The Disguised Deity

“I will wait for the Lord, who is hiding his face.” (Isaiah 8:17)

Hide and seek.  As a child, we all played the game.  Sometimes we still want to play it.  Cover ourselves up with a blanket and hide from world.  Or at other times we wish we could move about incognito so that no one would recognize us – or bother us.  I don’t know, maybe we just want some privacy, some time to ourselves.  Or perhaps what we are really seeking is some peace and quiet.

Did you know that when Jesus walked this earth, he at times did so in disguise?  Once when he walked on water, his disciples saw him disguised as a ghost.  In the garden at the tomb on that resurrection morning, Mary saw him disguised as a gardener.  Then there was that road that led to Emmaus when two of his disciples didn’t recognize him at all, until they got a good look at the nail scars in his hands.

Have you ever thought about the times Jesus has appeared incognito in your life?  Times he was right in front of you, or beside you – and you missed him?  Times he has spoken to you as a pastor or bible teacher.  Times he has touched you as a friend, or your conscience, or even in disguise as an unbeliever.  Perhaps you’re not aware, but the Lord may have touched you many times through your spouse, your good friend, your boss, or your parent.  Or perhaps he has tenderly touched your cheek as sunlight on a beautiful day.  Or given you a smile through a stranger you passed.  Or maybe your encounter with him has been something you thought was unpleasant when it was really a life saving rebuke through the correction of a friend.  Or he has even disguised himself through the hurt of an enemy, or a circumstance that looked like a tragedy at the time.

Every day in every way, Jesus touches our life, our heart, our soul through circumstances and people.  Through lessons that are pleasant and lessons that aren’t so pleasant.  Through the mundane and the new and exciting.  Ways that he says to us, “I am always with you.”  You see, if we don’t always see him or feel him, it doesn’t mean he’s not there.  If we think at night that he didn’t speak to us that day, it may only mean that we didn’t hear him, or see the tender love he showed us.  We need to keep our eyes and ears open to our Lord, because he is always by our side – just sometimes in disguise.

                                            Darlene