I wandered on to this verse the other day. 2 Chronicles 16:9 “The eyes of the LORD search the whole
earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him.” I
know I’ve read it before but this time it struck me that God can’t keep His
eyes closed. His unbridled enthusiasm for us, and His wonderful curiosity
causes Him to peek. All the time. At me and you. He is so crazy about you that
He just can’t wait to find you stuffed between the washing machine and the
dryer and pull you out and bless you in some way that just knocks your socks
off. (That is a profound theological expression.)
I think that most of us have this picture of God as a grumpy,
old grandfather who really is just a little irritated at us all the time. He tolerates
us as long as we stay out of His way but He really wishes that Jesus would come
and get us out from under His feet so He can go back to the important business
of making sure the sun rises and telling the ocean how far to come in on high
tide. Okay, maybe I confessed too much. Maybe that’s not your picture. Maybe it’s
just mine.
In either case, I am beginning to believe that it is not
true. I am starting to figure out that the God of the universe is head over
heels in love with me. Not in some generalized, all encompassing way, but in a
personal, let’s laugh and have some fun together way. God peeks. He looks over
the edge of heaven and says, “I can’t wait to bless that guy today.” “I am so
excited about what I am going to do for her right now.” “Hey, angels, Watch
this. I am going to do something so cool for that family that it will knock
their socks off.” (I told you!)
One of the awesome things about God’s love for us is that it
comes at the most surprising times. Often in moments that seem dark to us. When
we are wedged between washer and dryer and can’t figure out how to escape. When
life is crashing in and we are about ready to give up the game. God has been
watching us the whole time and He shows up. If we keep looking we will see Him
bouncing around the corner saying, “I knew you were here. Now let me get you
out of this tight squeeze.” Just a few verses earlier, in verse 2, the writer
says, “For God says, "At just the right
time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you." Indeed, the
"right time" is now. Today is the day of salvation.” (2 Chron. 6:2)
Back when Doris and I were at our
very worst place we started playing a game with God. It was hard to do at
first, I don’t think either one of us thought He was really very interested in us.
I sure didn’t feel like I deserved any favor from Him. I was living in Florida
and Doris was in Tennessee. We didn’t know if our marriage would continue and
everything that we thought mattered was pretty much taken away. Probably out of
desperation as much as anything else, Doris began to pray each day, “God, show
me one thing today to let me know that you love me.” She shared that with me
and I began to pray the same way. And here’s the deal! Everyday God would do
something to remind us that His eyes were still on us and that He “loved us
with an everlasting love.” Sometimes it would be as big as a check in the mail
or a call from an old friend. Other days it would be a parking place up front
at Walmart. But every day we would find evidence that God loved us and was showing
Himself to be strong for us “at just the right time.”
Two things became clear to us and
still are. First, we have to keep our eyes open too. We have learned to look
for God’s blessing on our lives. We still do today. Listen, His goodness and
grace is all around us. His mercies are new every morning. We have to
intentionally seek them out, I admit when I am hidden in a dark closet and the
whole world seems to be against me it is not easy to see God’s best. But it is
there. Look. Open your eyes. Recognize it. A simple sunrise. A puppies kiss. A
song on the radio. A card from a friend. Learn to look everyday for the
blessings of God in your life.
And the second thing, when He
finds you, admit you’ve been found. Say it out loud. Tell somebody else.
Acknowledge the love of God in your life at that moment. The more we confess
His blessings the more attune we become to what He is doing in us and for us.
We express our gratefulness to Him and He just starts the thing all over again.
I would get a call from a pastor friend and I would say, “Thank you God. I
believe you did that just for me.” Doris would find a five dollar bill in the
bottom of her purse and she would say, “Lord, I know that you love me today.”
And the more we declared His grace, the more grace we saw to declare. We still
do that today.
I know you may be going through
tough times. I am sure it seems like everyone, including God, has taken their
eyes off of you. But God always peeks. He knows where you are and He can’t wait
to do something so good for you. Look for it. Say it out loud. And the game is
on. Try that today. I promise you He will amaze you with His love. Now, close
your eyes and count to 374…. Mike
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