We often imagine that God speaks most clearly on the mountaintop—during a powerful Sabbath sermon, a youth retreat or a quiet morning devotion. Scripture tells a different story. Many of God’s greatest revelations happened when His people were in the middle of their everyday responsibilities. Moses was not seeking a supernatural encounter in Exodus 3. He was simply doing his job of tending sheep in the desert, just as he had done for the prior 40 years. It was when his life had settled into a predictable rhythm that God placed something extraordinary in his path.
The Bible says, “And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush,” verse 2, NKJV. Since the bush burned but was not consumed, “Moses said, ‘I will now turn aside and see this great sight,’” verse 3, NKJV. Scripture then adds something remarkable. “When the Lord saw that he turned aside to look . . . God called to him,” verse 4, NKJV. God waited for Moses to stop. To pause. To turn aside from his routine long enough to pay attention.
Many of us miss the voice of God not because God is silent, but because we are too busy to notice. Burning bushes do not always look miraculous at first glance. Take, for example, a conversation that stays with you longer than expected. A young person asking deeper questions about faith. A sudden burden for someone you have not thought about in years. A challenge that forces you to slow down. These small moments could be holy invitations.
Throughout Scripture, God appears in the midst of ordinary life. Gideon was threshing wheat. David was watching sheep. The disciples were working their everyday jobs—mending nets, collecting taxes—when Jesus called them. God still speaks in the same way today—not only in sanctuaries but also in kitchens, classrooms, cornfields, living rooms, hospital rooms, long drives and quiet moments just before sleep. The extraordinary often hides inside the ordinary.
Across our churches, schools and communities, we all live with routines: parenting, studying, working, caregiving, worshiping, planning, serving. Woven inside these ordinary rhythms are divine appointments, placed there by God Himself. A Sabbath greeting that becomes a life-changing conversation. A child in Sabbath School who says something that touches your heart. A church member who unexpectedly opens up about a burden. A neighbor who asks for prayer at just the right moment. These may be your burning bushes.
The question is not whether God still speaks. The question is whether we turn aside long enough to listen.
Turning aside begins with attention: “Lord, what are You showing me in this moment?” It continues with slowing down; holy moments rarely shout. And it leads to a response, such as Moses saying, “Here I am.”
My prayer for all of us is simple: May God give us eyes to see Him in the midst of our everyday lives. May we be a people who notice burning bushes. May we never rush past the moments God places in our path to draw us closer to His heart. And when God calls our name, may we answer with joy, “Here I am.”
By Elton DeMoraes, DMin, president of the Texas Conference Of Seventh-day Adventists
