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The Week of Hope

You are our living hope, Lord, as we celebrate your promises for our present and our future on your birthday. We are your grateful people.  Amen

Weekly Advent Prayers by Betty Claire Jackson

By David Goree

Jeremiah 29:11-13

“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart,” the Lord says in Jeremiah 29.

When I’m looking for a lost item, I can imagine it everywhere. When I misplace my wallet, for example, I picture it in the likely places: on my desk, on the dresser, on the dining table, and in the car under the driver’s seat. As I continue searching, though, I can also picture it under the couch, and in the dryer, and on top of the refrigerator. I dutifully check each of these places, no matter how improbable. After all, once you’ve pictured your wallet falling into the recycling bin, how can you not take a quick look for it there?

When we seek the Lord, I think we look for Him in the likely places. We seek Him in church, in Scripture, and in the hospital waiting room. What if we sought Him everywhere? What if we sought the Lord in the voices of our aging parents, and in conversation with a stressed-out coworker, and in the voice of the neighbor’s kid, determined to explain a video game to us? What if we sought the Lord in the storm clouds—both real and figurative? Is this seeking Him with all your heart? I’m not sure, but once you’ve pictured the Lord in an unlikely place, how can you not look for Him there?