Open to Interruption

Moses had spent his first forty years as a prince of Egypt. This meant he had the best education available and that he had been specifically groomed to rule over people. He knew how to confidently present himself and communicate. At the age of forty, he had what we’ll refer to as his “identity crisis”. He kills an Egyptian, thinking the Hebrew people will see him as their savior and rise up under him. They don’t and the Egyptian people he grew up with became his enemies. He ran away to the desert, and from that point he didn’t want to be around people or speak to people, and definitely didn’t want to lead people.

Let’s read together Exodus 2:21-22 and Exodus 3:1-4:

Exodus‬ ‭2‬:‭21‬-‭22 ESV - And Moses was content to dwell with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah. She gave birth to a son, and he called his name Gershom, for he said, “I have been a sojourner in a foreign land.”

Exodus‬ ‭3:1-4 ESV - 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.”

Moses was content

So where does he find contentment? Spending most of his time alone with sheep.

Moses ran away from Egypt and found a completely new and different life as a shepherd in the wilderness. Exodus 2:21 said, “And Moses was content.” He had found a tribe and started a new family. Even though he had grown up in Pharaoh’s palace like a little prince, now he discovered true contentment living in a tent and caring for his sheep. He had completely accepted and embraced his new life.

When you are content, you’re not thinking about moving or changing your situation. Moses wasn’t thinking about going back to where he came from or returning to his old life. And he was not looking for a better situation or career. He had been content as a shepherd in the wilderness for forty years. The focus of his life was his sheep, and he was good with that.

Common but Highlighted

Suddenly his content life was interrupted by a God-signal. The Lord used a bush that was on fire but not burning. A humble, frail bush was set on fire but not destroyed. This bush was normal, common, and unexceptional, but the glory of God set the bush apart as extraordinary. God will take something common and touch it to get your attention. Then He’ll watch to see what you do. Instead of a burning bush, God may catch your eye with something common but put the fire in your heart. Has He been using something common in your life to turn you and draw you in a different direction?

Moses’ eyes were drawn to something outside of his comfort zone. This was a very important moment in which he had to make a choice: “Do I keep going in the direction that I’m going, or do I turn aside and investigate?” He chose to turn aside. Notice that God was watching to see what Moses would do. God does not call out to Moses until He sees Moses turn aside.

Contentment becomes a rut if it keeps us from turning aside. Have you come to a place of acceptance and routine? That’s not bad. But there will come a point when God checks to see if you’re open to interruption. The Lord is watching and waiting to see what you will do. Are you willing to turn so that He can speak to you and give you a new assignment, a new direction, a radical shift? Or are you too content to turn?

Here I Am!

In the case of Moses, he was eighty years old and had been content for the past forty years, yet hidden away in his heart was a childlike desire to experience God. He had an innate hunger for God’s glorious presence. You can tell by his childlike response to God… “Moses. Moses.” “Here I am!” In the original Hebrew this is one word that means “behold or see”. It’s like a kid saying, “Look at me!”

Later the child Samuel would respond to God the same way —“Here I am!” This is how the prophet Isaiah responded to the Lord, and in the book of Acts a disciple named Ananias says the same thing when the Lord called to him. “Here I am,” means I am fully present, available, and ready to hear. Speak, for Your servant is listening.

In Wellspring, we begin each year with a corporate fast. This is a special time of shutting down distractions and focusing on the presence of God and His Word. We rededicate ourselves to Him and bring ourselves back into right alignment. We start each year with a big “Here I am!”

During our fast, Holy Spirit emphasized to me Luke 10:21.

Luke 10:21 ESV - “In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.”

What is God’s gracious will? To speak to His children and give them heavenly revelation. I immediately knew that 2026 would be a year of childlike faith and pursuit. And if we’re willing to be childlike, Father’s desire (His gracious will) is to give us heavenly revelation. Are you willing to say, “Here I am”?

Matthew‬ ‭18‬:‭3‬ ‭ESV - and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Mark‬ ‭10‬:‭15‬ ‭ESV - “Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

Are you willing to turn and receive? Are you willing to be childlike in your faith? Remember, Moses was 80. You’re never too old to have childlike faith and to receive fresh revelation and new assignments. There is no such thing as retirement in the Kingdom. May the Lord restore to each one of us a curious and willing heart before our Father God.

My wife and I both had radical salvation experiences. Right after we both went to the altar of a church and surrendered our lives to Jesus, we started dating and got married nine months later. Within our first year of following Jesus, we were constantly saying to Jesus, “Here I am!” One Saturday night as we prayed in the church sanctuary, Holy Spirit showed both of us a community of migrant workers. So Sako and I made invitations to church, jumped in the car, and went to invite everyone in the community to church. Sako is fluent in Spanish and I speak a little. That was a whole story, but Holy Spirit highlighted that community to us, we responded with “Here I am”, and we started a ministry for that community. At that point we’d only been following Jesus for about a year. Sako and I have been saying “Here I am” for more than 25 years.

Is there something common that Holy Spirit is highlighting? Are you willing to turn aside and say “Here I am”? Let’s take a moment to welcome Holy Spirit and give Him all of our attention. Allow Him to highlight things in your heart. Allow Him to speak to you. Lift up your hands like a surrendered child, and say, “Here I am.”

Seeking His face!
Matt