God’s En-deering Presence
By Karen D’Amore
“Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge Him. As surely as the sun rises He will appear …”
Hosea 6:3a
By Karen D’Amore
“Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge Him. As surely as the sun rises He will appear …”
Hosea 6:3a
Grazing outside my window…statuesque and serene…their presence evokes me to gaze tirelessly. A hush of tranquility shadows their every move; their gentle eyes contrasting their powerful strength. With the graceful precision of a ballerina, they prance sure-footedly across the terrain. The beloved deer majestically emulate attributes of our Lord. Drawing me to look for Him in my life, God uses His precious creatures to remind me of Himself. In the past, responding to my pursuit of His presence, God has orchestrated timely appearances by the deer. In times of doubt, or need for comfort and assurance, the deer have faithfully appeared outside my window. Seeing them draws me to rest peacefully in His presence.
Recently, just hours before undergoing a new and unfamiliar cancer procedure, I desperately sought the emotional assurance of God’s presence. Through Scripture assures me that He’s always with me (Hebrews 13:5), I anticipated His familiar encouragement through the deer. When no deer appeared, discouragement threatened to infiltrate my heart. Though in that moment, God met me and encouraged me in a different way, I was still sadly puzzled by the diversion from the deer.
Following the cancer procedure, a friend stopped by to check on me. Knowing and understanding my God-Deer connection, I shared with her my bewilderment in the absence of the deer. Had God abandoned me, I questioned from a place of spent emotion? Offering no verbal response, my friend left me with a tearful hug and a gift. Opening her gift, I wept as I unwrapped a miniature iron statue of a deer. Scripture assures us that God “rewards those who earnestly seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6b). Though I was looking for God through a different kind of deer, He rewarded my pursuit of Him in a far more personal and en-deering way.
“And if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul, you will find Him” (Deuteronomy 29:4b NLT). Desiring to be a part of our everyday lives, God beckons us to look for Him. He invites us to call upon His name, read His love letter called the Bible, and seek Him with our whole heart. God used an en-deering gift from an en-deering friend to reassure me of His presence. Now, the deer statue adorning my mantle reminds me daily of God’s faithful presence. Are you looking for Him? He wants to be found! Seek Him with your whole heart, and look for Him to reveal His presence, in a way that’s especially endearing to you!
GOING DEEPER:
1. Do you intentionally look for God? Along with Scripture, how does He make His presence real to you?
FURTHER READING:
1 Chronicles 28:9; Jeremiah 33:3; Proverbs 8:17
Married to Dan, Karen, a retired police officer, is currently a Nail Technician at Craig Berns. She is the administrator for Oakwood’s Tuesday a.m. Bible Study and a volunteer at the Wildlife In Need Center.
