Every now and then, we read a verse from the Bible that just jumps out. One of those verses is Genesis 28:16. It was there that Jacob, prior to his encounter with God at Bethel, said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it” (Genesis 28:16).
Let that sink in. “The Lord was in this place, and I was not aware of it.”
Looking back, there have been several times when God was a huge part of what was going on in my life, and I was not aware of it.
God was in my addiction being found out, and I was not aware of it.
God was in my resignation from pastoral ministry, and I was not aware of it.
God was in my move to Florida, and I was not aware of it.
None of those things made sense at the time. But I have learned – slowly – to not judge the activity of God by what I can see in the moment.
Recovery Step: John Piper said, “God is always doing 10,000 things in your life, and you may be aware of three of them.” My response? Focus on those three.
