Casandra Martin

Where did I see God today? That is the question we must learn to ask ourselves. Our eyes don’t naturally seek His face. Our hearts don’t instinctively reach for Him. It is all too easy for me to go through my day and miss Him. I get busy, and my eyes spend more time looking at my to-do list and my watch than looking for the Savior. The Jesus Resolution challenges me to discover the difference a constant awareness of His presence will make in my day.

A short poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning cuts straight to the heart of what I need to learn about looking for God.

“Earth’s crammed with heaven,
And every common bush afire with God;
But only he who sees, takes off his shoes –
The rest sit round it and pluck blackberries.”

I love the picture painted in the first two lines. Earth is crammed with heaven. Stuffed into the folds of today are tastes of eternity. Moments when we can experience deep wonder, overwhelming joy, and profound peace. The words contain a dare to open our eyes and behold the truth that every common bush is afire with God. The ordinary holds evidence of the amazing. The average frames the awe-inspiring. God’s fingerprints are everywhere. His presence explodes across the canvas of our days if we are willing to look.

The second two lines cause me to look deep into my heart. Only when I see, only when I raise my focus and cast off the blinders that so easily slip over my eyes, will I be drawn to my knees in worship. The moment when I recognize that I am in the presence of God, I can slip out of my shoes and stand on holy ground.

It is easy to miss. God, however, goes out of His way to color the world with evidence of His presence. I don’t want blackberries or BlackBerrys to draw my eyes away from the astounding truth that God is near.

Where did you see God today?