Slow Down to Attend
Slow-Moving Moments #2
Attend is a very versatile word. From dictionary.com, it can mean any of the following:
to be present at:
to go with as a concomitant or result; accompany:
to take care of; minister to; devote one's services to:
to wait upon; accompany as a companion or servant:
to take charge of; watch over; look after; tend; guard:
to listen to; give heed to.
In our relationship with the Lord and others, I want to focus on two of these meanings - to wait upon and to listen to. In each case, the meaning carries an implied action, not part of the raw definition. When we wait or listen, we are to do so with a sharp focus. We are to be observant. We must look closely at what is happening, what is said, and what is done. If we fail to truly attend, we can miss the message being sent to us. In order to attend, we must transition into slow-moving moments. We must slow down to attend. A prime example of this is Moses’ encounter with a burning bush.
Attending to Our Surroundings
Meanwhile, Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. Then the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire within a bush. As Moses looked, he saw that the bush was on fire but was not consumed. So Moses thought, "I must go over and look at this remarkable sight. Why isn't the bush burning up?" (Exodus 3:1-3 CSB)
Moses was watching sheep—not a very exciting job. It would have been easy for him to “zone out” concerning his surroundings. However, he noticed a bush that was burning. Then he noticed that it was not being consumed. At least two questions must have entered his mind: What started the fire, and why was it not being consumed? So, he investigated. I wonder how often you and I have missed something from God (an opportunity to serve him, a blessing, or a lesson) that he wanted to show us, but we were not attentive to what was happening around us.
Attending to the Presence of God
When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called out to him from the bush, "Moses, Moses!" "Here I am," he answered. "Do not come closer," he said. "Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground." Then he continued, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God.
We normally think of being the presence of God when we worship, pray, or read the Bible. However, God is an all-present God. He is always present - everywhere. He can experience his presence at any time - just like Moses. The challenge is not to miss him unexpectedly stepping into our lives in unexpected ways.
Attending to What God Says to Us
Then the LORD said, "I have observed the misery of my people in Egypt, and have heard them crying out because of their oppressors. I know about their sufferings, and I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and to bring them from that land to a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey-the territory of the Canaanites, Hethites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. So because the Israelites' cry for help has come to me, and I have also seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them, therefore, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh so that you may lead my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt." (Exodus 3:4-10 CSB)
Moses approaches the burning bush and hears the voice of God speaking. The Lord tells Moses that he has heard his people's cries in Egypt and will deliver them through Moses. We know the rest of the story and Moses’ excuses. But did you notice that Moses heard exactly what God said to him - no matter how strange or frightening it was? We must listen for God’s voice amid all the clutter in our lives. We must tune our minds to God’s channel.
Attending to What Others Say
In his instructions to his son in the book of Proverbs, Solomon says:
Listen, my son, to your father's instruction, and don't reject your mother's teaching,(Proverbs 1:8 CSB)
People can and will speak into our lives in positive ways if we let them. If we attend to them! In her marvelous devotional book, Word by Word, Marilyn McEntyre shares…
So we need people who step into our lives and mirror what we can’t see about ourselves, who can help us naviagate our won ambiguities, and ultimately enable us to teel our stories in a richer and wiser way.
To hear those who “mirror what we can’t see about ourselves,” however, we must attend to their speaking into our lives. We must lean into their presence. We must be like Moses and turn aside to see what is really going on and what they are really saying. And after they have our attention, we must listen, which is next week’s topic.