But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” (Genesis 3: 9).
Our Father and our God, You are the omnipresent God—El Roi, the God who sees us. We have Your words through the prophet Jeremiah, “Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?” declares the Lord. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the Lord ((Jeremiah 23:24).
Yet You asked Adam, "Where are you?" You knew exactly where he was—separated from You, lost in himself, confused and disoriented; experiencing the colossal trauma of a fall from the glory of God. Needing a hard question to take stock of his reality, to grasp His plight.
Father, You speak that same hard question into our spirit for our benefit. You made us and You know our psyche. You know that the first step in healing, the first step in recovery, the first step in restoration, the first step in repentance, is an understanding of where we are.
Thank You, O God, for meeting us wherever that is. Thank You that we are never beyond Your Spirit, never outside Your presence—whether we go up to the heavens; whether we make our bed in the depths; whether we rise on the wings of the dawn; or whether we settle on the far side of the sea (Psalm 139:8-9).
Lord, we pray for all who have lost their way. We pray for those who are dazed, disoriented, and confused by the traumas of life. Physically and spiritually. We pray for the ones who even now feel enveloped in darkness. The ones who feel that even "the light becomes night" around them (Psalm 139:11). Hold them fast with Your right hand, O God—let Your light shine into their darkness.
Open our ears, our spirits, to hear Your voice. Let us hear Your challenge to take stock. Let our response be repentance, and gratitude, and humble surrender. Let our prayer be like that of Your children, “Come, let us return to the Lord...Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge Him..." (Hosea 6:1,3).
We lift to You the areas where we have been "torn to pieces." We lift to You the injuries we have suffered as a result of our own wrong or foolish choices, the wrong or foolish choices of others, or the difficult circumstances of this broken world.
Thank You, O Lord, that when we cry out to You, You will hear us. Thank You that when we return to You, [You] will heal us...[You] will bind up our wounds... As surely as the sun rises, [You] will appear; [You] will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth” (Hosea 6:1,3).
コメント