The Blessing That Was Right in Front of You the Whole Time

We spend a lot of time asking God to show up, and then we miss Him when He does because He showed up smaller than we expected. In this episode, discover how to recognize God's presence in the ordinary moments you've been rushing past.In August of 1999, Joanna Watson was hanging upside down in a wrecked car on a mountain road in the United States, alone in the dark, unable to move, with 2 fractured vertebrae. She was in a country that wasn't hers, on a road she didn't know, with no way to reach anyone.And then the strangers started showing up. One, then another. A doctor arrived. A Christian arrived. Each person appeared in the order she needed them, bringing exactly what that moment required.She didn't call it a coincidence. She called it a God-incidence: provision that looks random until you look more carefully at it.Her story is the anchor for an episode about something most of us do more than we realize. We ask God to show up, and then we miss Him when He does because He showed up in a smaller package than we expected. We're waiting for the burning bush. Meanwhile He's arriving in a conversation that came at exactly the right time, or a passage that finally lands after we've read it a hundred times.The Aaronic blessing in Numbers 6:24-26 has been spoken over God's people since Moses. Protection and grace. Favor and peace. Most of what it asks for is quiet. A sense of being watched over. A peace that doesn't depend on circumstances making sense. These aren't dramatic. They're already in motion. The question is whether we're paying attention.Psalm 34:8 calls it tasting and seeing that the Lord is good. That's an invitation to notice. To slow down enough to receive what's already in front of you. And for most of us, slowing down is the hardest part.I'm almost always up before sunrise, but I rarely stop to look. Yesterday morning, as I was recording this episode, I stepped out onto our front porch and saw one of the most beautiful sunrises I can remember. An explosion of color across the sky. Five minutes, and then it was gone. And I've walked past mornings like that more times than I can count.That's what this episode is really about.BY THE TIME YOU FINISH LISTENING, YOU'LL DISCOVER:Why a theology that only recognizes God in dramatic moments causes you to miss most of what He's doingWhat the Aaronic blessing in Numbers 6 reveals about the quiet, ordinary ways God is already present in your daysA simple, concrete practice for training yourself to notice what you've been walking pastGod is already present. We just have to stop long enough to notice.Share This Episode:https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/223Need Prayer? Leave me a voicemail:https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/voicemailWant to keep these devotions coming? Please consider supporting this podcast.https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/support/Rate and Reviewhttps://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/reviews/new/Connect with BartFacebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/dailydevotionsforbusylivesWebsite: https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.comFeeling spiritually drained? Start here. Download your free copy of my eBook Making Time for Jesus here.Mentioned in this episode:Join Our Private Facebook CommunityIf you're looking for a place to connect with other Daily Devotions listeners and pray for each other, I'd love for you to join our private Facebook community group. Come find us at https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/group