A couple of weeks ago, we were driving back from one of Morgan’s Penn Competition Poms competitions in St. Johns, Indiana. To get there, we had to use Apple Maps. Without a GPS… or if you’re as old as I am, a traditional map, we would have never found where Morgan and her team were competing.
While we were driving back home, we turned on one of our favorite YouTubers, podcasters and musicians. During his podcast, he was reading questions from his listeners… questions about music, family and life in general. Then he read this question from a soldier who had fought and killed people for our country. The question?
“How do you find God?”
My heart jumped. I literally sat up in my seat. One, to hear how he would answer. And two, because this is a question that has been getting me excited over the last few months. And as he was talking, I was yelling in my mind… “Tell him about Moses! Tell him about Moses!”
Most everyone has heard of Moses. Leader of the Israelites. He led the Israelites out from under the hand of the Egyptians. Was the communicator of God to His people. Brought down the Ten Commandments to Israel. If you asked people to name someone from the Bible, his name would surely be one of the firsts.
But I didn’t think of Moses because he went out specifically looking for God. No. Quite the opposite. And his story isn’t “clean” either. Check this out…
After Moses had grown up, he went out to where his people were and watched them work. You see, Moses was a Hebrew who was raised by Pharaoh’s daughter. So he didn’t grow up with or live with the other Hebrews. While he was out, he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew. After checking to see if anyone was watching, Moses killed the Egyptian. Not only did he kill him, he actually hid his body in the sand.
Unfortunately for Moses (or fortunately… depends on how you look at the story), he wasn’t as slick as he thought he was and Pharaoh found out and green lit a hit on him. Everyone knew what Moses had done and Pharaoh wanted him dead. So Moses decided to do what anyone of us would do and go on the run. While he lived in Midian, he came across some girls who were being hassled by some shepherds while they were trying to get water for their father’s flock of animals.
Like any guy might do, he decided to step in to help and not only rescued the girls but also watered their animals… a real mac daddy move. The girls went back home, told their father what happened and the father not only invited him to have dinner with them, but also gave his daughter, Zipporah, to Moses in marriage.
They had a son, and after a while the Pharaoh who wanted Moses dead had died. And now, the Israelites cried out to God because of their slavery in Egypt. And. God. Heard. Their. Cries. Check this out…
Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the desert and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. Exodus 3:1
God is often times found in what feels like the far side of the desert… the hot, dry land… in the far side of our struggles and our guilt and hurt and pain. But if we keep going, we will see the mountain of God.
It goes on to say…
There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush… When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, Moses! Moses! Exodus 3:2, 4
And after God told Moses that he would be the one to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, God said…
You see, Moses didn’t go looking for God. God went looking for Moses. And this isn’t the only time this happened. It happens all the time in the Bible. God looked for Adam and Eve in the garden after they sinned. Jesus went looking for Saul, a murderer of people who followed Jesus. God looked for Hagar. He looked for and found Jacob. Jesus looked for, found and called the 12 disciples.
And God is doing the same for you. Calling your name, reaching out to you even as you read this. The reality is, is that you don’t have to find God… He is looking for you. You don’t need Apple Maps or a GPS to find God. He’s right in front of you, calling your name. And the God who is looking for you can be found in the Bible. In the book of Exodus. The same God who called Moses, a murderer, is the same God who is calling you.
And if you’re in what feels like a desert right now, keep going. God is in the far side of the desert… the far side of our struggles and our guilt and our hurt and our pain. Keep going and you will see the mountain of God.
So, how do you find God? Have eyes to see Him and know He’s already looking for you.
