THE BURNING BUSH EFFECT

APRIL 5TH.
TEXT: Exodus 3:1-8 King James Version (KJV)
1.  Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.
2.  And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
3.  And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.
4.  And when the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
5.  And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet,for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
6.  Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.
7.  And the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;
8.  And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

Can you remember anybody whose life was such a radiance of God’s glory to you? Can you remember the impart they made in your life? Take some time to thank God for such vessels of glory.

CONTEMPLATION
In the book of Exodus 3:1-8 Moses encountered God in the most unusual way which led to a series of events. From that time on, his life and destiny was never the same. Once he encountered the burning bush, people encountered the burning bush in him. Like Moses, once you encounter the burning bush of God either through some wonderful vessels living for Jesus or through some visitation in a dream, vision or out of body experience,you can never be the same again. True worshippers with a passion for God carry a presence that makes others amazed. You cannot meet them and not pay attention. Once touched by the fire of God, your life will experience a dramatic transformation. When the prophet Isaiah encountered the glory of God, he cried out “Woe is me! for I am undone;... but as soon as the fire of God touched his lips, his life was never the same again.” (See Isaiah 6:1-8).

The famous preacher John Wesley was once asked to tell what was the secret behind the crowd, transformation of lives and the miracles recorded in his meetings, and he said, “I set myself on fire and people come to watch me burn”. If you allow the Lord to set you ablaze, people will have no choice but to pay attention. Almost anybody can baptize you with water, but only the Lord can baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire (the word “baptize”means to immerse in something). P74 FFPW.

PRACTICAL ISSUES
The grace to excel in life is more than talent and skill;it is greater than oratory and fluency of speech. It is the presence of God in the life of a man. It is wonderful to be able to reproduce the work of others accurately but until you come out with what is original you continually walk in the shadow of others. The man who is consumed in a divine dialogue is miles ahead of his competitors. You can see the invisible and do the impossible if you are willing to spend quality time with God.