Devotionals Daily: A Year with Jesus – August 18

Devotionals Daily: A Year with Jesus

From Devotions for the Beach

SHIP BELLS

Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” Genesis 3:9

Some bells are large enough to be heard from great distances, alerting with intent. Other times, you hear them as you wander among boat slips or har­bors, as though the wind gently nudges them awake enough to faintly announce your arrival.

There is a language out on the water that is spoken solely through ship bells.

They are used primarily for communicating through fog. They announce if the vessel is anchored or in trouble, or they simply make a boat’s presence known.

Prayer gives us the same vehicle—but, thankfully, our Creator is already in pur­suit. Our prayers, we think, send out a signal to let God know how things are going, but, in fact, we have nothing to announce that He is not already aware of. We pray to acknowledge God, petition Him, and, yes, commune with Him.

God pursues us whether we believe Him, believe in Him, or don’t believe at all. He desires the connection; we, sometimes unknowingly, are starved for it. Our prayers, then, do not alert Him to our presence but, rather, alert us to His.

When we become disillusioned and trapped in a fog of sin, we need to sound the alarm. With this in mind, remember that He is always looking for us, searching us out, just as He did with Adam so long ago—no matter how lost we are. Whatever messages we send in our prayers, we have a God who will find us, meet us, and carry us back into His light.

Lord, there are times I cannot see, and I feel lost. I cry out to You; let me feel Your presence. Find me, search me, reveal Yourself to me. I cannot fathom the boundlessness of Your forgiveness and the reasons You pursue me. I am so thankful for Your love.

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