Thought for the Month - March 2017

"Hide and Seek" by Barry Adair
(Ready or not, here I come!)

I used to love and watch my daughter play hide and seek with me when she was really young. When it was my turn to look for her, to make herself invisible to me, she simply put her hands over her eyes! She couldn't see me or anything else so how was I supposed to see her! Or in the house when she was fed up with her Mum and me, perhaps after being scolded, she would simply throw her turquoise blanket over her head and hide from the world. And when it was her turn to find me, all you heard was "'weddy' or not, here I come!"

Hiding seems to be a very old trait to humankind. Even from the first few verses in the Bible, "hide and seek" appears to be one of the first "games" we ever played. If you recall, after Adam and Eve had committed the first ever sin against God, they hid from Him…

They heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. Then the LORD God called to the man, and said to him, "Where are you?" (Genesis 3: 8, 9)

Perhaps more hiding than seeking when it came to Adam and Eve. But thankfully God did the seeking. Of course, God knew exactly where Adam was and exactly what he'd done. He is omnipotent after all! No, I think He asked the question "where are you?" in a spiritual sense. Where Adam now found himself was in unknown territory. Close fellowship with God was gone. He was confused, he was feeling guilty and he felt ashamed. He was also now spiritually LOST. And most of mankind remains spiritually lost to this day. But rather than seek reconciliation with their Creator, they continue to hide from Him. Not so very long ago I was one of them too.

Remember when Jonah didn't want to go and explain God's plan of salvation to the vile and hedonistic people of Nineveh? As he didn't think that they deserved any reconciliation, he took a boat headed in the opposite direction to try and escape God's presence. Of course, we know that this is impossible and Jonah should have known this too…

Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, if I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even there Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will lay hold of me. (Psalm 139:7-10)

God sought Jonah, found him and with the help of a large fish (and Jonah's willingness to change), God restored him. Then with Jonah now on side again, and in response to the humble repentance of the people of Nineveh, God brought salvation to that great city which had been on the very edge of destruction.

Thankfully, even if we are still hiding, God is still seeking. One of my favourite Parables, since I was very young, is of the sheep that was lost. All the sheep were accounted for but one. But the good shepherd went out and called and searched for that one sheep until he found it. Then he brought the wayward sheep home on his shoulders and rejoiced heartily with his friends and family. It sums up redemption so simply that even a child can understand it.

Is God calling you? Are you feeling the weight of your sin? Do you feel convicted and ashamed? Have you been hiding from Him? Then turn to Him and accept His free offer of salvation and total redemption. Jesus died to take away your sin. Admit your sinfulness, Believe on Him who died for you and Call on Him to save you. Jesus is returning someday to this world but unlike the first time, this time it will be in judgement - ready or not, here I come!

"You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect." (Luke 12:40)

"For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost." (Luke 19:10)

And as for the Christian - and let's be honest here - we hide from God too. As we continually sin, we continually want to hide from Him. As the puritans of old would have said - let us keep short accounts with God. Confess our sins to Him often, asking for His cleansing. We still need to continually seek Him.

Let's seek Him with all our heart.

Seek the LORD and His strength; seek His face continually. (Psalm 105:4)

'You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.' (Jeremiah 29:13)

Until next month (DV)…

Are you SURE that you have your place booked in Heaven? Read this if you're not!