know, it’ll be new and sometimes it’s awkward and maybe you don’t immediately connect to the women or maybe it’s too long/too short/too old/too young/too boring/too hard/too easy. But remember, this isn’t about the perfect group. This is survival, ladies. We need one another. We need truth. We need community. So just start. Start somewhere and eventually you’ll find (or you’ll create!) a good fit for you.
God offers us the gift–the incredible gift–of forgiveness, of grace, of a new day and a new life in Him. So stand on holy ground and be changed.
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