Hide and seek was a fun game to play as a child.
No one said that it would be an important game to play well into adulthood.
Why did the game play go into adulthood? Because we felt the need to hide. We didn’t want people to find out the real person inside. We didn’t want to because when we opened ourselves up to others, they took advantage of us and hurt us – we never want to be hurt again. We didn’t want to because we understood that there were some things about us that we wouldn’t want others to know. It would be off-putting. It is shameful and guilt-ridden. Rather than exposing that, it's best to keep that to ourselves. We didn’t want to because we didn’t think there was much there to show with others of any worth. We didn’t want to because we felt safer from harm if we didn’t venture outside.
As we did that, though, there was a part of us that was desperate to be known for who we really are. Not for the role we played, the mask we wore to please others, or the achievements or mistakes. We wanted someone to know us, believing somehow that if someone took the time maybe it would help us, maybe it would heal us, maybe …
Someone is interested in you – not for what you can do for them or how they can use and abuse you, but they’re interested in who you are, and they’re willing to invest time and resources to support you for who you are.
People often feel used and misused, as if they’re only valuable if someone can get something out of them. Worse still, it seems people are more concerned with things than with people.
This is why it’s such a blessing to be seen, and greater still, it is to be known. To be surrounded by people who take the time to understand who you are and help you discover and uncover things about yourself that you never appreciated previously.
What is the potential of the apple seed? It could become another apple tree for sure. Then there’s the apples it can produce. Then there’s the shelter it can provide. Then look what the wood from the trees could be used for. Then think of the companies and organisations inspired by the apple. When you consider all the things that it is and possibly could be, these are realised when time and investment are given to allow it to be known and properly utilised. People are of far greater worth than the many wonderful outcomes of the apple seed. That process is about going beyond the desire to see people but also recognising and acknowledging the person in front of us for the wonders that God has created them to be.
The ministry of Jesus saw Him come alongside others, and over time, intentional interaction helped them to discover their true selves. This process was about the joy of service as well. So it wasn’t therapy by sitting on a couch and recounting what happened to you when you were at school. This knowledge involves being alongside a servant, meeting needs in front of us, and through that, appreciating further who we are as those who contribute to the well-being of others.
The good news of Jesus acknowledges why you want to hide. He is seeking you because He knows you and has dealt with all that would make you guilty and ashamed. Not only that but He knows you even more than you know yourself and wants you to discover what He knows about you so you don’t have to hide away any more. From hide and seek, He invites you to ask and seek for the way to be known and embark on the wonderful journey of what it is to allow others to be known in the light of His love …
For His Name’s Sake
C. L. J. Dryden
Shalom
Next Steps
Reflect: What does it mean to you that you are known by God? What does that do for how you engage with others?
Pray: Father, help me. Help me to know that you know all there is to know about me, and you love me because you chose me. Help me to rest in that truth, no longer hide, and open myself to being known by You. Help us to extend that grace to others so they, too, can take a journey, so they are known and acknowledged for who they are as You created them. Help us to celebrate the knowledge of the new creation we are in You, for Your glory, Lord.
Act: Contact a close friend and celebrate them for how they are known by you and how you allow yourself to be known by them. Recommit to a relationship where there’s no need to hide from God and where it’s all about being known by God and living to what He’s called you to.
