I sat alone for almost half an hour in the place I thought I was meeting friends. I expected to be waiting for at least a few minutes, so I ordered a coffee and settled in. I people watched. Read the stray, rumpled sections of someone else's abandoned paper. And got more and more frustrated by the minute.
Had I misunderstood our meeting time? Been confused about the place? Had plans changed but no one remembered to tell me? After forty-five minutes I ended my own misery and left. I'd really been looking forward to company; to blending into the laughter and conversation that usually characterize our times together. But I drove home sad and agitated instead.
Then my phone rang. "Where were you?" one of my friends asked. When I asked "Where were you? she replied, "We were there. Didn't you see us?" Well no. I hadn't. I'd checked the door time after time and even walked into a side room once, just in case. I never saw them...and they never saw me, either. But they were there all along.
Although God knows my whereabouts, sometimes it feels like we've gotten our wires crossed, too. He doesn't show up when or where I expect him. I look around anxiously and don't trust his promises enough to wait past my discomfort. I keep moving to mask my confusion and disappointment. And almost always, after the fact, I come to see that he was there all along.
I was sure I'd been abandoned as I cried sloppy tears on the balcony of a remote mountain cabin. I hadn't. He was there. I thought I was alone in a hospital waiting room, eyes peeled for the surgeon whose hands I'd trusted to help my loved one--but I wasn't. He was there. And although every pew was empty in the church where I knelt and prayed for, who knows, maybe the hundredth time, a prayer that's yet unanswered, I wasn't alone. I had company. God had been there all along.
I may not always be aware of him or recognize his nearness, but my Father has never left me alone and undefended. Not ever. He goes before and behind. He spreads his wing over me and watches, even in silence. He knows. He sees. And no matter what my eyes tell me or my heart may feel, he's been there all along.
Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10, NASB
I absolutely loved this post! I love how you write about every day moments and see God’s hand, principles, truths, and promises! “
Open the eyes of our heart, Lord”
You have challenged us to examine, to study, and find peace in the pictures of each minute/moment of our days and lives.❤️
thank you sweet internet friend!!!
I'll admit I'm quite an emotional person. I feel everything; absence of people and presence of 'prickly' people. So my faith has to kick extra deep to really sense His presence and when I do - yes, I know. He is really there. Every. Single. Time.
Your 'every day life' stories mean so much to this old soul. Thank you.