Connecting With God

Jeremiah 29:13 “If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.”

Do you ever feel like you’re constantly looking for something? Maybe it’s as simple as trying to find your car keys as you head out to work in the morning. For a lot of people, it’s socks. A matching pair of socks.

I think most of us can admit we’re often searching for things in a space where we’re already stressed by other demands and, almost always, pressed for time. When we’re constantly living in that space it can be immensely difficult to find lost items, even if they’re literally right under our nose. How many times have we found the car keys on the hook right where we always leave them? We’re searching for our cell phone when it’s already crammed into the nook of our arm, but we miss it because our arms are overloaded with other things.

Many times, whatever it is that we’re looking for can seem so elusive, even when we’re talking about a specific, tangible object. Let’s apply this to our spiritual lives. What about when we’re searching for something that isn’t quite so tangible? Peace. Identity. Calm in the middle of a storm. God himself. Talk about complicated.

When the future is unknown and our circumstances out of control, life feels unpredictable and scary. It’s precisely during these times where I feel lost and need God most. Yet I often don’t want to slow down long enough to really connect with Him. I’m sure many of us are guilty of this very thing. One of the biggest lessons God has been teaching me over the course of the last several months is just how important it is that I be intentional about connecting with Him.

I was talking with a good friend of mine recently and we asked each other: Where is it that you feel God’s presence most closely? What are the spaces in which you find yourself seeking, finding and connecting with Him? For her, it’s when she’s singing, dancing or participating in anything to do with music. For me, the outdoor space of a concrete basketball court, a ball and a hoop has always represented a bit of a sanctified place. I don’t think many people would put the words basketball and sanctification together in the same sentence. So, let me explain.

It was a Sunday afternoon a few months back. I’d been to church that morning and lunch with friends after. It had been a good day. Yet I still found myself lying on the couch that afternoon feeling unsettled and it was a feeling I couldn’t quite shake.

After spending some time talking to the Lord, I found myself feeling prompted to get dressed, grab my ball and walk the ½ mile up the street to the outdoor court. During those next 30 mintues, I connected with and felt God speak to me in a way I hadn’t before. Music in my ears. The echoing of the ball pounding the pavement. The sound of the net as my shot went through the hoop (or banged off the rim…ha!).

I thought to myself..”I get it, Lord. You’ve always been here”. It was a moment, all these years later, that God revealed how He had always been meeting me there. The countless hours I spent on that outdoor court—training, escaping. He was with me. He was protecting me and He loved me even when I wasn’t aware of His presence. What an amazing gift.

What does that look like for you? Perhaps it’s in the rhythmic rocking of a recliner with earbuds blaring your favorite tunes. Maybe it’s in the middle of the night as you nurse your newborn in a sleep-deprived stupor. The beauty is in the uniqueness of what that specific space looks like for each of us. Though it may change throughout the different stages of our lives, I believe we must be intentional in determining where we connect with God.

When we slow down, temporarily release the things that are weighing us down and become intentional about connecting with Him, the elusive search suddenly becomes a little simpler. Be intentional. Look for Him with your whole heart and I promise, He is already there waiting for you.