Tuesday, January 31, 2017

Finding Extraordinary in the Middle of Ordinary

Submitted by Sam Nobles
“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." (Exodus 3:2-4)

Moses was going through the routine of his day when he came across something that would have been normal or ordinary for him to see in the deserts of Midian – a bush that had caught on fire. In addition to the ordinary, Moses also sees something extraordinary about that bush – it was burning without being consumed. At the moment that Moses turned from the routine of his day, the Lord spoke with him. Everything that God had been doing with Moses’ life culminated in this very moment. The entire redemptive plan for Israel hung on the fact that Moses would notice the uncommon in the common; the extraordinary in ordinary.

I can say from experience, there will be times when you are so immersed in the ordinary, mundane details of this life that you will be oblivious to the extraordinary that is right in front of your face. I really wonder how many “burning bushes” we have passed over? How many times in the middle of an ordinary moment was my activity was filled with the presence of God and I was unaware?

I have found it true in my life, that the problem is not noticing something unusual or uncommon, but having the energy or the desire to investigate it. It’s sad and funny at the same time that most people are not willing to disrupt the daily routine they have come to dread. Who knows what a moment may hold? That disruption may be a very unique opportunity to have an encounter with God Almighty.

Throughout the Scriptures we see that many of God’s most profound encounters with mankind occurred during the ordinary experiences of life. I challenge you today, when you see the unusual in the midst of the mundane, don’t continue on without investigation. It may be that God has ordained such a moment to be a life-changing moment just for you.

Scripture to Claim: 
“It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out.” (Proverbs 25:2)

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