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For eight years, I was virtually a shut-in. Raising two young children with severe autism made leaving the house nearly impossible.
Scrolling through Facebook, I watched my friends hop on planes and return with Mickey Mouse ears, turn into lobsters after boating on the St. Lawrence, and stuff their faces with s’mores on weekend camping trips.
Meanwhile, I sat alone.
Ironically, the state of my life for the last eight years is the state of the world today.
Isolated.
Alone.
Working Remotely.
We are all experiencing a Hidden Season.
And just when we think the restrictions are letting up and life is returning to normal, another spike occurs and we find ourselves shut-in again.
I am no epidemiologist but I am an expert at one thing: seeing the value of hidden years.
Hidden Things Grow
Jesus spent 30 years of his life in obscurity—living in his parent’s basement—and 3 years ministering. Those numbers seem a tad disproportionate to me.Why would God’s Son spend three decades crafting dining-room tables in Joseph’s wood shop?
Isolated.
Alone.
Working remotely.
Wouldn’t he have been more productive investing his time preaching, teaching, and healing the sick?
But the truth is, Jesus wasn’t striving to be PRODUCTIVE but OBEDIENT.
Jesus came to the world to model for use a better way to live. He only did what he saw his Father do. He only said what he heard his Father say. So, when his Dad told him to stay home, work hard, and obey his parents—he did.
And so should you.
Why? Because we all need to grow.
Luke 2:52 states, "And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.”
If Jesus needed to grow, so do we.
Hidden Things Are Formed.
Some of the most beautiful things in the world are formed in obscurity. Consider the development of a child in the womb.
Isolated.
Alone.
While God is working overtime to create something so miraculous it brings tears to our eyes when it finally arrives.
You are not FORGOTTEN, you are in FORMATION.
And just as an employer needs to process a worker before releasing him into the work force, our formation is necessary for our usefulness.
Hidden Things Go Deep.
Roots grow best in darkness, below the surface, under the radar.
A tree is never concerned with the height or width of its reach, but with the depth of its roots. The deeper the tree is rooted, the greater its reach will be. The same is true for you. Yet we can’t go deeper in God if we’re too busy impressing others.
For the past 18 months, God has halted our crazy game of comparison and called a timeout. We find ourselves sitting on the bench of life. The bench may be humbling, but it’s also eye-opening.
May we stop looking left and right and started looking up and in.
The truth is, we don’t need to grow taller, or wider, but deeper in Him.
Hidden Seasons Remind Us of the Value of Relationships
The biggest tree on the planet is a sequoia redwood that measures 275 feet tall and is 25 feet in diameter! You would think a tree that gigantic would need a massive root system. Yet this is not the case, their roots only travel 6-12 feet underground.
What holds up these giants?
The redwoods have an intricate network of intertwined roots with other nearby trees. These trees grow close together and are dependent upon each other for support and nutrients.
Even giants aren't meant to stand on their own.
Stop trying to do it all yourself.
My prayer for us all: May we gather up our troops, lock arms, and weather this storm together.