Pulled Aside

And the LORD spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying, Numbers 3:14

It's funny how often in the Scriptures we see God pull someone aside to talk to them. Abraham on Mount Moriah, Moses at the burning bush, Moses on the mountain, Gideon when he was thrashing wheat, Elijah under the juniper tree, the disciples were called into "a desert place", Paul in Arabia, John on Patmos, and here, where He pulled an entire nation into the wilderness to commune with them. But the first time I could find where God spoke to someone He'd (directly or indirectly) pulled aside was Hagar. A lowly handmaid, dishonored, despised, and cast out. Alone. Hopeless. Lost. And God showed up to comfort her. God has various reasons for pulling us aside, and sometimes the process is painful and unpleasant--most of the listed examples occur in less than ideal circumstances. But it's when we are, for whatever reason, seperated from things that God can make Himself real to us in ways we're normally too distracted to notice. His still, small voice can be drowned in the whirlwind of our busy lives; so sometimes He pulls us aside. Maybe you're feeling alone and abandoned and seperated from everything; you feel like you're wandering aimlessly in some wilderness. Be quiet. Listen. God may have led you there so He could get some important message--of redemption, of hope, of love, of direction, of wisdom, of peace--through to you.