How to see God

I’ve never seen Him… but I’ve seen Him.

I’ve never heard Him… but I’ve heard Him.

I’ve never felt Him… but I’ve most certainly felt Him.

It’s never what it seems like, and it’s usually not as you expect it. Allow God to show His beauty in your life. You’ll see His beauty when you truly look. 

No, don’t look. 

Look. 

It’s a riddle, yes, but you’ll understand. 

It’s about the heart, not the head. 

Don’t just search with your eyes. Look with your heart. 

Don’t just listen with your ears. Listen with your heart. 

Don’t just try to feel with your hands or feelings alone, but sense Him in your heart and around you, in His children’s hearts. 

You want to see God?

Stop looking, and look, with your heart.

The reason you don’t see God is not due to a lack of effort or desire. Seeing God isn’t necessarily an event, but a transformation. Sometimes this transformation happens at confession of faith, sometimes at baptism. Sometimes at camp, or maybe a regular Tuesday night. 

One thing is for certain: it doesn’t happen just once. Seeing God happens as an effect of a lifetime or heart, soul, and mind transformations.

I see God in many aspects of life. I see Him in my friend from church who has a genuine and pure-hearted welcoming spirit. I see Him in my friend from school, whose love to push further into learning about God inspires so many around him. I see Him in two of my best friends who radiate joy, in my brother’s wisdom, in my worship leader’s smile, in brother in Christ’s passion and enthusiasm to love and be genuine.

But I also see Him in the Bible.

I see Him as the father in the story of the prodigal son, waiting patiently for his child to return to Him. (Luke 15:11-32)

I see Him proudly acknowledging God’s work in Peter as he confesses Jesus as the Messiah. (Matthew 16:13-20)

Our God is a proud father (Matthew 3:17, Zephaniah 3:17).

Our God is an emotional lover (Jeremiah 31:3, Hosea 11:8-9, Isaiah 54:10).

Our God is a righteous King (Psalms 47:7-8, Isaiah 33:22).

Our God is a patient shepherd (Psalms 23:1-4, Isaiah 40:11, John 10:11-15).

He’s not silent, nor is he ignorant (1 John 5:14, Psalms 139:1-4).

Don’t look for a sign, seek his heart. His nearness is a result of your seeking.

And in his nearness, you will begin to see things and hear things and feel things and taste things and smell things and think things and do things NEVER POSSIBLE BEFORE.

Your heart! He wants your heart! He seeks your heart! Don’t look! Watch and see what He does!!! Has our God not given enough to marvel at?

In this truth, we find the foundation of our desire and pursuit. It is through the purity of our heart that we come to truly see and experience God. This journey in faith is not merely about seeking signs or wonders but about drawing closer to Him and opening ourselves to His transformative presence.

Amen, Lord, I receive it.

So today, we declare this over ourselves.

Lord, our hearts cry out for Your closeness. We need you God. Where else could we find peace? Where else could we be surrounded by such joy? Where else could be so completely filled with love? Nowhere but Your presence. 

So today, we draw near to You. We open our hearts to whatever You have for us, and we receive and walk with what You give us. 

Thank you for who You are. Thank you for revealing Yourself to us. Clothe us with Your love today that it may overflow out of us onto those around us. In Jesus’ name, amen.

“Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.”

— Matthew 5:8

Written in mid-June 2024 - Adjustments made on August 13, 2024