Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. Then Moses said, ‘I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up.’ When the Lord saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, ‘Moses, Moses!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’

Exodus 3: 1-4

Moses was born to a family of Hebrew slaves, but brought up in an Egyptian Palace. In adulthood, he murdered an Egyptian and had to flee for his life. He went into hiding in the desert, where he married the daughter of a nomadic shepherd who was also a Midianite priest. By the time he saw the burning bush, Moses was middle aged, still living in the desert, and still looking after his father-in-law’s sheep. I think we could reasonably say that Moses had got into a rut. He’d made a couple of major mistakes early on, and now he was still lurking below the parapet for fear of being found out. As a result he wasn’t sure anymore who he was, or what his purpose was in life. He was just settled in for the long haul somewhere comfortable that paid the bills, but it wasn’t what he dreamed of when he was young, and it wasn’t his heart’s desire.

On this particular day Moses led the sheep out to new pasture in the foothills of Mount Horeb. Moses, of course, had no idea he was about to meet God. When he saw the bush, he didn’t know why it seemed to be on fire and yet not burning. All he knew was that he had spotted something bright and sparkly, something intriguing and very exciting. “I will turn aside,” he said, “and see…”. Moses dared to step out of his routine, left the sheep to look after themselves and followed where his intellectual curiosity led him.  And it was only then that he heard God’s voice calling his name.

Often when we think about the idea of God’s call to us, we end up trying too hard to figure out what it is God is saying to us. We tend to think that our calling must be something obviously Christian, the kind of thing we call a “ministry”. Sometimes we thrash around trying to fit ourselves into some existing ministry or project, or to meet some unfilled needs, and yet we end up feeling like Moses – settled in for the long-haul, but wondering whether we’ve missed our dreams. And, especially if it’s good work that we’re involved in, we may also feel guilty for not feeling sufficiently enthused about what we’re doing.

If you think you hear a call that gives you a sense of gloom and despondency, a loss of energy and interest, a feeling of joyless obligation, then it may be God’s call to somebody else, but it is almost certainly not his call to you. Jesus didn’t say – “you have to give up being yourself to have a ministry,” he said, “The kingdom of God is within you.” Jesus didn’t say “my call is heavy and difficult.” He said “My yoke is easy. My burden is light.” When Moses dared to break out of his routine and went to look at something that fascinated him, he discovered that his natural curiosity did not lead him away from God at all – rather it led him into an encounter with God that transformed his life. It was precisely through Moses following what he thought interesting that God eventually turned him from an isolated shepherd into a political reformer and religious leader.

If we try to fit into a mould that wasn’t made for us, we become stiff and inflexible. We mustn’t let the fear of losing our faith limit our imagination and our sense of adventure. When we allow our natural gifts and inclinations to lead us – whether that’s into the world of history or medicine, computers or astro-physics, music, art or literature – that’s when we see clearly who we are, and what we’re meant to do with the gifts we’ve been given. That’s where we hear God calling to us. And that’s where God is able to speak through us to others…

…So put aside what other people say you ought to do, and put aside your own mental commentary about what you think God will make you do. Instead, do what Moses did. Follow whatever you find intriguing, intellectually or artistically stimulating; go where your curiosity and your natural gifts lead you. And when you do, keep an ear open. Because sooner or later, you will hear the voice of God whisper your name.

an extract from Giving it Up