Have you ever gone on a God Hunt? A God Hunt begins when you teach yourself to look for God’s hand at work in the everyday occurrences of your life. Here’s one of my personal God Hunt Sightings:
I am in one of those spiritual seasons where I find that I’m experiencing an unusual amount of activity in having prayers answered. That being so, I thought I would take this week and examine which prayers seem to be more effective as best as I can tell.
What comes to mind right away is what I have labeled the “first-thoughts prayers.” Having an active mind (my husband came to bed last night, creeping quietly into the room so as not to wake me, slipping between the covers carefully—at which point I surprised him by shouting “Boo!”), I rarely wake feeling groggy. The plans and activities of the day flood me. “What mountain are you scheming to climb now?” he asked, after we both laughed at my sleeping ruse. “The Himalayas?”
So I have imposed upon myself of turning my mind to God first thing, and no matter what time I wake, spending that first hour in prayer (as much as I am able), praising Him, trying to remember His goodness in my life, recounting His nature and character. If I don’t go back to sleep (sometimes—well, often—this first time exercise is practiced in the middle of the night), I then get up and try to keep myself from running downstairs to finish a project, clean up the kitchen or read a book I may have started.
God deserves the first things in my life—my first thoughts, the first fruits of my efforts, the first tithe off our finances. … And because I love Him and frequently—frequently each day—experience His love for me, I take a quiet joy in counting out if I have given Him the first prayers before doing and even thinking of anything else. This starts my day in a psalmist kind of way. A psalmist declares:
“Truly God is good to the upright, to those who are pure in heart.” —Psalm 73:1
Surely, the “first-things prayer” is a way to train my being to be mindfully aware of my Creator and not to forget Him in the busy moments of the days.
I spy God!
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Award-winning author Karen Mains has long had an interest in spiritual formation and the obedient Christian walk. She has written about the God Hunt in her book by the same name, The God Hunt: The Delightful Chase and the Wonder of Being Found. A hardback copy can be ordered from Mainstay Ministries for $10.00 plus $4.95 shipping and handling. Contact Karen at info@mainstayministries.org and she will be happy to autograph a copy for you.
Karen continues to write content for her Christian blog, “Thoughts-by-Karen-Mains.” In so doing, she desires to touch the lives of Christian women and men and help them find ways to walk closer with the Lord Jesus Christ. In addition, through silent retreats, spiritual teaching, women’s retreats, Christian vacation opportunities, and other ministry activities, Karen helps each Christian woman and man receive vital spiritual food.
Through her Hungry Souls ministry, Karen serves as a spiritual coach to many Christian women and men, and teaches a mentor-writing class. And, through the Global Bag Project, she is working to develop a network of African women who sew exquisite cloth reusable shopping bags, Africa bags. This micro-finance women opportunity helps provide a much-needed sustainable income for struggling African families. For more information on this critically important project, please click here.
For decades, Karen and her husband, David, have served God through religious communications—radio, television, and print publication. They are the co-authors of the Kingdom Tales Trilogy: Tales of the Kingdom, Tales of the Resistance, and Tales of the Restoration. To find many valuable resources for pastors and congregations at the Mainstay Ministries main website, please click here.
Likewise, pastors will find special resources to help them prepare effective, life-transforming Sunday sermons by visiting David Mains’ website by clicking here.