God Scout

I recently read a great blog article about being a God Scout. Looking at my life, and how I view the world, it seems as though I have been trying to do this very thing without realizing it. The problem with doing something without knowing it, however, is that you generally only excel at that which you put conscious effort into.

This post, therefore, is to discuss what it is to be a God Scout in my own words, and encourage you to do the same. I would also suggest reading the post linked above by JL Gerhardt. In fact, read as much as you can of what she has written. Everything I have seen is very, very highly recommended.

So what is being a God Scout? It's searching for God in everything we see. It's the search for who God is by looking at what God has done. It's trying to see Him, not just in what we read in scripture, but in the tiniest flowers, in the most powerful storms, in the holding of hands and people giving of themselves. It's seeing that sliver of God that is all around us, but which we so often miss because of our distraction, our hurry, our worries and our failure to notice.

In short, it's the slowing down of our lives.

Let me give you an example. Today I was headed out to the grocery store for a quick trip to pick up some snacks for Bible Hour on Sunday. Nothing big, just a quick in-and-out trip.

Then I looked up.

As a side-note, I was wearing my polarized sunglasses. I love my polarized glasses. By cutting down on the glare our eyes naturally see you are able to witness deeper, richer tones and colors. They're wonderful. Anyways...

When I looked up the sky was brilliantly blue. Just a few scattered clouds here and there. It was beautiful, and for just a second I stopped. Then I stayed stopped for several more seconds.

The reason I stayed stopped was because I noticed something I hadn't before. At that point, with those glasses, I noticed that the sky wasn't just brilliantly blue. The sky was covered in almost undetectable clouds that gave what I first saw as an almost completely clear sky this soft, comforting texture. It was like seeing the open ocean if the ocean was in the sky.

It may not sound like a big deal, but consider this:

God was there.

I know that God is everywhere at all times. I know He lives in me and gives His presence to all those who are His. But in that moment I realized, viscerally, that God was there.

This isn't the only time this visceral realization of God comes, either. It comes when I see the full moon on a clear night. It comes when I kiss my children goodnight while they sleep. In that moment I am reminded how much I love them, and I am reminded how much God loves me. There are so many moments to share with God (and He wants to share them with us!) if we will just slow down and accept what He is giving to us.

Look for God. See the moments He shares with you and slow down so that you can see and feel them. There will always be more work, more problems to solve, more places to drive, and more errands to run. Take a few seconds, or even a few minutes, to see what God has to share with you. You won't regret it.

Let's go scouting together. :-)