Encouragement

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How odd that it's the scientists that are finding God's hidden treasures. What a shame they don't even know that He put them there to be found. And they're finding amazing stuff, everywhere. Deep, deep in the ocean, far from any light source, robotic submarines found bizarre fish with fantastic colors and florescent light. Space telescopes have taken pictures of planetary nebulae that look like cloud formations with great patches of blue, red or yellow. Beautiful, beautiful pictures. It could only be "in the fullness of time" that these things could even be seen, even if they were dreamed of. Not until now, after all of human history, have these treasures been found. And yet, they've been there the whole time.

Why would fish so far from light be so colorful? Why does a planetary nebula need to be so beautiful? Because God loves beauty too. And I believe that He wanted to give us a thrill in finding them. I believe there are more treasures to be found. I believe that God hid them everywhere¡Xright under our noses and far out in space. There's a galactic Easter egg hunt going on and most of us are missing out.

"He who seeks will find." There's something in the seeking. There's something in the determination to find whatever needs to be found, even when there's nothing obvious to look for. "He who has eyes to see, let him see." You'll need special lenses for this treasure hunt. You'll need to see into another dimension where the Holy Spirit will lead the way and point out where to dig. And the beauty is, you won't even have to go far.

God made us all unique so our treasures will be different. One person has joy in discovering a new bug. Someone else is over the hill to find a cherished family recipe handed down from grandmother to granddaughter. Someone else is delirious to find the perfect teacup. We may come across these things randomly, but God wants us to let Him be the guide. He knows our hearts. He knows the silly little things that bring us joy. The kind of joy that makes us waste time thinking about it with a goofy grin on our face. The little things that other people wouldn't understand, He does.

It's all about getting those special lenses. That's the secret to great treasure hunting. The human part of us wishes that there was a store we could go to, try on frames that look good on us, and buy the perfect pair of glasses for our needs. The spiritual side knows better. It's in the spirit that we need to correct our vision. The thing is, it's never going to happen. God doesn't want us finding things without Him. We are like blind people needing to be led and that's just the way He likes it. We listen to His voice and He says to walk a certain direction. We feel Him make us stop and rest. We feel the urging to move on again. His leading is delicate. It takes sensitive perception to feel His gentle guidance. There won't be any arm pulling or shoving, just a still small voice.

There are treasures out there to be found„olittle sweet ones and great fabulous ones. "Where your heart is, there will your treasure be also." If your heart is with Jesus, He will be the best treasure guide in the universe. He'll lead you to your heart's desire and to things that you didn't even know you liked.

But treasure hunting doesn¡¦t come by watching other people and it won't come by watching TV. It can only happen by spending time with the Holy Spirit and letting Him tell you the mysteries of the universe, and don't think He won't. Put on some gentle worship music, close your eyes and soak in His presence. Don't pray and yak at Him. Let Him do the talking. Just lay there quietly and let His presence make peace of your day. You may not hear Him just then. You may not hear anything at all, until later. It may be in the shower (my favorite place to hear God), or in your car. You may get a little thought, just a thought, but let it grow and see where it goes. You probably wouldn't get it without first spending time soaking with Him.

The more time we spend with Him, the more we understand why we're doing what we're doing anyway. We begin to see the treasures surrounding us that have been there the whole time. We begin to see beauty everywhere. And those silly little things that make us laugh out loud when we find them? We start finding them a lot more often.

God is not a God who sits on His throne and waits for the clock to run out. He's here and here now. If we only knew how much He talks to us without us ever hearing, we would be shocked and horrified. There's a way to change that. Start soaking in His presence and listening to His voice. You'll know when you hear it. At first you'll wonder, but it won't take long to recognize His accent. It won't be ¡§Thus Saith The LORD¡¨ type of communication either. He talks so we can understand Him without getting freaked out by the language. And His knowledge is limitless and boundless. The more we want to know, the more there is to find out. Dive in and see what you find, come out to wonder for a while, and dive back in. It's fun and breathtaking. Your time alone with God treasure hunting is everything that He wants from you and more amazing than you can imagine. Happy hunting, and don't forget to bring your camera.

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