SEEING GOD IN THE EVERYDAY
Drama: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7_pCZp9UHI
There once were two little brothers who were excessively mischievous. They were always getting into trouble. If any mischief occurred in their town, the two boys were probably involved.
The boys' mother heard that a preacher in town had been successful in disciplining children, so she asked if he would speak with her boys. The preacher agreed, but he asked to see them individually. So the mother sent the younger boy first, planning to send the older boy to see the preacher in the afternoon.
The preacher, a huge man with a booming voice, sat the younger boy down and asked him sternly, "Do you know where God is, son?" The boy's mouth dropped open, but he made no response, sitting there wide-eyed with his mouth hanging open.
So the preacher repeated the question in an even sterner tone, "Where is God?!" Again, the boy made no attempt to answer.
The preacher raised his voice even more and shook his finger in the boy's face and bellowed, "Where is God?!" The boy screamed and bolted from the room, ran directly home and dove into his closet, slamming the door behind him.
When his older brother found him in the closet, he asked, "What happened?"
The younger brother, gasping for breath, replied, "We are in BIG trouble this time. GOD is missing, and they think we did it!"
But seriously, how often do you feel that you’ve lost God? Many of you will have been taught it is important to set aside some time to spend with God everyday – such as a quiet time. Obviously this is important, but if you are anything like me it often seems as if this time is connived and artificial, and that sometimes God seems to be missing.
We come to church on Sunday and then off we go and carry on the rest of the week with little 5 minute God times fitted around our busy schedules. We try all sorts of things to try and make this God time suit us – devotional readings, music, prayer focus, psalms and often nothing we do seems to actually bring us closer to God.
· Where is God anyway when we are trying to connect with him?
· Why does it have to be so hard?
· Why does it seem as if other people get Words of Wisdom all the time and we are still struggling to make any sort of connection or even just to focus for more than 30 seconds on praying?
I am sure many of you will find these complaints familiar. Yet we often feel as if we are the only ones who feel this way. It always seems so much better for other Christians.
Over the past few months I have been spending a lot of time focussing on directing my spiritual life. I have looked at various different ways of meeting with God and to be honest not many of them seem to work well, BUT some do, often in surprising ways and I have learnt to focus on the ones that do.
In order to meet with God we firstly have to recognise what we are looking for. What is our image of God like?
As the activity earlier showed, there is a large range of variations on this theme. As we look at others perceptions we might think ‘how does that work?’ Yet we are all made individual and we all have unique ways of thinking. God knows you better than you do yourself and he deliberately and consciously made you that way. If you need reminding of that read Psalm 139.
God knows who you are deep inside. He knows what makes you tick and how to get that ticking going.
As we looked at that drama, how many of you felt a connection? We seem to spend a lot of time trying very hard to make a connection with God.
We try to be ‘holy’, listen up for a ‘word’ or tune in to what God is saying to us and come up blank.
· So how do we connect with God?
· Can we all meet with him everyday? in real and practical ways?
I believe the key is in understanding ourselves and recognising who God is for us. If you are an extrovert like me then being quiet and reflective is hard work. That doesn’t mean I can’t do it, it just takes more effort. It is certainly not something I feel comfortable with doing every day. But I need to connect with God every day so I have to develop ways I can relate to him that are meaningful according to who I am. Recognising that God wants to be part of my life in every possible way is helpful in establishing that relationship. God really is interested in everything I enjoy. He is eager to be with me when I walk to work, when I drive the kids round to their various activities, when I sit down to dinner and when I am sewing. If this makes me feel uncomfortable then it is probably more my problem – is it because of what I am doing, thinking, watching on TV or ...?
It is important to recognise that God is there even if we don’t recognise him, or want him round. He is definitely there when life is tough and more often than not he is carrying us through these times – like it says in the Footprints poem which many of you will be familiar with.
I have found it helpful to acknowledge that no one else’s spiritual life will be quite like mine. My relationship to God is unique in every way. He has taken time to craft a special friendship with me that would suit no one else – he loves me that much! He has also done that for you. You are the only one preventing that relationship from blossoming. God is able to reveal himself to you in a way ideally suited to you and all you need to do is recognise his presence.
· Consider what you like best.
· What makes an impression on you?
· How do you best connect with others?
· Are you quiet and reflective or do you prefer action?
· If quiet is hard then consider background music as you try to tune into his presence.
· Take a walk with your iPod if sitting still is difficult.
· Write your thoughts down in a journal.
How you meet with God is between you and God. By all means try a variety of ways – it may well be through trial and error that you establish the most meaningful connection, but don’t be afraid to explore.
Your task is to meet with God in every moment in a way that is meaningful for you (not for your friends).
Take time to offer yourself up to God and seek his guidance as you develop a 2 way relationship with him. Think on Psalm 119:73 – ‘You made me; you created me.
Now give me the sense to follow your commands.’
It won’t necessarily come easily but God’s word is full of advice on relying on his wisdom and guidance. Come before him in humility and with a desire to meet him and I am sure you will not be disappointed. Our own attitude is a key to being perceptive to God’s presence. Ask God to train your attitudes, thoughts and desires towards his laws and be receptive to where he leads you.
If you desire a closer relationship with God and want to be more aware of his presence in your life, I have a list of foundational truths which you may find helpful.
God wants to share everything with you. And he created you so he knows you best and is willing to steer you on a path that will experience his presence in unique and special way.
FOUNDATIONAL TRUTHS (‘Closer Than You Think’ by John Ortberg)
· God is always present and active in your life, whether or not you see Him.
· Coming to recognize and experience God's presence is learned behaviour which you can cultivate.
· Your task is to meet God in this moment.
· We are always tempted to live "outside" this moment. When we do that, we lose our sense of God's presence.
· Sometimes God seems far away for reasons we do not understand. Those moments, too, are opportunities to learn.
· Whenever we fail, we can always start again right away.
· No one knows the full extent to which a human being can experience God's presence.
· Our desire for God ebbs and flows, but His desire for each of us is constant.
· Every thought carries a "spiritual charge" that moves us a little closer to, or a little farther from God.
· Every aspect of your life--work, relationships, hobbies, errands--is of immense and genuine interest to God.
· Your path to experiencing God's presence will not look quite like anyone else's.
· Straining and trying too hard do not help.
Tania Roberts-Thomson
