We found Jesus!
Recently I wrote a devotional where I described the chaos of our living room floor after the almost three-year-old twin grandchildren had visited. The different nativity scenes were left fallen on the ground and spread far and wide. Jesus was still safe and properly sleeping on the floor of the room, though far from Mary and Joseph. Maybe the twins were acting out the future scene of Jesus wandering from his parents at age 12 to be about his Father’s business. I do have brilliant grandchildren after all!
However, my concern in my previous devotional was that in one nativity scene, Jesus was missing. I was confident that Jesus was doing fine, but I just didn’t know where he was or what he was doing. And sometimes when things are hectic in our schedules or when struggles persist, we, too, wonder where Jesus is in our moment of need. We wonder if he is doing anything to help. One of the many places in scripture that reminds us that the Lord is always with us is found in Deuteronomy 31:8: “It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” In every moment Jesus is present, and he is always working, regardless of whether we can see it in the moment.
When the twins arrived this week for a second round of play, one of the twins, Alice, noticed that Jesus was missing from one of the nativity sets. “Where’s Jesus?” I answered that we didn’t know. I then asked Alice where she thought Jesus might be, and she responded, “Maybe under the couch.” Sure enough, we found Jesus on the fringes of the rug at the edge of the wooden floors.
Isaiah 55 reminds us to seek the Lord while he yet may be found; call upon him while he is near. Had many more days or weeks passed, the little Jesus from the nativity scene may have been vacuumed up in a clean-up process!
Jesus is present and wants us to seek him and discover his love, mercy, grace, and presence. Maybe during advent it is a good time to seek the Lord. He longs for us to seek him and discover him even in the midst of our life’s struggles. And when we reconnect with Jesus, we will discover that he will indeed keep us in perfect peace as we keep our mind on him.
Father, thank you for the gift of Jesus. Thank you for your promises that teach us you are always present and desire to help us in every moment of every day. Thank you for the gift of peace that comes to us as we keep our minds and hearts focused on you. In Jesus name, amen.
Your Time with God’s Word
Deuteronomy 31:8; Isaiah 26:3-4, 55:6-9 ESV
Photo by ian borg on Unsplash
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