Hidden Treasures: Present and Compassionate

He just disappeared. One minute I had him in my sights; the next moment, my three-year-old was gone. Heart pounding, I grabbed my oldest son’s hand and we scoured the store. We ran up and down the aisles, shouting his name. I even asked strangers to look in the men’s bathroom. He was nowhere to be found. Panic rising, I marched toward customer service for help – when he popped out of a toy box, giggling. “Boo!”

I didn’t know whether to laugh or scold. So I cried – huge tears of relief. I hugged him big, then I told him never, ever leave me again. And I cried some more.

My little fella’s absence created a hole in my soul within seconds. So I searched for him.

Shouldn’t we do the same for our Father? On those days, in those seasons when God seems hidden from us, when His presence cannot be sensed, shouldn’t we search for Him? After all, Scripture promises us that God will never leave or forsake us (Isaiah 41:10). He promises to be with us always (Matthew 28:20). 

Doubt

The truth is we are physical beings who exist in a temporal setting. As a result, sensing the Spirit and knowing God’s presence don’t come naturally. And when we suffer, it’s all the more easy to believe God is ignoring us – that He has turned His back on us. We doubt he cares.

Dig

Ironically, the sun didn’t seem to shine much the year we lived on the Texas coast. At least that’s how I remember it. Maybe it was more my mood that felt cloudy. The move was our first, which meant we had left everything and everyone we’d ever known, so I suffered a grief and loneliness I’d not known before.

When I found a nodule on my two-year-old’s neck, I silently shouted at God, “Why did You move us away from everyone only for my son to have a tumor?” I can see now how my reaction reflected my stormy outlook. I hadn’t felt close to God since the move. And my doubts about God’s nearness and compassion took on new life as I awaited our doctor’s appointment. In my view, the skies were dark, indeed.

Nevertheless, my prayers didn’t completely cease. They may not have been packed full of faith, but I kept talking to the only One I (literally) knew at the time. I prayed and heard only silence in return. I offered laments with no indication of their receipt. Panic carried me into the pediatrician’s office as images of cancer treatments spiraled in my mind. I didn’t feel very cared for or carried by God in those moments.

But, when I heard the words, “your son is fine. This is a swollen node,” the heavy burden of worry lifted. Thus relieved, I practically floated back to the car, realizing as I buckled my precious boy into his car seat that I’d nearly let my doubt of God douse my faith.

Dig Deeper

I’ve personally begun to acknowledge just how much more I need to search for God in those moments and seasons of struggle and suffering. When it feels like God is hiding from us, we double-down on our Scripture treasure hunting – so that we’ll remember and live like we believe these truths:

“This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Joshua 1:9 NLT, emphasis mine

“No other nation, no matter how great, has a god who is so near when they need him as the LORD our God is to us. He answers us whenever we call for help.”

Deuteronomy 4:7 GNT, emphasis mine

“Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.”

James 4:8 ESV

Discovery

It startled me to realize the level of doubt in God I carried within me as I sat in that doctor’s office. Dread had morphed into anger – and God was my target. I had assumed the worst about Him. 

I recently read these words from Dane Ortlund, and a light in my mind flickered to life. I felt the truth of them:

“Our tendency is to feel intuitively that the more difficult life gets, the more alone we are. As we sink further into pain, we sink further into felt isolation. The Bible corrects us. Our pain never outstrips what he himself shares in. We are never alone.”¹

When I think back on difficult seasons, I recognize that ‘sinking into isolation’ experience – how it was my instinct to pull away, to hunker down. Even from God. With every challenge and season of heartache, I’ve had to choose to go against my natural inclinations. Every time I’ve had to put effort and intentionality into going toward God rather than away from Him – and I do so because I sincerely believe we are never alone.

I’m forever grateful that the diagnosis wasn’t what I’d imagined. But even if it had been, at some point I would have needed to awaken to some bottom-line truths about God – because I needed Him (I need Him) every moment of every day. There’s no navigating life well without Him.

As I discussed with the Lord my reaction in those fear-filled days, I realized that the months of traumatic transition leading up to the lump’s discovery had taken its toll on my trust of God. I’d not been seeking Him or spending time with Him. I’d moved through my days believing that my past faithfulness would carry me into the future. So on that day of awakening, I made the decision to seek after God with all my heart – no matter how I felt or how absent He seemed.

And while I haven’t been on my God-hunting A-game every single day over the last two decades, I have never stopped searching for more of God in my life. I’ve grabbed hold of passages of promise and have not let go: He is with me wherever I go. He is near. He will never leave me. These are God-promises of presence. 

In the Old Testament, these promises gave hope to a just-delivered people who were learning that Yahweh was not like ‘other gods’ who never spoke, never moved, never cared. These promises gave strength to that same nation – God would go with them into the Promised Land. He would defeat all the wicked people in their path. 

As ‘proof’ of His word-keeping ability, God’s glory – His spiritual presence – descended from heaven to dwell in the Holy of Holies of the Tabernacle. This fledgling nation could see the smoke and flames of God’s presence guiding them from the clouds. This visual cue helped them trust God was with them.

But sight wasn’t always enough. Humanity needed more of God in order to have stronger faith – to move from believing in Him to believing Him. So, He became human, Immanuel – the One who tabernacled among us, with skin on (John 1:14). Then He came as Spirit to dwell in us. And one day, He’ll return to defeat every foe once and for all so that we can live with Him, face-to-face.

THIS is our God. The One who is omnipresent. This God of ours is with us – always. And He leads us with His compassionate heart.

Recall that the life – the actions and words – of Jesus directly reflects the character of God (Hebrews 1:3). Therefore, when we hunt through Scripture and discover that ‘compassion’ is “the emotion most frequently attributed to” Christ, we can know, for a fact, that God is compassionate.¹ 

Literally, compassion means to ‘suffer together’ or ‘suffer with’. So to recognize this attribute of God – that His very essence joins us in our suffering – is to acknowledge that He doesn’t just go about doing “deeds of compassion” but feels the turmoil we do.¹ And He feels it deep within Himself, as indicated by the Greek word for compassion used in so many gospel passages (ie: Matthew 20:34; Mark 1:41; Luke 7:13). Splanchnizo “denotes more than passing pity; it refers to a depth of feeling” that churns within – as from the gut.¹  

Let’s also remember that God describes Himself as compassionate in our foundational verse, Exodus 34:6. In fact, ‘compassion’ is the first word God uses in His self-defining monologue because He wants us to know that He is “deeply moved by what He sees.” And that He cares so much about us that He chose to enter “the suffering of humanity in Jesus,” the One who embodies God’s deep compassion.² 

Read the gospels. Jesus never once shies away from those who suffer. Rather, He goes toward them. With compassion (ie: Matthew 14:14,15:32). He gives and gives of Himself – all while remaining patient and kind (ie: Matthew 4:23-25)! It’s this very compassion-driven heart that moves our Savior to become the “means for bringing us near to God.”²  

I love this – the heart of the Father in the Son moves Jesus to give His life for us so that we can have the gift, the privilege of God’s presence!

I’m certain I’ve never searched for anything as fervently as I did that day in the store when my toddler went missing. I’m sure the adrenaline coursing through my body kept me focused, but the core motivation remained solid – I did not want to lose my son. I didn’t want that relationship to be broken. So I hunted for him.

And that’s exactly the heart we need in this walk with God.

There will be days and seasons that He simply seems hidden. We can’t feel Him or hear Him, and if we let our imaginations take over, doubt will hijack our thoughts, creating a hole in our soul. But that doesn’t have to be our response, our reality – because there’s truth. 

The truth is God is present – always and everywhere. Even when we cannot sense Him, we can take Him at His word – He will never leave us. So by faith, we choose to trust that He is near. We open the Bible to remember God’s compassionate heart for His people. We watch Jesus as He approaches those who have been cast out and deemed unworthy, and we believe that He does the same for us. 

Because that’s the “promise of the gospel and the message of the whole Bible: In Jesus Christ, we are given a friend who will always enjoy rather than refuse our presence.”¹ So we reciprocate. We don’t refuse His presence; we draw near. We trust that in His perfect way and time, He will make Himself known.

It occurs to me that this treasure hunt we’re on includes searching for our Father in Heaven. We pursue Him with our whole hearts. We overcome doubt with truth. We seek Him with faith and hope – because our God cares, and He is always near.

Father God, You are near – right here with us. Your heart for us is full of compassion; You care about us. We pray these truths will sink into our hearts and fill our minds so that all doubts about You will be overtaken, cast away. We pray these truths will be our guiding light as we walk through this life with You – that we’ll believe the fact that You draw near when we need You, that You are with us wherever we go, and that You will never leave us. Lord Jesus, thank You for becoming the Incarnate One who took on flesh – the One who knows how it feels to live as we do. You have most truly suffered with us. You have suffered for us. And that fact alone can be our memory-jogger – You care so much for us that You lived among us and died for us. You became the means for us to have one-on-one access with the Father. Because of You we can have confidence that God is present, and all we have to do is draw near to Him. Holy Spirit, we are so grateful to have your dwelling presence in us. We recognize that You are “the daily, felt, experiential presence of God, who will never leave” us nor forsake us.³ You are His voice in our hearts and His means for demonstrating His holy presence. Because of You, when we feel weak today, we do not have to be hidden and covered up.³ Instead, we are made known by prayer, by You. Help us, we pray, to keep searching for God, to keep seeking Him in all we do so that we remain firmly rooted in His love, in His presence. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.
(inspired by Philippians 4:5; Exodus 34:6; John 8:32; Deuteronomy 4:7; Joshua 1:9; Isaiah 41:10; John 1:14; Hebrews 4:15; 1 Peter 2:24; John 14:6; James 4:8; John 16:13; Ephesians 3:17; Hebrews 10:19-22)

Resources: I love sharing with you the books, podcasts, articles, and anything else that has inspired, encouraged, or taught me. These are humble offerings with no expectations.

• 1 – Dane Ortlund in his book Gentle and Lowly,^ pp.48, 105, 106, 115
• 2 – Bible Project’s series that covers the five attributes of God in Exodus 34:6. The first in the series is Compassion  – and it’s well worth the watch! 
• 3 – Lectio 365, Tyler Staton, 4/2/24
• Our Backpack of God’s Attributes is our virtual bag for collecting every characteristic of God we find in all our hunting. We’re loading up all we discover about Him. So far:
  • God is Worthy — He deserves all glory and honor and praise.**
  • God is Glorious — He displays His greatness and worth.**
  • God is Transcendent — He is not like humans. He is infinitely higher in being and action.**
  • God is Truthful — Whatever God speaks or does is truth and reality.**
  • God is Incomprehensible — God is beyond our understanding. We can comprehend Him in part but not in whole.**
  • God is Love — God feels and displays infinite, unconditional affection toward His children. His love for them does not depend on their worth, response, or merit.**
  • God is Gracious — The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love (Psalm 145:8).
  • God is Good — God is what is best and gives us what is best. He is incapable of doing harm.**
  • God is Comforter — the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).
  • God is Deliverer — God rescues and saves His children.**
  • God is Redeemer — Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine (Isaiah 43:1-2).
  • God is Omnipotent — God holds all the power. Nothing is too hard for God.**
  • God is Almighty — What God wills, He can accomplish.** “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him” (Colossians 1:16).
  • God is Infinite — God has no limits in His person or His power.**
  • God is Sovereign — “O Sovereign Lord! You made the heavens and earth by your strong hand and powerful arm. Nothing is too hard for you” (Jeremiah 32:17).
  • God is Just — God is fair in all His actions and judgments. He cannot over-punish or under-punish.**
  • God is Righteous — God is always good and right.**
  • God is Wrathful — God hates all unrighteousness.**
  • God is Merciful — God does not give His children the punishment they deserve.**
  • God is Patient/Long-Suffering — God is untiring and bears with His children.**
  • God is Provider — God meets the needs of His children.**
  • God is Omnipresent — God is fully present everywhere.**
  • God is Compassionate — God cares for His children and Acts on their behalf.**
  • **many thanks to Jen Wilkin and her list, “Attributes of God,” present at the back of every study
• I’m curious which song on our playlist, “Hidden Treasures,” has been speaking to your soul the most in recent days? It’s so hard for me to choose, but I do hear myself singing along with the chorus of Brooke Ligertwood’s “I Will Exalt You” — Because You’re with me, Because You’re with me, I will not fear. What a great mantra in days of such fear-producing events.
• July is flying by, so it won’t be long till it’s the first week of August and the next edition of my newsletter, The Abiding Life, hits inboxes!! If you have any thoughts or questions for it, let me know in the comments. You can subscribe to future newsletters here.

Rhythms: As my newsletter’s title infers, we seek to develop an abiding life in this space — a place where we can get informed but also be transformed as we learn to abide in God’s presence throughout our days. I like to think that developing rhythms is one way to aid us in our desire to become more Christlike.

• Praise, our summer rhythm, is the speaking of truths about WHO GOD IS. It lifts our eyes off our circumstances and back onto the One who can walk us through them. And the Psalms are packed with poems that will lead us through this ritual of reflection and remembrance — until it becomes a rhythm that we fall into naturally.
  • As I listened to JD Walt on The Wake Up Call this week, he pointed us back to a well-known passage in Philippians where Paul tells us to rejoice in the Lord and not to be anxious — because tucked between those two verses is this one:

“Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near” (4:5).

• A nearly hidden gem wedged between two giants. But how perfect for what we’re leaning into this week with the Lord. God knows that when we’re anxious, we lose our focus. We stop seeking Him. We don’t feel His presence. And that’s why Paul points us to our gentleness — which includes living with gratitude, humility, and compassion. In other words, stay in the Spirit. Don’t spin-off in our wound-up state, on our own — rather, lean into God. Believe —the Lord is near. What truth. What comfort. What hope.
  • This week, let’s read Psalm 145. This one really flows — full of praises for who God is! You’ll love it. You’ll recognize some of the attributes of God we’ve already discussed — so allow yourself to soak in them and recall who God is. You’ll notice notes about His nearness, as well as His compassion. And, you just might see our Exodus 34:6 verse! Let’s make this Psalm our prayer of praise this week. XOXO

• And while it’s not a spiritual practice or rhythm, I invite you to share this site. Summer is a great time to ask someone else to join us here — it is a shared journey of faith, for sure!

Featured Photo by Srideep Gurung on Unsplash. “All the Bits and Pieces” photo by Zrng N Gharib on Unsplash.
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