If you have ever had an occasion in your life . . .

If you have ever had an occasion in your life in which it felt like God was nowhere to be found, then you are in good company, because there was a time in Isaiah’s life in which he felt much the same.  “Truly, you are a God who hides himself,” the prophet exclaims.  Moreover, he is not the only one who expresses this sentiment.  In Psalm 55, you will find this verse: “Be attentive to my prayers, O Lord, and do not hide yourself from me.”  In Psalm 102, King David prays, “In the days of my distress, O Lord, I call out to you, but you remain hidden from my sight.”

But why?  Why would the Creator of heaven and earth intentionally decide to play a game of hide-and-seek with us?  Now, you see me; now you don’t!  Why would God turn what is supposed to be a journey of faith into a scavenger hunt?  Why would God do that?

Well, if it’s of any comfort, some have suggested that, in fact, God doesn’t.  At no point in this great drama that we call life is God slipping backstage or up into the balcony.  The problem is not that God goes into hiding; the problem is that we are not always very observant.  In other words, God is present with us every moment of every day, but because we have a tendency to rush through our days—distracted and preoccupied, trying our best to attend to this or that—we don’t end up paying 100% attention to much of anything, least of all to how God is at work in our lives!

I read recently that the average American spends more time on their cell phones and computers than any other single activity in their lives—with the exception of sleeping.  And please don’t get the wrong idea; I think it’s wonderful that we are all socially-connected and globally-informed.  However, it also means that we rarely have a moment to ourselves.  We never unplug.  We never detach.  We never shut down.  Keep in mind, the Bible never says, “Be busy, and know that I am God,” or “Be multi-tasking, and know that I am God.”  What the Bible says is, “Be still, and know that I am God!”

The plain truth of the matter is that if we never slow down, if we never quiet our hearts and minds, then we will likely miss out on the presence of God.  It’s not that God is hiding; it’s more that God is waiting for us to take notice.  After all, God does not want to intrude upon our lives; God wants to be invited into them!