When God Shows Up

Hi everyone, 

Yesterday morning I went hiking just Brooklyn and I. It may not always be as fun going alone but I got to have a nice quiet time in creation and have prayer time. What started out as a simple prayer flowed into a much more involved in-depth time with God. Something about the peace of nature just brings out a well of thoughts in you. Anyway one of my requests was that He show me how to see Him in the little things in life. To see Him in every situation and not just on grand scale and to reveal the things I needed to work on. And for Him to show up in my life in way that people will see it cannot be from me but has to be from Him. 

Of course I had no idea He was going to start right away as in that very afternoon with a particular situation that led to some frustration until I though about it later that night. And then I realized, there He was in that situation wanting to see how I would react. Now I don't think I exactly passed the test with flying colors unfortunately, selfish human nature is stubborn, but I could feel Him at work. And it opened  my eyes to the fact that I have never really made a conscious decision to stop and  "see" God in every situation. I mean there are times when I've felt God, or noticed His work in a particular instance from time to time, but I've often seemed to look for Him on the grand scale of things rather than in the day-to-day motions of life. And have I missed out. Because He is a God of details and just as He made each of us with our unique make-up that makes us who we are as individuals, He is at work in the very details of our every day lives. We just have to learn to notice it. Every day we are faced with tasks, decisions, issues, encounters, and choices. Sometimes those decisions involve only us and sometimes they involve others including us. But they always involve God because He is the One who gives is this life. He sees all that we do and can make anything a learning moment for us if we just train ourselves to be attentive to His lessons. When Jesus had His ministry here on earth, He often spoke in parables and the disciples often questioned his stories and the meaning behind them. Jesus would explain and I imagine the disciples would have their light bulb moment of understanding as it all came together. Did they over time come to see God in the simplest things in life? Could they look at a field, a flock of sheep, or certain people in their lives without seeing Christ in those moments? 

And I think we often mistake that God is just in the good things. When everything is going great and our way. But yet He is even there still in the not so comfortable things. The situations throughout the day that test our patience, our forgiveness, our humility. The times that inconvenience us or don't go our way. The times that don't seem fair. He is right there waiting to see what we will do and how we will respond. And I for one need to learn to become more quick to step back and choose to find Him in the situation instead of just plowing ahead in my own fleshy nature. Remember if you ask God to reveal to you what it is you need to work on, He will take you up on that offer. You just have to learn to recognize it, because it will not always be a neon sign with your name on it saying to pay attention. It can be the littlest details in our lives and these details can be so important to our character. Our attitudes and actions in the littlest of circumstances reflects how we will choose to react to larger circumstances. The little issues we have will only be magnified when we are in a relationships or work/public settings, where someone else can see what we are doing and point it out. The care we give towards the little things in our lives will be evidenced when we receive larger things in life. If we aren't trustworthy or dedicated to what we have now, how do we think we will with more? “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much." Luke 16:10 (ESV) We are really not that complicated. We are all human and all deal with sinful human nature that wants seeks its own. But as born again believers we must think outside of ourselves and make the choice to see things as Christ does. He is at work everywhere and He uses the experiences in our lives good and bad to show us His will and purpose for our lives. 

When Jesus used parables He often used examples of things from people's every day way of life. Money (Matt. 25, Luke 15,19), sheep (Matt. 18, 25), crops/plants (Mark 4, 11), baking (Luke 13), interactions with other people (Matt. 21, 22, Luke 10, 15) .....what if we recognize the same concept in our lives at work, home and in public? What does God have to show us if we just pay attention and seek Him out in all things? (Matt. 7:7)  It will reveal some very wonderous things and some very convicting things as well. Because when God shows up it is a life changing experience. When we come to Christ, are baptized, become members of church etc... those are what we would call life changing experiences in our relationship with Christ. But we have to remember too that the seemingly little things have the potential to be life changing too. They can affect us greatly in our walk with Christ if we choose to see them as the God encounters that they are. The way we treat our family members, how we accomplish tasks in the workplace, how we react to those in a store or restaurant. And granted we are going to mess up sometimes and it is in those times that we need to especially acknowledge God's grace, seek His forgiveness and strive to be better. And we must extend this same grace to others as well. Because when we rely on God to reveal to us the way we need to adjust our lives to follow Him better people will see the difference. And it is my prayer that they will see a lasting difference that only point to Him. 

Choose to see God in all situations big or small. Choose to see Him in the every day aspects of our lives and to act upon the truth that we know in the good and the bad. In the fair and unfair. In the beauty and the pain. Because He ALWAYS has a plan even when we can't see the big picture. Be faithful in the small so that we may prove to be faithful in the big. And never forget....when you ask God to show you things, He will and you will soon realize that He was there all along. Keep the faith. 

 ^"And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." Philippians 1:6