"Dad, Can you write in the dark?"
"I think so. What is it you want me to write?"
"Your name on this report card."
That is just about how we sometimes would like to trick God. Temptation and sin can mire us in temporary despair. In reality, I can see God playing peek-a-boo with us, trying to keep us from despair.
Children playing peek-a-boo are learning about the concept of object permanence. When they see your face disappear behind your hands or a book, they believe you are gone. You may have left the room and joined Elvis.
Your sudden reappearance is pleasing to them. Mommy is back! Once they learn about object permanence, they will trust in your presence even when they can't see you.
A wrinkle I have added to this game with my grandchildren is to curl my fingers into a telescopic shape and let them see my eyes within as I say, "I see you." My little fingers act as shutters to conceal or reveal my eyes. This can bring a smile at a certain developmental stage.
Our relationship with God somewhat parallels this game. Each of us makes a choice about the God who has revealed Himself to us. As we collect the evidence in the process of maturing, we make a decision about what we accept and what we believe. There is a moment when faith becomes knowledge.
God uses the many gifts of revelation as he tries to educate us on object permanence. He plays "I see you" as he gazes at us through the sun or moon on a cloudy or dark day. If we look for it we can see His presence in nature or elsewhere.
Kierkegaard proposes that each of us must make independent choices that will then compose our existence. No imposed structures-even Biblical commandments-can alter the responsibility of individuals to seek to please God in whatever personal and paradoxical way God chooses to be pleased. Each individual suffers the anguish of indecision until he or she makes a leap of faith and commits to a particular choice.
Kierkegaard believed that the choice for goodness came down to each individual. Unfortunately, most people do not choose. As a result, humanity will continue to relegate itself to self-imposed immaturity, thus living in both stunned apathy and agonizing inertia. (Internet source)
The devil is never happier than when we are in a state of inactive despair. God is continually breaking through to us in creation and in the Holy Spirit. As His children we can sparkle at the dawn of a new day. Some days we even get it right.
As our faith matures, we should engage in deepening our relationship with the God of Love. For the most part, Kierkegaard equates God with Love. When a person chooses to move toward love, he is in effect achieving an aspect of the Divine.
What prevents us from choosing goodness and achieving a spiritual maturity? What prevents us from moving towards a God of love who would play peek-a-boo with us?
I would choose good play, or God play, over stunned apathy and agonizing inertia any day.
