Making it through the fire

"Moses saw that the bush was in flames, but it didn't burn up." Exodus 3:2


I came across this old passage today and thought of the people in Boston and West Texas who have been put through the fire recently, literally and figuratively.  Explosions have claimed the lives of too many, and the emotional fires of loss and grief continue to smolder in the families of those affected.  Even for those of us far away, we mourn in the face of tragedy and wonder what it all means.  We ask, "Where is God in all of this?"

I've read the story about God talking to Moses in the burning bush a million times. I've seen it with Charlton Heston in "The Ten Commandments", and you probably saw it in "The Bible" recently on The History Channel. One of the things I've never thought about though is the powerful symbolism of that bush. God is calling Moses to a difficult task: to free God's people from the heavy oppression of Egyptian slavery and lead them across the desert to the Promised Land. We know from reading the story that it won't be easy. Dealing with Pharaoh won't be easy, getting through the Red Sea won't be easy, wandering through the desert for 40 years won't be easy, and leading this stubborn people won't be easy. The challenges Moses will face will seemingly incinerate him, but he won't burn up. That's one of the messages of the burning bush. When God is present, the fire won't consume you. The pressure and stress won't overwhelm you. It might be painful at times, but it won't burn you. You'll make it through unscathed if you can simply hold on to God in the process, for He is our ever present help in struggle. What a message.

Sometimes we feel like life is eating us alive, burning us up and consuming us. If we will stop to recognized God's presence in our lives, we can understand that, even in life's pressure cooker, we are not consumed. There is a Promised Land waiting on the other side of faith. We are part of a larger story. God is with us, and we will not be burned up. No matter how hot things are for you right now, know that God is with you.