Articles
Looking For Me
A telemarketer called a home one day, and a small voice whispered, “Hello?”
“Hello! What’s your name?”
Still whispering, the voice said, “Jimmy.”
“How old are you, Jimmy?”
“I’m four.”
“Good, Is your mother home?”
“Yes, but she’s busy.”
“Okay, is your father home?”
“He’s busy too.”
“I see, who else is there?”
“The police.”
“The police? May I speak with one of them?”
“They’re busy.”
“Any other grown-ups there?”
“The firemen.”
“May I speak with a fireman, please?”
“They’re all busy.”
“Jimmy, all those people in your house, and I can’t talk with any of them? What are they doing?”
“Looking for me,” whispered Jimmy.
We tend to hide sometimes—especially when we are in trouble. Adam and Eve did this also (story found in Genesis 3). When God came down into the Garden of Eden to talk with them, they hid themselves from Him because they knew they were naked. They weren’t supposed to know they were naked. They weren’t even supposed to know what being naked was all about. However, they had eaten from the tree which God asked them not to eat, as it gave them knowledge God had not yet intended for them.
So when God calls out, “Where are you?” they have no choice but to tell Him the truth. They say, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” Uh oh! Adam just told on himself. First, Adam tries to hide his sin. Then he mistakenly admits his sins to the very God He was trying to hide it from.
God catches on (and considering He is all-knowing, He already knew) and confronts Adam with his sin. He first asks, “Who told you that you were naked?” and then asks, “Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” There is no out from God’s line of questioning. So, Adam does the only thing, uses the only defense he has left available to himself—he blames someone else. Some say he blames Eve who gave him the fruit. Others point out that he blames God for giving him Eve. Regardless, he’s still trying to wiggle out from underneath the weight of guilt he feels for his sin.
We do this same thing. We blame others. We hide. We avoid dealing with our sins. Our sins separate us from our God (Is 59.1-2). Our sins drive a wedge between Him and us and keep us from being right with our perfect and holy King. God is out there calling out, “Where are you?” God is looking for you, waiting for you to come home. He knows your sins (just like He knew Adam’s), but He is waiting for you to come home to Him and admit your fault so He can forgive you. Come out of hiding and turn back to God today!
