Where Is God?

Where Is God?

I am a news junkie, and I love to read the various Internet headlines each day to sort of get a pulse on what is on people’s minds. If you follow the news like I do, you will notice that we have a difficult time trying to figure out where God should be. Throughout the week, there are stories about the Pope, stories about the decline of one particular faith, stories about the rise in numbers of another faith, stories lamenting about God not being allowed in schools, stories about a particular group complaining about religion overstepping its bounds.

On and on it goes, we just can’t seem to figure out where we want God. If you believe the news and the social trends, you might come to the conclusion that there are a growing number of people who don’t want God anywhere.  For some, it is a mute point since to them; God is as real as the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus.

There’s a part of me that, after reading these articles, makes me think we humans have such a childish concept of God.  Fundamentally there can only be two positions; either you believe in God…or you don’t. If you don’t believe, there is nothing anyone can say or do which can “prove” to you that God exists.  My faith is not dependent on what you believe, or don’t believe. I am alright if you don’t believe as I do. I only ask that you give me the same respect that I have given you.

I live my life with one of my favorite quotes as my guidepost, I would rather live my life believing in God only to discover when I die that He doesn’t exist; than to not believe, and die and discover that He does exist. To me, that sounds like the most prudent approach.

To my fellow believers, quit being so anxious about what we think is the erosion of our faith.  God is the creator of the universe. We are His guests…not the other way around. God is EVERYWHERE. A person’s disbelief doesn’t make God non-existent. Just because I can’t see the Pacific Ocean from Cleveland, Ohio does not mean that the Pacific Ocean does not exist.

This concept was reinforced to me a couple of weeks ago when I stopped by my local Olive Garden on a Saturday night to pick up take-out. Our local Olive Garden is a hopping place on Saturday night. There were wall-to-wall people standing and sitting around waiting for a table. Ordering take-out eliminates the wait, but not the confusion. There is usually a group of 5-6 people standing around the bar trying to catch the attention of the bartender to place, or pick up their order.

Waiters are trying to squeeze by you with platters of food. Patrons are trying to order a drink while they wait for table. Bags of food keep appearing out of the kitchen and names called of lucky people whose order has finally magically made its way out of a too busy kitchen.

I happened to be sitting sort of off to the side as I waited for my order. I was taking in all the confusion when I looked over at a table of three located in the middle of the eye of the storm. It was a mom and a dad, and their teenage daughter. The waitress had just delivered their food and had placed it in front of them. With that, the three of them joined hands and said a prayer…right there in the middle of jam-packed Olive Garden on a Saturday night.

I continued to watch them, and it just seemed that at that moment…the family was able to block out everyone else in the place.  In that moment, it was just God and them.

For the past couple of weeks I have thought often of that family in prayer. I can picture them as if it was just a few minutes ago, and not weeks ago. I have been trying to grabble with why it hit me so profoundly, and then I came across this quote from Mother Teresa, and I think I have found my answer… Prayer makes your heart bigger, until it is capable of containing the gift of God himself.

If you invite God in, no one can is capable of keeping Him out. That is where God is found.