Andrea Steinkamp: "Beyond the Wilderness" (Sermon for August 30, 2026)

“Moses…led his flock beyond the wilderness and came to Mount Horeb, the mountain of God.” — Exodus 3:1 As I prepare to leave St. Paul & St. Andrew and begin what feels like a wilderness journey, I keep coming back to the first line of this week’s lectionary text from Exodus. The text tells the familiar story of Moses’ encounter with the burning bush. I’ve always imagined this story as happening in the wilderness. Moses is tending his father-in-law’s flock, after all. And yet the first line of the text tells us that Moses has led his flock “beyond the wilderness.” Moses, it seems, is both in the wilderness and beyond the wilderness. And that got me thinking. What is the wilderness? How do we get beyond it? What might we find there? And would we even recognize it when we arrive? Would we be curious and open and humble enough to stop, look around, and wonder at what we encounter? Would we recognize that we are standing on holy ground? This week, we’ll explore these questions alongside Moses and Jesus, thinking together about what it means to move through uncertain and unfamiliar places with faith, courage, and an openness to where God might be leading us. Come Sunday, we’ll sing and pray and gather around the communion table, engaging the practices of our faith and nourishing our bodies and spirits for wherever we are on the journey. Peace, love, and gratitude, Pastor Andrea