Wednesday, June 23, 2021

Mid-Week Message - Always In His Sight

"I can never escape from your Spirit!  I can never get away from your presence!  If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there.  If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me."  Psalm 139:7-10  (NLT) 

I ran from my mother one time.  One time.  I don't remember what I had done.  I was only maybe four years old at the time.  She came toward me to discipline me and I ran.  When she caught me, the result was far harsher than it would have been if I had not made the choice to run. 

From Daddy, I hid.  I always seemed to get in trouble soon after he left for work in the mornings.  My mother would say, "Just wait until your father gets home."  So all day I dreaded the hour that his car would drive up in the driveway.  When it did, I would hide in one of two places.  Under the bed, or in the closet.  I can remember thinking to myself that the closet was so dark that not even God could find me in there.  Of course, Daddy always knew where I was so hiding never worked.  I am so glad that he always knew where I was.  Not because I enjoyed the discipline that came after he found me but because of the security of knowing that he loved me and was familiar with where I would be.  

One day before he passed away, he and my mother were discussing his collection of business cards.  She asked him what would happen to them after he was gone and he said, "Karla will get them."  She said that I would probably just throw them away, to which he replied, "She'll keep them.  I know my daughter."  And, yes, I still have them almost fourteen years later.  

There is great comfort in the knowledge that our Lord always knows where we are.  As the scripture says, there is no where that we can go to be out of His presence.  One of my favorite quotes from the movie Buckaroo Banzai is, "No matter where you go, there you are."  That is true about God.  Whether we are in the depths of the ocean, upon the highest mountain, soaring in the sky or just hiding in a dark closet, He is there.  

Some days are dark and stormy.  Life can lead us down paths that we never even knew existed.  Fear, confusion, anger, depression, loneliness, addiction, illness, or catastrophe are just a few of the things we can face.  But we can also experience love, joy, peace or plenty.  No matter what condition we find ourselves in, no matter what is before us, we are not alone.  We are never away from His presence.  

Psalm 139 is my favorite chapter in the Bible.  There is so much reassurance of His intimate involvement in our lives, even from conception.  I encourage you to find a quiet place and spend just a few moments reading it.  Take the words in and hide them in your heart.  

I am grateful that I tried to run and hide from my parents because it taught me that they were always there, even when I tried to get away from them.  It was a precursor to understanding the presence of God, although His presence is far greater.  What a wonderful thing to know that I am never out of His sight, or out of His care.  Nor are you.  Ever.  May we all find great comfort in that knowledge.  God bless.  




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