Our family has started this new thing that I'm loving. Let me share a little background first: When I begin to plan a new school year, I choose a word or phrase that's going to be our theme for the year. It's what's going to get me through those days when I think "These kids are complete aliens and I have no idea what to do next." (Moms-you've been there right?? Homeschool moms I KNOW you have.) This year, my phrase is "Seek God." It comes from my favorite verse, Matthew 6:33:
Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you.I can't even BEGIN to tell you how many times I've read and even quoted this verse! I've just always summed it up as "Put God first and everything else will fall into place." You've heard that too, right? Which is true, but recently the word "Seek" really stood out to me.
Seek- v. to search or hunt
Did you get that? It's more than just putting something first or checking it off the top of your to-do list, it's searching or being on a hunt for it. In this case, it's searching for God's sovereignty (His Kingdom) and His goodness (righteousness).
- It's SEARCHING for His power and control in my own life.
- It's LOOKING for how I can use my current situation to further His kingdom.
- It's FINDING Him and His will in EVERY area of my life.
That may mean I have to move some things around (or completely get rid of them) to have a clearer vision of it. It may mean digging down deeper and really stepping out on faith. It may mean it's going to take some time of just residing in His presence until He's ready for me to move forward. It WILL mean recognizing who He is and completely surrendering to Him.
I'm a practical girl and as God began to reveal this to me, I began to think about how we could apply this even more to our daily study and just life in general. How could we get in a habit of searching for God in our daily lives? I decided to start a little game of "I Spy God" in our family. (Thus the thing I'm lovingđź’“) When we spot a "God thing", we say "I spy God." That gets everyone's attention and then we guess what it is.
So, where all have we seen God? In sunsets, in rainbows, in each other's actions, in the actions of others, at home, in the car, at school, outside, and the list continues...
 |
| Sunset from our Front Porch |
About a week after we started this, I was folding clothes and my oldest daughter walked by and said, "I Spy God." I was looking around the room wondering what she was referring to and she grinned and said, "Thanks for folding our clothes." I may never get thanked for doing laundry again but it sure felt good that day!
Playing "I Spy God" has also made us all slow down a good bit, which is one of my goals in life anyway. A couple weeks ago, we had finished up most everything for the day and my younger daughter asked if we could just go outside and sit and see if we could spy God. My response was, "Of course"! We fixed a hot cup of tea and went outside and watched the sunset, discussing all the ways we could see God.
Another one of our major times of "spying God" has been on our hikes. Camping and hiking have become some of our favorite things to do as a family. Being outdoors is one of my favorite places to be, because God is so evident, especially this time of year. (You know, like in those 2 days of fall we had!) We spied God in the changing leaves, different rock formations, deer, songs along the way, and some hilarious conversations. On one hike, my oldest daughter declared she was never getting married to which my four year old son replied, "If God tells you to, you have to whether you want to or not!" Even at the age of 4, he already knows how important it is to follow God's direction for your life. I spy God.
 |
| Mushroom Rock at Horse Pens 40 |
 |
| Gorgeous view from the top of Chandler Mountain |
 |
| Deer at Lake Guntersville State Park |
In approaching this Christmas season, I hope that we can all slow down and "spy God" a little more all around us. At the time of Christ's birth there were some right in Bethlehem that had no clue the Savior was being born. There were some that had no room for Him. There were also some that came with haste to find him. There were others that traveled miles and miles from another country SEEKING the Christ child. They took the time and spied God, and the paths of their lives forever changed. When we take the time to spy God in our own lives, to recognize His goodness and power, we are forever changed. Life begins to fall into place and eventually we find Him, the greatest gift of all. Seek and we shall find. What will you spy today?
