In my first year of being a district licensed minister, I served as part-time youth pastor. Before one Wednesday night service, I was talking with parents while several children were running around playing hide and seek in the foyer of the church.

Eventually, I noticed a little boy in the corner. At first, I thought he was counting for hide and seek, but then I noticed he was crying. His name was Oscar, and he was six years old.

I interrupted my conversation and slowly approached Oscar. He was a friendly kid with big eyes and kind face, but when he looked up at me, his face was wet with tears. “What’s wrong, buddy?” I asked. “No one likes me,” he replied, trying to stop his tears. “Hey, you’re a good boy, and you are kind to everyone, why would you think that?”

Then it hit me. They were playing hide and seek, and Oscar had hidden too well. No one found him. As I was focusing on trying to explain this distinction to him, the rest of the children wandered into the fellowship hall. When they saw Oscar crying and me trying to comfort him, they took over from there and surrounded Oscar with a big hug. A few minutes later, Oscar was running and playing without a trace of tears.

The Season of Lent is about coming clean – about coming out of hiding.

Like my friend Oscar, we can be good at hiding. We pull away from others, and although we are never out of God’s sight, we can close ourselves off to God’s guidance in our lives.

Here’s the good news: God seeks us out. He takes initiative and comes to us, not to shame us but to love us. God’s loving invitation moves us out of hiding and gives us the freedom to receive the love He is trying to share.

As Paul reminds us, “…at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6-8).

Prayer for the week:

Dear Heavenly Father, we lower our heads before you, and we confess that we have too often forgotten that we are yours. Sometimes we carry on our lives as if there was no God, and we fall short of being a credible witness to You. For these things, we ask your forgiveness, and we also ask for your strength. Give us clear minds and open hearts, so we may witness to You in our world. Remind us to be who You would have us be, regardless of what we are doing or who we are with. Hold us to You, and build our relationship with You and with those You have given us on earth. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.   

Charles W. Christian is managing editor of Holiness Today.

Written for devotions with Holiness Today

Please note: All facts, figures, and titles were accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time of original publication but may have since changed.