[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”on” _builder_version=”4.19.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_module=”2615″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_fullwidth_header title=”@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF90aXRsZSIsInNldHRpbmdzIjp7ImJlZm9yZSI6IiIsImFmdGVyIjoiIn19@” text_orientation=”center” background_overlay_color=”rgba(0,0,0,0.5)” _builder_version=”4.19.4″ _dynamic_attributes=”title” _module_preset=”default” background_image=”https:\/\/tlcchicago.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/book-header.jpg” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_fullwidth_header][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”4.16″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Verse” _builder_version=”4.22.0″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
(Isaiah 65:1 ESV)<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Article” _builder_version=”4.22.0″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
This passage reminds me of the evening ritual my son and I had before his bedtime. Adam was a huge fan of Where\u2019s Waldo books, and rather than read a story (I know-bad mom) we would pour over those crazy drawings. Each turn of the page presented different illustrations depicting various events with what seemed like thousands of people. Together, we would scan the drawings for one thing: a tall, slim, funny looking fellow with round glasses and a red and white knit cap named, you guessed it, Waldo. He was not easy to find as he was drawn in surreptitiously amongst the activities, actions, and hordes of people in each scene. With practice Adam and I got pretty good at finding him: one because we knew he was there, and two because we took the time to look for him.<\/p>\n
I am not the first to see the correlation between the spiritual life and Waldo, but when I read the above passage in Isaiah with this invitation from God, it made me think of looking at the Where\u2019s Waldo books without looking for Waldo. We would have missed the whole point!<\/p>\n
How often do I go throughout my day like the characters in the Waldo books: unaware that somewhere God is hidden in the picture, inviting me to come look for him, to come and cry out for him? Often I simply forget to look; other times I am too preoccupied to look; and sometimes I don\u2019t want to look. What if I do find him\u2014then things will have to change. I will have to change<\/em>. You can\u2019t find the living God of the universe and not be impacted. I know that my deepest desire, my truest self, wants to find him, to have him mess with me, to change me. But there is another part (the flesh) that say\u2019s, \u201cHey, I\u2019m fine, thank you very much.\u201d<\/p>\n I have such fond memories of looking for Waldo with Adam. It was a ritual at night, but like most things in life I had no idea that God was there too, and that God would use that little life experience to teach me a great truth. God is always in my story but I need to practice persistently looking for him. I need to remember God is crying out to me, \u201cHere, am I, here am I!\u201d Oh that I would have ears to hear and eyes to see where God is hidden or where God is speaking! Oh that I would remember that God is in every scene, every frame of this thing that is the story of my life! Lord, let me see You, let me hear You in the story of my life events today. May it be our ritual together.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.22.0″ _module_preset=”default” background_color=”#efefef” global_module=”2606″ saved_tabs=”all” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.22.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.22.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_post_nav in_same_term=”on” _builder_version=”4.22.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_post_nav][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n<\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cI was ready to be sought by those who did not ask for me; I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me. I said, \u2018Here am I, here am I.\u2019\u201d (Isaiah 65:1 ESV)This passage reminds me of the evening ritual my son and I had before his bedtime. Adam was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":166,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":" Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start writing!<\/p>","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tlcchicago.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tlcchicago.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tlcchicago.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tlcchicago.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tlcchicago.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/tlcchicago.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2631,"href":"https:\/\/tlcchicago.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1\/revisions\/2631"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tlcchicago.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tlcchicago.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tlcchicago.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tlcchicago.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}