Turning Point
by Bro. Craig Amenell
11/15/2023
Exodus 3:2-4 - “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. And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. 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.”
In early 2021, I had a turning point in my life. A new president had entered the White House, and I was still shocked and confused by the events that led up to it. Why? The way I describe the state that I was in is being “Trump Drunk!” I had allowed my heart to get carried away by a politician seemingly unbeknownst to myself. While my mind was clouded by the intoxicant of politics, the Lord had been removed from His rightful preeminent seat in my life. This had happened while I was living through the fog of COVID. In the busyness and uncertainty of my surroundings, I allowed myself to become disoriented. I had deserted into a desert and didn’t even know that I was there.
One evening at church, I saw someone who had been inactive in their attendance for years, so I turned aside to go and see what they had been up to. I intended to let them know how good it was to see them and try to encourage them with the hope that they might start to regularly attend again.
As we were speaking they told me how encouraged they were that I was still teaching Sunday School and going through discipleship with others. They explained that over the last few years, they had been having a rough go at life but were happy to see that others were managing to hang in there and keep, keeping on while they had been absent.
For whatever reason, in the midst of being complimented, I was cut to the heart. I thought I had gone over to speak to a long lost friend but instead, I found myself speaking with one whom God would use to get my attention. Whether or not God had made other attempts to turn me aside before this I do not know as I had obviously not been paying attention.
I went home that night and kneeled in my closet not knowing what God needed to show me but certain that I was ready to listen. I asked God to reveal to me why I had been cut to the heart. The question came to mind, where I had prioritized Him in my life? In reflection, I ashamedly had to answer less than first place. I knew this was not okay and was reminded that I alone controlled whether or not He had the preeminence in my life.
I am not suggesting that God audibly spoke to me but I assure you that He did not need to as His spirit within me took care of that. I got right with the Lord that evening and made a commitment to daily fellowship with Him and strive to keep Him at the forefront of my mind.
Has God ever tried to get your attention? I doubt He used a burning bush that was not consumed. Usually, God does not need to use such grand measures to try and attract one of His children’s attention. Sometimes He uses His Word spoken through someone whom He already has the attention of such as your Pastor.
Other times, God providentially uses people who may not even know the Lord and who are unaware of the significance of their words spoken at just the right time. Regardless of the method, when God tried to get your attention how did you respond? Did He get your attention, or did you just brush off the prompting as a happenstance? God is just waiting for you to “turn aside, and see” and when you do, He will call out to you. How will you respond?
11/15/2023
Exodus 3:2-4 - “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. And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. 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.”
In early 2021, I had a turning point in my life. A new president had entered the White House, and I was still shocked and confused by the events that led up to it. Why? The way I describe the state that I was in is being “Trump Drunk!” I had allowed my heart to get carried away by a politician seemingly unbeknownst to myself. While my mind was clouded by the intoxicant of politics, the Lord had been removed from His rightful preeminent seat in my life. This had happened while I was living through the fog of COVID. In the busyness and uncertainty of my surroundings, I allowed myself to become disoriented. I had deserted into a desert and didn’t even know that I was there.
One evening at church, I saw someone who had been inactive in their attendance for years, so I turned aside to go and see what they had been up to. I intended to let them know how good it was to see them and try to encourage them with the hope that they might start to regularly attend again.
As we were speaking they told me how encouraged they were that I was still teaching Sunday School and going through discipleship with others. They explained that over the last few years, they had been having a rough go at life but were happy to see that others were managing to hang in there and keep, keeping on while they had been absent.
For whatever reason, in the midst of being complimented, I was cut to the heart. I thought I had gone over to speak to a long lost friend but instead, I found myself speaking with one whom God would use to get my attention. Whether or not God had made other attempts to turn me aside before this I do not know as I had obviously not been paying attention.
I went home that night and kneeled in my closet not knowing what God needed to show me but certain that I was ready to listen. I asked God to reveal to me why I had been cut to the heart. The question came to mind, where I had prioritized Him in my life? In reflection, I ashamedly had to answer less than first place. I knew this was not okay and was reminded that I alone controlled whether or not He had the preeminence in my life.
I am not suggesting that God audibly spoke to me but I assure you that He did not need to as His spirit within me took care of that. I got right with the Lord that evening and made a commitment to daily fellowship with Him and strive to keep Him at the forefront of my mind.
Has God ever tried to get your attention? I doubt He used a burning bush that was not consumed. Usually, God does not need to use such grand measures to try and attract one of His children’s attention. Sometimes He uses His Word spoken through someone whom He already has the attention of such as your Pastor.
Other times, God providentially uses people who may not even know the Lord and who are unaware of the significance of their words spoken at just the right time. Regardless of the method, when God tried to get your attention how did you respond? Did He get your attention, or did you just brush off the prompting as a happenstance? God is just waiting for you to “turn aside, and see” and when you do, He will call out to you. How will you respond?
Posted in Living for God, Relationship with Christ, The Church
Tagged with Exodus 3, attention, turn, priorities, preeminence
Tagged with Exodus 3, attention, turn, priorities, preeminence
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