Hide and Seek
By Shauna Leis
“O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord. You hem me in – behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,’ even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.”
Psalm 139:1-12
First let me say, yes, this is a long passage of Scripture for today, but I know that you will be blessed by knowing the entire context of the psalmist’s words, rather than just one small verse. My kids love to play hide and go seek, especially in my kitchen and laundry room. Nathan is getting much better at it where he does not start giggling while hiding. He is also getting good at choosing his hiding places, much more so than just a year ago. Grace, on the other hand, typically hides in the same place that she just found the previous hider. We have to wonder around for a few minutes pretending not to know where she is before going back to find her. The last time we played my husband hid in the hall closet, and it took forever for the kids to find him. We even had to do “warmer/colder” to help Nathan eventually figure out how to find him there.
I can tell you from experience that I have tried to play hide and go seek with God on many occasions. When I believe that my sins are so severe that they cause me to feel extreme guilt, I feel I need to try to hide from God, just like Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden. My feeble mind believes that if I can just hide myself, then I can also hide my sin. So much like my husband, I believe I have hidden so well that I imagine God looking around for me while everyone else is shouting, “warmer” as He approaches nearer to my “hiding spot” and “colder” as He gets further away.
Other times my mind believes that my sins are just minor, and so I hide but not nearly as good as above. I usually want God to find me in these instances because I am genuinely convicted that I need to change.
Lastly, I find myself hiding right in the same spot that someone else just came out of minutes before. You have seen this or even been there before yourself. A friend has fallen into sin so you innocently go to assist her out of the hiding place. But, the next thing you know, you are right in there in the same place that she just vacated, guilty of the same sin she just committed.
Dear One, do you realize that no matter what you have done, a sin is a sin is a sin? Have you, like me in these descriptions, tried to convince yourself that what you have done is just a minor little sin, and surely God could not be that concerned over it? After all, there are so many other people that have committed much bigger sins than you and really should be hiding from Him. Or, have you beat yourself up over a really bad sin and convinced yourself that God could never dream of finding you again? Well, the good news and the bad news is that no matter what, it is all sin in God’s eyes; He loves you and seeks after you no matter how big or how small the error.
Can you see the parallel with the psalmist’s scriptures, and do you now realize that you cannot hide or flee from God? Wherever you go, He will be there too. Verses 7-8 indicate, “Where can I go?”….and, “you are there.” In the heavens, in the depths, on the dawn, across the far side of the sea – no matter where you run or where you try to hide – God is right there with you. And what is even better than that? Why does God seek you? Because He loves you, precious friend! More than anything else in the entire world He loves you and desires to find you to cultivate a personal relationship with everyone. God is the ultimate Seeker; He needs no assistance to find you. Will you trust Him today and not hide from Him any longer?
Pray with me: Precious Lord and Savior! We are so very thankful that You are the Ultimate Seeker. Beyond understanding, we know that You love us so much that You will seek us no matter how far we have tried to go or how hidden we have tried to get. Lord, help us to understand that all of our sins need to be confessed and brought before You – no more hiding, no more trying to flee. Forgive us when we sin, and show us Your way is the better way. God, we no longer desire to play games of hide and seek with You but to spend eternity basking in a personal relationship with You. We love You so much, God, and pray all of this in the precious name of Your Son Jesus Christ!