Hiding

God might not be preparing you to be a king, but He sure is preparing you for the calling He has for you

Posted on

Recently in church, we were discussing Genesis 3, where Adam and Eve are hiding from God after eating from the tree of good and evil. The pastor touched on the first reaction to this knowledge, hiding and making excuses. And I couldn’t help but be smacked with the reality that most Christians are still hiding and making excuses for our sin. And while I don’t think it’s a conscious decision to hide from God, I do think it’s human nature and a default of sorts.

Before eating from the tree, Adam and Eve were very intimate and close with God, but then there was an obstruction to this connection and intimacy….and that obstruction (or sin) led to a lifestyle of pain and hiding. This got me thinking about what hiding from God looks like today.

I dove into scripture, and although there isn’t a lot that talks directly about “hiding from God”, there are plenty of words on hiding, and much of it is in Psalms and 1 Samuel as David and Saul dramatically play out on the pages. But in this story, God protects David and “did not give David into Saul’s hands”. God had a purpose for David’s life and while hardship and hiding were part of that, God protected David.

As I pondered “hiding” even more, the word avoidance kept coming to mind. Because hiding from God is avoiding; avoiding God’s calling for my life, not claiming His promises and truth, choosing comfort over redeemed living, not utilizing the special talents God gave ME, and not making my thoughts obedient to Christ. It’s a way of picking and choosing the gospel we want to accept, and not claiming the totality of truth found in God’s word. It’s not waking up every morning and suiting up with the Armor of God. Because if we are living with the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, sword of the spirit, and prayer all in place; there is no hiding to be done.

Ephesians 1:10 says that we were “created to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do”. He has good works prepared for me and you; he has a purpose for our existence and a job for us to do. We are no accident, and the hardships and challenges life throws our way are not purposeless. David hid from Saul who was trying to kill him, and in turn, experienced God’s protection and provision as he prepared David to be king.

God might not be preparing you to be a king, but he sure is preparing you for the calling he has for you. A calling that is easy to avoid and even forget as we are weighed down with the busyness of life. And this is where hiding can work in our favor; not hiding from God, but intentionally “hiding” from life and running to God regularly. Running to special quiet time to meditate on scripture and connect with God. A God desperate to speak HIS truth into our lives. A God who “chose us before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.” Ephesians 1:4. A God who has lavished us with his grace, wisdom, and understanding. An anchor for our souls.

Distractions, idols, and false heart fillers are easy imposters for connection with God, but eventually walking outside of God’s will and covering will do more harm than walking into the “hard” things God is calling you to.

What are you hiding from today?

Romans 8:38

“For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

 

 

This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Rachel Rae Anderson

Featured Image by Pexels from Pixabay

 

The views and opinions expressed by Kingdom Winds Collective Members, authors, and contributors are their own and do not represent the views of Kingdom Winds LLC.

About the Author

Rachel Anderson is mom to three awesome kiddos, wife to an amazing husband, dog mom to three little furry friends, and a child of God searching for her place in this vast world. God has been pruning her life for many years, and He has prompted her heart to share what He’s teaching her in this space.