Another Expedition

For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. – 1 Corinthians 13:12 (NRSV) 

My daughter is really into cryptids right now. Think Loch Ness Monster or El Chupacabra. She is entirely sure that Sasquatch is real.  

God…not so much.  

She can’t see God, she often reminds me. The other night, I countered, “It’s true, we can’t see God the same way we see each other, but people have lots of images for God. Fire. Wind. A mother hen.” 

She thought about it, then declared, “I guess God is like Bigfoot.” I waited for clarification. 

“Because people draw Bigfoot in lots of different ways. There’s not just one picture, and no one knows exactly what they look like.” Maybe we were getting somewhere. She went on, “But they’re different because no one goes on expeditions to try to find God.”  

It’s like she knew I had a devotion to write. 

Because, of course, we do. We are. Right now, as you read this. And I write it. In every worship service you attend. In every prayer you holler into the night, hoping to hear something big crashing through the underbrush in response. 

They are all expeditions, meant to discover some incontrovertible proof that the God of Love is out there. Alive. To see them, for once, face to face. 

And though we don’t yet fully know them, every dim photo and every partial footprint makes us grab for our headlamps and walkie-talkies. Sends us back to the wilderness, hoping this could be the day. 

Prayer
You who fully know me, let me catch a glimpse of you today.

About the Author
Vince Amlin is co-pastor of Bethany UCC, Chicago, and co-planter of Gilead Church Chicago, forming now.