I remember days gone by when our kids would have swimming lessons at the pool. The kids would swim and the parents would wait in the bleachers on the sides. Most of the time the kids were too involved with splashing and jumping and paddling to notice the loving audience of parents watching over them. But now and then, each child would intentionally turn and look for that one face that mattered.
When I would see one of ours look over, I would hold up my hand in the way that forms the “I Love You” in sign language. They would instantly smile, knowing what I was saying, even without spoken words, and then go back swimming but with a much more dedicated effort knowing that I was watching them.
God too is a loving parent, watching over us and waiting for the chance to show us His love for us. However, just like my children had to look to me to get that message, we too need to turn and look for His face or we will miss those messages. In an age of constant distractions, and the splashings of life that are happening all around us, we can forget to seek out the face of God, forget to see the sign of His love for us in Jesus Christ, and miss out on feeling His love for us. We need to examine our lives and find those tiny moments where He has showered us with signs of His great love for us and then do our best to remain in that love in all we do.
“The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.” Zeph. 3:17
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.” Ephesians 2:4-5
Chaplain David Price