Looking for Jesus like a Four Year Old

I've missed posting here lately! I've got so many exciting things going, like this, this, this, and this with a group of ladies, that days have been passing in a whirlwind! I love to imagine calmer times when I can write at a more leisurely pace, but I think for now that's a dream I've spun from the air. So I'll grab these snippets of moments to pour out what fills my heart.

Yesterday my four year old, Maggie, spent much of the day wrapped around my leg, or sitting in my lap, and yet it was not enough. "I want to be with you Mommy," was her constant declaration. I'm embarrassed to confess my annoyance with her. If you're a parent, I imagine you've had those days when you feel you're being loved by an octopus and cannot escape the constantly grabbing arms.

As I prayed for her little heart and wondered what makes people so needy for love and connection, the dots began to connect. If only I pursued God with such fervor. Following him around, "I want to be with you God," face turned up expectantly, arms reached out. He's not a harried, limited mama like me. He has all the time in the world. When we ask, he gives. I think the thing he most likes being asked for, and giving, is himself.

Let's be like the psalmist who cries out, "A single day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else!" (Ps 84:10) I want to be with you, God!

Looking for peace, joy, contentment, rest, etc. is like chasing fog with a butterfly net. Those experiences and attributes will allude us. Yet a magic eye of truth pops into view when we search for Jesus, and all these things are added in, a natural by product of the main thing. His presence. The cry, "I want to be with you, God," unlocks more than we can imagine. 

Today let's imitate a four year old, hungry for time with her parent. Let's follow God around, face upturned, crying, "I want to be with you!"