God, Where Are You?نموونە

Day 3: Finding God’s Instructions

I used to believe that if I was following Jesus correctly, no bad situations or circumstances would happen in my life.
Imagine my surprise when challenges still arose.
Hard circumstances were still happening, and life wasn’t the pile of roses I thought it would be.

The truth is—I was looking for God’s power to zap away all of life’s troubles before I even had the chance to experience them. And when those troubles showed up at my front door, I’d be deeply distressed, wondering, why, oh why, has God abandoned me?

But did He abandon me?
Or… was He showing up with a different part of Himself that I wasn’t expecting?

In today’s reading, David and his men return to their camp, only to find that all their wives, children, and possessions were gone.
They were devastated.
Grief overwhelmed them—and the men turned on David, ready to kill him. They believed David had led them astray. They were convinced that if God were still with him, this tragedy would never have happened.

But right in the middle of this moment, while his life was being threatened, David sought the Lord.
And the Lord answered.

God’s presence didn’t show up in a way that stopped the pain or prevented the loss. But His instruction showed up.
And that means God was right there.
He wasn’t far off in the midst of the pain.
Sometimes, His presence comes in the form of His instruction.

Once we stop deciding how God is “allowed” to show up, we might find ourselves in awe of the unexpected ways He’s already here.

Prayer:
Dear Lord, help us to be in awe of Your presence—no matter how You reveal Yourself. Whether through Your love, your instruction, or Your power, help us to recognize and receive each part of You with gratitude. Thank You for showing up in our lives, even when we don’t recognize You at first.
In Jesus’ name, amen.

Reflection Questions:

1. Are there any unexpected ways God has shown up in your life?
2. What does it mean to me that God’s instruction is a form of His presence?
3. How might your faith shift if you embraced every part of God—not just the parts that are most comfortable?