It has been a day full of many things, the mundane, the planned, and the unexpected – some more trying than others. Help us, Father, to work our way through them all, following after Your will and wisdom. Amen.

Romans 10:16-21 (<<click here to read the passage)

In Middle School, my dad pastored in Mason, Ohio. We lived at the head of Jefferson Drive and our home stood on a double lot, I think. There were a lot of kids in our neighborhood and our place was the designated spot for flashlight tag!

Play would begin after dark and the old willow in the far corner was our base. We would all start there and the person that was it would count to 100 and then slip out in pursuit of the others. The object was to get back to base without being caught in the beam of the flashlight.

I was often “it” and loved it – I’m pretty sure they loved me being “it” because I was very good at my job and could creep up on them without them even knowing I was there! We had such a good time!

This fun memory came to mind as I read through today’s passage. Verse 20, in particular, triggered my recollection.

“I was found by those who did not seek me;
    I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me.” NIV

In our childhood game, we were trying not to get caught, but God showed Himself for who He is over and over again. Unfortunately, God’s chosen people – the Israelites – refused to see. It was their dream…their hope but when the reality of all their hopes and dreams stood before them embodied in Jesus of Nazareth, they refused to believe.

So, God – as He had proclaimed in millennia past – “was found by those who did not seek me; He revealed myself to those who did not ask for Him.”

We must be careful ourselves. Though God has been found by us, it is only by His grace and mercy that we have done so. Verse 17 reads,

So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ. NLT

That’s one of those verses that I distinctly remember learning from the King James Version in my youth and it reads,

So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. NKJV

It is a gift. May we manage and may we cherish it well. Amen.

July 19th, 2023, Wed, 8:26 pm