Diapers, Pacifiers, and Other Holy ThingsНамуна

Hide and Seek

I count: "One, two, three..." Amanda hides behind a chair while her eighteen-month-old sister, Megan, stands in the middle of the living room, hands covering her eyes.

"Why isn't Megan hiding?" Amanda yells from behind the chair.

"She is, honey," I say. "Megan can't see us. So she thinks we can't see her."

I pull away one of Megan's hands.
"Peek-a-boo! I see you!"

Megan screams with delight and runs down the hall.

Hiding games are fun for children. But for adults, they can be painful.

Donna is thirty-five. She plays hide-and-seek every day. "I hide behind a smile," she admits. "That way no one will discover that my marriage is a disaster and that I’m drinking and popping pills so I can numb the pain."

All of us hide something. What do you hide?

Do you hide big things? Things you know are wrong and you're scared someone might find out? Like the bottle of vodka stashed behind the crock pot? Or the bruise on your child's face you caused in a fit of rage? Or the abortion you kept a secret?

Or do you hide little things, things you know are wrong but you fool yourself into believing they’re not that wrong? Like failing to report income on your tax form. Or your envy towards a friend with a nicer house, kinder husband, and a skinnier body. Or the anger you feel towards a boss who treated you unjustly.

You think no one is watching, but you’re wrong. You stand in plain sight of God who sees everything. And remember, friend, He loves you and accepts you just as you are. Still, you cover your eyes like Megan and imagine no one sees. But God sees it all, and He loves you anyway.

Luke 12:2 says, “There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed or hidden that will not be made known.”

Hide-and-seek is the world’s oldest game. It began with Adam and Eve who hid from God after they sinned. They passed this game down to their children, and their children passed it on to every generation that followed. God frowned on the game, but people still played it.

Hagar, servant of Abram's wife Sarai, hid from her mistress because Sarai mistreated her. Hagar fled to a desert, but God found her. He commanded Hagar to return to her mistress. He promised to bless her and her unborn child, whom He revealed would be a son. Awed by God’s omniscience, Hagar called God El Roi, which means “the One who sees” (Gen. 16:13, NIV).

Fourteen years later, Hagar again found herself in a desert, this time cast out with her son, Ishmael. When their water ran out, Death licked its lips expectantly. Just as Hagar thought the end had come, El Roi, the God who sees, "opened her eyes and she saw a well of water" (Gen. 21:19, NIV).

It’s one thing to have a God who sees you. It is quite another to have a God who opens your eyes for the ultimate purpose of meeting your needs.

If you’re playing hide-and-seek, stop. The game is over. You lost. God found you. He sees everything you've done, He knows all your thoughts. And He’s not angry with you. He loves you. In the safety of that love, He wants you to pour your heart out to Him.

Confess what you do in secret. Receive God’s forgiveness and healing.

For adults, hiding games are a losing proposition. If you want to play a game you can win, try checkers.

Reflection Questions:

1. Memorize Hebrews 4:13. How does it feel to know that you will give account to God for every hidden thing in your life?
2. Memorize Romans 8:1. Thank Jesus that because of what He did for you, you will never be condemned for the wrong things you do in secret.