The Fire That Finds You

Introduction

INTRO – When the Peak Disappears

Last week: Emmaus — God walks with you in disappointment. This week: Moses — God calls you in the wilderness.

Some days the peak is clear. Some days the clouds hide it. Moses knew that feeling. He once had dreams, passion, purpose… But now he’s 80, tending sheep on the far side of the wilderness. The peak is gone. The fire is gone. The vision is buried. And then — God shows up.

Exodus 3:1–17 NIV

1 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” 4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God. 7 The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. 10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” 12 And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” 13 Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’ ” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ “This is my name forever, the name you shall call me from generation to generation. 16 “Go, assemble the elders of Israel and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—appeared to me and said: I have watched over you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt. 17 And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egypt into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey.’

1. ENCOUNTERS HAPPEN WHEN YOU POSITION YOURSELF

Exodus 3:1–2 “1 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up.”

Moses wasn’t praying for revival. He wasn’t fasting. He wasn’t seeking a burning bush.

He was simply faithful where he was.

God often meets you:

In the routine

In the ordinary

In the unnoticed places

In the wilderness seasons

Moses didn’t find God — God found Moses.

God knows where to find you, even when you feel hidden.

2. ENCOUNTERS HAPPEN WHEN YOU STEP TOWARD HIM

Exodus 3:3–4 “3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” 4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.””

The miracle didn’t happen when Moses saw the bush. The miracle happened when Moses moved toward it.

“When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him…”

Heaven responds to movement.

Encounters begin when you:

Follow the nudge

Respond to the stirring

Lean into the moment

Take the step

God waits for your “I will go over and see.”

3. ECOUNTERS ESTABLISH WHO GOD IS IN YOUR LIFE

Exodus 3:11–15 “11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” 12 And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” 13 Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’ ” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ “This is my name forever, the name you shall call me from generation to generation.”

Moses asks the question we all ask:

“Who am I?”

God answers with:

“I AM WHO I AM.”

Encounters shift your identity because they reveal His identity.

Whatever you need, He already is:

Provider for the one facing lack

Healer for the one battling sickness

Strength for the overwhelmed

Shepherd for the confused

Comforter for the broken

Savior for the lost

Friend for the lonely

Fortress for the afraid

Way for the searching

He is I AM.

4. ENCOUNTERS MAKE GOD REAL IN YOUR LIFE

Exodus 3:6 “6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.”

Moses had heard about God. He had stories. He had heritage. He had information.

But this moment changed everything.

God moved from:

Concept → Reality

History → Experience

“The God of my fathers” → “The God who just spoke my name”

Encounters make God personal.

5. ENCOUNTERS MOVE YOU OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE

Exodus 3:10 “10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.””

Moses had been in Midian 40 years. He had settled. He had accepted a smaller life. He had stopped expecting anything new.

But God says:

“So now, go. I am sending you…”

Encounters don’t just inspire you — they send you.

They push you:

Out of hiding

Out of fear

Out of excuses

Out of the familiar

Into calling

Into obedience

Into purpose

Moses went from shepherding sheep to shepherding a nation.

6. ENCOUNTERS REIGNITE WHAT YOU THOUGHT WAS OVER

Moses didn’t try to free Israel before fleeing. He acted impulsively, killed an Egyptian, and ran for his life. He wasn’t trying to be a deliverer — he was trying to hide a mistake.

He believed:

His failure ended his future

His age disqualified him

His location removed him from usefulness

His story was finished

But God had not finished.

The burning bush wasn’t about resurrecting a failed plan — It was about resurrecting a buried identity.

Moses ran from Egypt, but God ran after Moses.

God says:

“What you thought was over, I am just beginning.”

ALTAR CALL – Step Toward the Fire

This is for:

Those who feel forgotten

Those who feel unqualified

Those who feel stuck in the wilderness

Those who feel like their calling is buried

Those who need God to reveal Himself again

Those who need to take a step toward the burning bush

If you’ll take one step toward Him… He will call your name.