Buy the Oranges – How The Light Gets In
“It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings.”
-Proverbs 25:2
I heard this verse for the first time yesterday. And, for the past 24 hours, it’s been unfolding and aha-ing in my head. And you should know by now, that when I need to process, well, it happens here with you.
“It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of Kings.”
Right away, these words unlocked a memory on my heart from Joseph’s birthday just a few weeks ago.
Of all my children, Joseph is the creative. He thinks outside the box and invites us all in. So, for his birthday, I couldn’t just hand him a wrapped package. Rather, I grabbed a roll of crepe paper and some tape. Starting just underneath the table, I wound the paper very carefully up over a chair, around the lamp, behind the tv, under the couch and so on. This $2 roll of flimsy paper unfurled into a messy matrix of celebration. Along certain points, I left a small card or gift to encourage him to keep going, like the bird Lily painted for him from a smooth stone. The only rule was that Joseph couldn’t break the paper. That was tougher than it sounds but he kept following the lead, careful of where he was going.
Watching him smile and duck and look at me like “what?” may be one of my favorite mommy memories.
And, when he finally got to the end, we cheered.
You might be thinking, “Andrea, how does this connect?”
“It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, to search out a matter is the glory of Kings.”
Just the language of this verse describes God’s values and esteem. God’s glory, his honor and splendor, is to tuck away bits of Heaven. And we, as His royal sons and daughters, have the honor and splendor of searching it out!
When I read this verse I believe the very same delight, love, devotion, encouragement, even creativity I felt as a mom watching her boy on his birthday is God’s heart for you and me as we follow the leads in our lives.
Elizabeth Barrett Browning said, “Earth is crammed with heaven.” So, what if your life and mine are a messy matrix leading us, if we’re willing to follow, from one gift after another planted lovingly and knowingly by our Father? That’s a “what if” worth going after.
“I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel who summons you by name.”
Isaiah 45:3
There’s the invitation again in Isaiah.
It is the glory of God to watch you, to encourage you, to smile on you as you discover little bits of heaven tucked in a friend’s text message, behind the lyrics in a perfectly timed song, in scripture after scripture spelling out God’s love.
Colossians 3:16 says “Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly.” There’s that language again. Do you see it? Let The Word bring you a word to teach you, to comfort you, to discipline you, to love you “richly.”
Those bits of heaven, revealing the heart of God, are not just for moments of celebration. It was during some of my darkest days that I put one foot in front of the other begging God for a glimmer because I was mad at Him or felt deserted by Him. That stinker always showed up.
When the birthday crepe paper trail headed towards a tangled mess; Joseph kind of shook his head, smiling. Do you know why? He knew I made it. He knew I wanted to challenge him. He knows that I know that he is up for the challenge. So, when the trail looked messy, he kept going. We need to be that tight with God. I want to be that tight with God.
Do you know that God knows that you don’t know it all? Cause you don’t.
Are you willing to follow His lead? This is more than a treasure hunt. These bits of Heaven, pieces of wisdom, glimpses of eternity connect us to our Creator. There is more. Are you willing to search, examine, investigate, explore, ask, ask ask again and then listen for all He has tucked away for you?
Your God delights in you. Delight in Him. He gave us free will and is jumping for us to choose Him.
I mean, can we talk about Moses for a second? Exodus 3 “Moses was tending the flock of Jethro, his father in-law… and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb. There (here comes a crepe paper trail moment, earth crammed with heaven moment, God concealing a matter moment) There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush.” Now, this is where Moses “searches out the matter.” Verse 2 says, “Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up.” (Moses is noticing.) Verse 3, “So, Moses thought, ‘I will go over and see this strange sight – why the bush does not burn up.” (Moses is thinking and now moving.) So, Moses goes over to the bush and God calls out his name. God conceals his desire to talk to Moses within a flaming, but not burning up, bush. Moses searches it out and finds God.
All this to say, God wants to be found by you. Keep your eyes open wide and your heart even wider.
how the light gets in 