When We Can't See God...

In our darkest times, we sometimes lose sight of God.  Sometimes we can't see Him because we are too busy. Sometimes it seems like He is far off.

I have been reading The God Who Sees You: Look to Him When You Feel Discouraged, Forgotten, or Invisible  and came upon a chapter about when we can't see God.  It got me to thinking on how we miss God in our lives.

Sometimes pain conceals God from us. Think of Christ on the cross as He cries out, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?"  Christ, in His pain, had trouble seeing God at that moment.  Did God really abandon Christ?  In a sense, He didn't, simply because the Father and the Son are one. And yet, at that moment in the excruciating pain of the cross, Christ couldn't see His Father.

At times, God is too close.  Like not being able to see a car in your blind spot of your mirror because it is so close, we can miss God because He is close to us working through the circumstances.  The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Psalms 34:18

Sin can impede our view of our Heavenly Father.  Sometimes it is our sin (Isaiah 59:2), and sometimes it is the sin of others. Our sin can create a chasm between ourselves and God.  Others' sin can create so much anger and hurt that a glimpse of God seems impossible.

Sometimes God doesn't show up in the way we had hope.  Take the death of Lazarus, for example.  Mary and Martha would disappoint that Jesus didn't rush to their side...and yet, Jesus showed up right on time to create a glorious ending.  Maybe He is the doing the same in our lives...He may not fix the situation. He may wait awhile...all because He has a much bigger plan.

Fear can blind us to the existence of God and His power.  Think of Peter taking his eyes off Jesus and then "swimming like a rock".  (Matthew 14:22-33).

Pride can block our vision.  Pride makes us so full of ourselves that there is no room to see God in the situation.Take good ole Nebuchadnezzar when he refused to give God the glory and then God made him crazy for a few years. (Daniel 4)

Distractions can litter our view of Him so that we can't pick out God from the mess of our lives.

And sometimes, God hides. (Isaiah 45:15) That is the big mystery...why does He sometimes make Himself the mystery.

Regardless of where we are at and whether we feel His presence or not, He never walks off.  He is never done with us.  He never gives up.  He never "has had it up to here" with us.  Praise be to God!