Enter in

"Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. The glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days; and on the seventh day He called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. And Moses entered the cloud, and went up on the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights." Exodus 24:15-24

To those who did not have the trust and intimacy with the Lord that Moses did, the Lord was fire. And not just any fire, but a destructive, devouring fire that raged over the entire mountaintop. They would have thought Moses lost, delusional, that he would have ventured to the top of this mountain because he heard a voice in the desert.

And yet to Moses, it is a cloud that covers the mountain. A cloud is difficult to see through, making it difficult to comprehend where you are and where you are going, but it is a peaceful place. You are surrounded by droplets of life-giving water and the sounds of chaos are dampened and quieted to a clear silence. And so he goes up the mountain, and into the cloud to wait for his Lord as he was asked. It is not till the seventh day that the Lord speaks to him again, and he is there with the Lord until the fortieth day. For this trust and steadfastness of heart, for allowing the Lord to guide his senses, Moses receives instructions for the construction of the tabernacle. Moses is given the work through which God will be physically present among the people at all times!! God is giving Himself to the people who feared Him as a devouring fire, in the form of a protective presence, that they too may one day see the cloud and not the fire.

We must be like Moses. We must not allow the fear and disbelief of others to convince us that His protective, guiding cloud is a devouring fire. We must enter His sanctuary, enter His presence and accept His gifts that He may be present to the world.