“God called out to him from the bush, ‘Moses, Moses!” He answered, ‘Here I am.’”

One of my all-time favorite gifts is the mug I received one Mother’s Day. “Mom! Mom! Mom!” says one side. “Motherhood isn’t a job, it’s a calling,” says the reverse.

My mug proclaims the same message as today’s reading from Exodus – life is about responding to God’s calls for our lives (even though my mug doesn’t mention God).

I picture Moses hearing God’s voice as he and the sheep trekked across the desert. Did he wonder if he had gotten too much sun? And why did God pick Moses out of all possible candidates for this task? We’ll never know but obviously God doesn’t work like a corporate head-hunter.

God may call us when we least expect it as He did Moses. Often people hear such calls in trying to turn illness or tragedy into good for others.

Every summer I take my students to do an assignment on the Nebraska Special Olympics and get inspired, thinking how Eunice Kennedy Shriver started this movement as a response to the tragedy of her mentally retarded sister. That’s a modern example of such a calling.

Ordinary people who respond to their callings or turn mundane work into callings also inspire me. I marvel at primary teachers who teach children to read – a priceless gift in any life. Or I think fondly of the cafeteria worker at Creighton who has made a calling out of personally greeting every student who goes through her line. Students remember her forever.

I believe that God has a mission for each of us if we will just pay attention to the promptings of the Spirit or the opportunities to serve that abound no matter who we are or what we do. Come to think of it, there’s an email “burning” in my saved mail seeking mentors for low income students applying for full-ride Gates Scholarships.

I think I hear God calling!