Found | Allowing GOD to Find Us

During a visit with my family not long ago, my brother and I took his kids in the back yard for a good competitive game of ‘hide and seek’.   Well, as competitive as it can be with the average age between 4 and 6 and limited hiding spots.   My brother was the first to be “it” and I watching as he counted, and the kids scrambled for the best hiding spot.   My brother’s daughter, Isabel, was 6 years old at the time and as the oldest, found a particularly great spot behind a large tree.

As my brother was finding the other kids with excitement one after another, Isabel was watching closely.  Then, there was a point where she was visibly torn between keeping to the aim of ‘hiding’ and this obvious desire in her that she be ‘found’.    So, she squirmed about, growing more and more impatient, until she obviously couldn’t take it any more… at which point she jumped out from behind the tree, jumping up and down and yelling, “find ME Daddy!  FIND ME!”    What a precious moment.

“Find Me Daddy!  FIND ME!”

I share that story, because I think what I witnessed that day in little Isabel’s heart really does reveal something in all of our hearts… that we desire to be found.. we desire to be found by God.   And not just generally ‘found’, but personally, because to be found by another means to have an encounter with another.  

As we reflect on living as a missionary disciple, how important it is that we remember that if we are ‘disciples’ of Jesus Christ, it because we have had an encounter with Him.   We have been found by Him.  HE has seen us and loved us.   And that encounter, that being ‘found’ is something we need to remain open to every day.  It is something for us today. 

We can notice this desire to be found but, I think if we pay attention to ‘within’ we can find that when life gets busy and when we are just dealing with difficult things that occupy our attention,  and situations that we want resolved that we are still enduring, it can feel like all the burden is on us … to FIND God.

And the reality is, God desires more than us to show us where He is.. to show us that He has FOUND US.  

In the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Paragraph #2567  it states ““God calls man first.  Man may forget his Creator or hide far from his face; he may run after idols or accuse the deity of having abandoned him; yet the living and true God tirelessly calls each person to that mysterious encounter known as prayer.”

God calls man first

God tirelessly calls each person to that mysterious encounter known as prayer

Can you let yourself rest in the truth that if you are desiring to be found.. to have that encounter with Him today… He desired it first.  And that no matter how far it seems He is or how far you seem to have gone from Him…   GOD IS NEAR And He is tirelessly calling you back to that encounter with Him.   

Today,  the encouragement is that whether God feels close or not…whether you feel right in step with Him or lost… that you don’t have to do anything other than stop, look to Him and ask Him “could you come and find me!”..   

In the midst of the busyness and demands of work… FIND ME.  In the messiness of this relationship I’m dealing with.. FIND ME.   In the midst of this situation that I don’t know how to handle… FIND ME.

Today,  allow yourself  to be FOUND by God.

Today’s suggested scripture passage to pray with is Psalm 139

Written by Kristin Niedbala.