When I was a little guy, I remember getting in trouble with my parents and running to my room and hiding in the closet.  It’s not like that was the safe haven where no discipline would find me.  In fact, it was usually the place my father would find a trusty belt to remind me of why it’s good to be obedient.  The truth is, it’s in our heritage to hide.  When we’ve truly screwed up and know it, it’s only “natural” to want to remove yourself from the situation and run to some dark place where the consequences of that action hopefully won’t follow.  Unfortunately, they always do.  I say it’s in our history because even in the garden, Adam and Eve sinned, heard God walking and calling out to them and then they hid. I think the cause of this desire to run and hide is shame.  Shame, by definition is, a negative emotion that combines feelings of dishonor, unworthiness, and embarrassment.  Even at a very young age when we’re disobedient we know that our action will most likely bring some act of discipline and that’s the part we hate.  We don’t mind the sin so much, it’s more the consequences that cause us to find the nearest closet.

As we grow older the closet seems to lose it’s ability to cover and protect us and we find new places to hide.  As adults it’s easier for us to hide emotionally, to detach ourselves from the reality of our situation or sin and hide in destructive places. For men, we often retreat to the shelter of our Lazyboy, a good game on television, our work, or worse the internet.  Women can hide from reality with a good romance novel, shopping spree, or soap opera.  Our families and friends can still see us and we may even fool them enough in our churches that they think we’re doing just fine, but often our true hearts are lonely, afraid and hidden in the closet of some dark addiction instead of the transparent solace of our Father’s arms.

Psalm 139:22-24 says “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.  See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”  To make this your prayer, you’ve got to be ready to be undone, floored by God’s grace, to be completely open to His Spirit and willing to allow Him to purge you of every wrong thing.  As a worshiper, your heart should be seeking God, asking Him to look deep into the reality of who you are, to draw you out of your hiding places into His marvelous light. Know however, the wonderful irony of God is that we don’t have to hide from God when we feel guilty or shameful, but instead let Him be our hiding place.  Let His grace be the first place we run to, not from.  Our nature is to run away from God when we’ve sinned, but through Christ, God has given us a new life and a new direction.  We may now find our hiding place in God and come boldly before Him.

What exactly in your life are you hiding from God, from your spouse, or from the truth of scripture.  There is healing, and hope and help if we’ll just not run away from God to hide but instead, to hide in the shadow of His wing.  Don’t hide, be hidden.