Exodus 3 always moves me so much, but especially verse 5 when God says, "Do not come any closer. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground."
1. Here's to encountering the God in the wilderness while you're shepherding sheep. I don't know anyone who wouldn't first think s/he was hallucinating.
2. Can we talk about how I'm pretty sure God, up to this point, hasn't told anyone to take off their shoes? If you think about it, these people are roughing it. We're talking the epitome of backpacking, but in long robes. They don't take their shoes off because the ground is probably hot, they don't want diseases, and it's customary to wear shoes. I'm pretty sure that most people of Middle Eastern/African/Asian descent did not wear shoes inside at this point because they had really ornate rugs on the floor and didn't want to soil them. Also, they ate on the floor, not on tables or with chairs like Europeans.
This being said, God is basically saying, "Hey, come into my house." ... Say what? Come inside God's house? That's pretty intimate.
I know Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph have all had pretty intimate encounters with God by this point, but outside of Adam and Eve in the Garden, I'm pretty sure they all wore those Jesus sandals.
Talk about being best friends.
I'm the kind of girl who, upon arrival at almost anyone's house, takes off her shoes. I'm not a shoe-wearer. I'd rather be barefoot. Maybe God understands that?
I think it also says a lot about God's character - He obviously didn't care if Moses had smelly feet.
Fun fact: in transliterated Hebrew, Moses is actually Moshe, which is much more fun to say in my opinion.
"Take your sandals off your feet because [you're standing inside my house]."
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