Seek the LORD while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous their thoughts; let them return to the LORD, that he may have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. (NASB)

Have you ever played hide-n-seek with a small kid? It’s fun to hide in the most obvious of places and watch them come look for you. Of course, you’re not really hiding, but the kid still must come find you. It isn’t like playing with someone your age where, when you’re seen, you take off running to get to home base. Rather, there is joy in being found when a child is seeking you. What is more, your chosen hiding place is intentionally merciful because you know the kid would only be able to find you in the most obvious of places.  

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Today’s verses remind me of this scenario. God isn’t really hiding – he is easily found by those who seek him. He is merciful in the way he watches us come to him. He willingly comes to our level and exclaims, “Oh! You found me!” Our unrighteousness does not prevent God from loving us any more than a child’s inability to seek well prevents us from playing a game with them. God is willing to abundantly pardon our humanness for the sake of relationship, similar to how we abandon the higher-level skills of the game to enjoy playing with a kid.

Let’s acknowledge some reality in these verses, though. We are sinful and unrighteous before the LORD. We need his mercy and his pardon. If you read the verses that follow, we’re reminded that “my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways” (Isaiah 55:8). The hope in these verses is that return and pardon are possible when we follow the ways of the LORD, when we know his heart, and seek relationship with him through the work of Jesus.  

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God’s grace is surprising when we understand our position in comparison to him. There is nothing but inexplicable mercy and grace. It exceeds human rationality and is so expansive that we struggle to understand. Sometimes, we are even oblivious to the mercy he extends – like a kid who thinks they actually “found” the adult. God’s expansive mercy and grace are more than adequate to cover our inability to be good enough or to be righteous on our own. Forsake these things, welcome God’s grace and mercy, and seek him eagerly and with joy.

Father, thank you for extending grace and mercy more abundantly than I could ever earn or fathom. Thank you for allowing me to find you, for not withholding your love or relationship from me. Help me to put aside my unrighteousness and live according to your ways, covered in your mercy and grace. Amen.