I’ve loved to play baseball my whole life. When I was around twelve years old, I wanted to join Little League. My friends were talking about it, but I wasn’t sure how you could get on a team.
I found out that the city was holding tryouts and got permission from my parents to give it a shot. However, I didn’t know where they were holding them or what the times were. It was up to me to figure out.
After checking around, I discovered there was only one day left for the tryouts. I rode my bike to Heasely Field and did a “walk on” to see if they would give me a chance. The only problem was that my age group had completed their tryouts the previous week. All that was left were the peewees, the little guys playing in the youngest league.
The coaches agreed to run me through the drills. I can remember the embarrassment I felt by missing the dates and being surrounded by kids half my size. I forced myself to walk up to the batter’s box where a coach pitched me some balls. I did well enough to make the Indians team.
That experience (and others like it) led me to feel like life was all up to me and I couldn’t rely much on others to help me out. As I grew older, it created an attitude of playing it safe and holding back. I was risk avoidant and hesitant to step out.
Without realizing it, this attitude also influenced how I thought about God. I was convinced He wouldn’t show up for me and that I was on my own to grope along.
It took a crisis of faith that shined a big spotlight on my thinking. A skilled counselor I met with said I was really living as a practical agnostic. Fortunately, I came through it and made some important changes.
Now, instead of thinking God won’t show up, I know He does all the time. I just didn’t recognize that fact even though the evidence was all around me.
Here is a question for you.
Do you think God is showing up for you right now in your midlife years? I can understand if you don’t think so. I’ve been there.
However, what about trying the opposite way of thinking—that He is showing up all the time? It would require a new set of filters to see the world. It might be challenging, but definitely worth considering.
I don’t want to understate the difficulty of your situation. Nor do I want to understate the remarkable presence of God in our life and that He is showing up for us daily.
Here are some suggestions for moving to a “God will show up” mindset:
1. Read Psalm 139. This psalm provides amazing insight into how God actually connects with us on a daily basis. You might even jot a few notes down to highlight important points.
2. Pray to have eyes to see and ears to hear. It may seem far-fetched, but you can actually see and hear things that God is doing. However, it won’t be predictable or come in a way you expect.
3. Be on the alert. This is related to #2. Stay attentive on a daily basis for ways that God is showing His love, care, attention and provision for you.
4. Recap the day at night. Just before you go to sleep, spend a few minutes reviewing your day. You’ll be surprised at the observations you’ll begin to discover. There will be small and large examples of God’s involvement with you.
If you have a story regarding how God showed up for you in the past for present, I would love to hear about it. Drop me an email or add a comment.
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