I have a friend who says, when he’s musing about a situation he doesn’t quite have a handle on, “I wonder what God is up to here?” He’s cultivated the habit of expecting God to show up precisely in the quirky, messy events that don’t make sense – the situations that don’t seem to compute.
Training them to be ready for his ongoing self-revelation, Jesus makes two promises to his followers that I believe are also meant for us: he assures them that “the kingdom of God is among you” (Luke 17:21), and he comforts them with the promise, “Behold, I am with you always” (Matthew 28:20).
If we assume the Spirit is present and at work among us, then whatever comes up – whatever conflicts, uncertainties, losses, confusions – we can begin to notice how God works. I believe we will begin to recognize the kingdom of God here and now, even under the scarred, bloody surfaces of human affairs – hidden but, paradoxically, always in the process of revealing itself.
This message is excerpted from “Epiphany is divine disclosure” by Marilyn McEntyre in the January/February 2020 Gather magazine.
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