Surely, the Lord is in this place

"Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, 'Surely, the Lord is in this place, and I wasn't even aware of it.'" (Genesis 28:16, NLT)

Never much of an outdoorsman, Jacob was on the run from his extremely jealous and angry brother, Esau. You can just imagine how emotionally drained Jacob must have been. After saying goodbye to his parents (probably for the last time) and running all day, he now finds that there is no place of lodging in sight. I'd be feeling pretty sorry for myself. In fact, the Bible tells us that Jacob is so physically exhausted, that he literally falls asleep propped up against a boulder. And then it happens! Jacob has one of those dreams that is anything but ordinary or typical. He actually encounters God!

As he wakes up, Jacob realizes that God was already here. Even before he was clued into God's presence, God was clued into Jacob's situation. Even in the midst of Jacob's fatigue and exhaustion, God was ready to meet him. With all of the questions swirling around Him, God had not forgotten Jacob.

I'm so grateful that even when I am going in my own direction, God is still willing to step in and initiate relationship with me. At the same time, I'm saddened to think of all of the times when God has been present, and yet I haven't been aware. Too busy with the distractions of this life, I don't even sense His activity.

"Oh God, please help me to see You... to see Your activity, even when it seems that You're a million miles away. Help me to sense Your presence right here in the midst of all of my problems and pain."