Article March 2, 1987 Issue

The burning bush

Being willing to pause for communion with God brings needed guidance into our lives.

Georgiana Lieder Lahr

In the Bible we read that while Moses was caring for his father-in-law's sheep he "came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb." There he saw a burning bush that the fire did not consume. As he turned aside to see, God called to him, and he replied, "Here am I." Then God told Moses, "Put off thy shoes from off thy feet,"^{Ex. 3:1–5.} for he was standing on holy ground.

While we might agree theoretically that God's omnipotence, omnipresence, and omniscience fill all space, in the rush and turmoil of our days we may not act as though it was true. We may not always take time to notice the figurative burning bush in our lives and turn aside to listen. But God is constantly speaking to us, and we can learn to hear His voice.

The burning bush, we might say, is with us, for God is ever present. His guidance reaches us in ways we can understand. We are able to discern God's presence because each of us is, in reality, the perfect reflection of our creator, God, Spirit; our spiritual purity of thought is intact. These are spiritual facts; but they need to be proved in our experience. In the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health, Mrs. Eddy writes, "We should strive to reach the Horeb height where God is revealed; and the corner-stone of all spiritual building is purity."^{Science and Health, p. 241.} We need a pure consciousness to behold the burning bush. How is such purity of thought attained?