It really is a pretty fascinating conversation. There Moses is barefoot . . . maybe feeling a bit of heat on his tootsies . . . not to mention getting a bit flush in the face from the burning bush before him. And there God is before Him . . .making the place of His presence “holy ground.” While once a mover and shaker in Egypt, Moses has been out of the loop for close to 40 years now. As he approaches his 80th birthday he’s got a pretty nice life in the country . . . a wife . . . a few sheep . . . a close extended family unit . . . not really looking for life’s next challenge . . . pretty content where he’s at. But encounters with burning bushes, one-on-ones with the holy God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, can have a way of turning life upside down a bit.

And as I read the conversation in Exodus 3, while it’s so about Moses, I’m struck by how NOT about Moses it is. Check out the I’s . . .

“I am the God of your father (3:6) . . . I have surely seen the affliction of my people . . . I know their sufferings (3:7) . . . I have come down to deliver (3:8) . . . I will send you to Pharaoh (3:12) . . . I am to be remembered (3:15) . . . I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt (3:17) . . . I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt (3:20) . . . and I will give the people favor (3:21).”

It strikes me almost as a bit comical that in the midst of this burning bush conversation that Moses would ask, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh?” (3:11)

Hello!!! Weren’t listening? Were your feet not lighting up a bit? Weren’t you kind of picking up what God was laying down? He’s coming down to deliver His people . . . He’s the one promising deliverance . . . He’s the one to be remembered in all this . . . He’s the one who making the promise. You’re just the one being sent that the people might know the name of the LORD . . .

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.'”  (Exodus 3:14 ESV)

No disrespect intended toward Moses . . . for “there has not risen a prophet since in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face” (Ex. 34:10) . . . just an identification with this one invited to be part of God’s work who, initially, focused more on who he was rather than on who God is.

Pretty natural, I think, to focus on what we think our capabilities are rather on the One who called us . . . to take inventory of what we bring to the table instead of remembering that in Christ we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places (Eph. 1:3) . . . to be reminded of our fleshly weakness rather than believe that “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness . . . that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature” (2Peter 1:3-4) . . . to focus on how difficult the battle could be and not remember that “in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Rom. 8:37).

But this morning I’m reminded that while, by His grace, He might chose to involve me . . . it’s about He. That, while I might be asked to get in the game, He’s the One with the playbook. That, while He might ask me to live my life in response to His direction, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal. 2:20). That, while he might call my name, mine is to make His Name known.

May I never lose sight of the burning bush . . . might my feet always be “warm” from standing on holy ground . . . and, regardless of what He calls me to do, may I be reminded that it’s not about “Who I am?” . . . but all about “I AM WHO I AM.”

By His grace . . . for His glory . .