One very special day I was in London for a business trip. I had an hour between meetings and going to dinner, so I thought I’d walk around a bit. There was no master plan to where I was going, just out to stretch my legs and get some fresh air. And then it happened. I saw a couple of bright lights and people running together. So, I thought I’d check it out. The closer I got, the more in focus the growing crowd got. There seemed to be something going on that excited them. They were moving all around, trying to get a better look at something. As I got really close, I saw the reason for their excitement. It was Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip. They showed up to visit a bookshop. As they came out, people started bowing their heads. The queen and Phillip walked over to the people and started shaking hands and talking. They eventually got in their royal limousine and rode off, complete with a police escort.
When I reconnected with my business partners, I told them what had happened. They punched me in the arm with all their might and yelled at me for not bringing them along. I then learned that meeting the queen was on their Bucket List. The bruise lasted for more than a week.
When I saw the queen, it wasn’t because I walked into her living room or anything like that. There was nothing that I could ever do to earn or deserve that kind of connection or friendship.
God Showed Up In Jesus
To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. ~ Colossians 1:27
When it comes to meeting the queen, it’s always and only if and when they want to meet people. The same is true for presidents and other important people. You can’t get access unless they first come to you or they open the door and let you in.
It’s the same way with God, but more so. There’s no way for us to find out who God is by ourselves than to walk to the moon. He’s not only so far above us, he’s so much greater than anything we can imagine. And he’s spirit, which makes him invisible to us.
The only way to learn anything about God is for him to show up. For him to make an appearance. For him to reveal himself to us. He has to make the first move. It’s up to God to reach out to us.
