Hidden Not Unseen

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Recently, my husband bought a piece of office furniture via an online “buy, sell, and trade” site. I was not pleased with his purchase. It was not the actual purchase that bothered me, but rather the website where he found it and the location of our scheduled pickup. Both were known to be questionable, so I fussed throughout the entire drive to pick up this item.

I was tempted to remind him of the statistical instances of violence during in-person exchanges of goods purchased online. These fraudulent exchanges, also known as Craigslist crimes, have increased so much recently that many police departments offer their local police stations as safe sites to conduct this type of business.

Consumer safety websites such as Safe Trade recommend conducting these exchanges only during daylight hours. This particular site also offers other safety tips on where and how to make these sales transactions. It even provides interactive online “Where to Trade” maps for users to locate a local safe zone.

I did not share this information, but I did remind my husband that it was not the safest section of the city. In fact, it boasts a high crime rate. I knew people who lived in a nearby housing development that was extremely clean, so I prayed it was the neighborhood where our purchase pickup was scheduled.

That was not the case.

The address for our pickup led us to a set of horrid motel-style apartments that I had never seen before. Situated amid piles of garbage and mounds of weeds, a scantily dressed woman roamed the parking lot while she talked loudly to unseen entities. This scary-looking apartment complex was tucked away and virtually hidden behind other well-kept low-income houses and apartments.

There, amid that squalor, I had a rude awakening, a moment of instant awareness of how shallow and un-Christlike I really am. In fact, I was absolutely ashamed of myself when we met the precious young lady selling this piece of office furniture.

She and her beautiful baby girl greeted us at the door of their apartment with smiles and kindness, despite their obvious need. Their living conditions rivaled places I have seen in third-world nations. And even though I had never seen these apartments before, this mother and child were practically my neighbors.

What happened next was a precious moment of blessing and prayer for both parties in this exchange. My husband loaded his new purchase into our car, while I spoke with this young woman and loved on her beautiful baby girl.

Then, my sweet husband paid her double her previously stated asking price for the item, as she stared in disbelief and asked, “Are you sure?”

He assured her that we just wanted to bless her, and I asked if we could pray for her. She nodded, and I hugged her as we prayed for God’s protection, guidance, and love to be poured out on her and her child.

She smiled and thanked us again. And that was it. We left almost as quickly as we came, with our newly purchased item secured in our car – and my heart completely in shambles.

This short but powerful encounter continues to remind me of something that one of my faith heroes, Corrie ten Boom, wrote: “In darkness God’s truth shines most clear.”

God’s truth shone so clearly to me that I left that horrible apartment complex in repentance over my reluctance to go there – and in sadness over this woman’s living conditions.

My tears fell freely as I wondered how I had never known of this set of apartments. How was it even possible that such a depth of poverty existed so close to me, and yet, I simply did not know?

But God knew.

Nothing is ever lost from His sight. Each detail of creation was planned and formed by Him, including this precious woman and her beautiful baby. He knew both before they were even formed, and He loved them so much that He sent His own Son to die for them – and for me. We are equally precious in His sight. I truly believe that.

Yet, as we drove homeward, I kept thinking that God never intended for any of us to live like that. But the problem with our world is not that God cannot see or that He does not care. Even though my human sight failed to see them or know them before this encounter, God saw exactly where they were.

Perhaps that is exactly why He used a sketchy online sale site to bring two very blessed individuals (one of whom whined and complained the entire way) to a sketchy part of town, so they could minister physically and spiritually to one of His children and her baby.

I think we often forget just how much He loves us and how willing He is to reach us right where we are. I most certainly forgot that not only does God see every detail of our lives, but He uses those minute details to orchestrate His perfect plan – if we are willing to hear and obey His call.

Consequently, one aspect of my lesson that I learned this day was twofold: Listen to my husband and listen to God. Beyond that, I also learned that the enemy may be able to use horrible circumstances to hide us from the world, but he can never hide us from God. We are known; we are seen; and we are loved.

Corrie ten Boom learned that fact firsthand during the days she spent in a Holocaust concentration camp. For those unfamiliar with her story, information about her life, her foundation, and her family can be found via the various tabs of the official Corrie ten Boom House website.

After losing her father, her sister, and other loved ones during that dark time of suffering, Corrie ten Boom declared: “There is no pit so deep that God’s love is not deeper still.”

Hagar was another woman who knew deep suffering. In Genesis 16, we read of how she ran away from abuse and mistreatment. But God spoke directly to her, advised her to return to her mistress, and assured her that what seemed to be an impossible situation would turn out for her good – and the good of her unborn son.

In absolute amazement, Hagar called Him “El Roi,” the God who sees.

Not only did God see her in her destitute situation, but He also had great plans for her. She would literally become the mother of nations.

I believe that God also has great plans for that young mother who sold us a piece of used office furniture. And I am so grateful that He used my husband and me (whining and complaining all the way) to carry out a small portion of that plan.

Truly, He is the God who sees and loves us all.

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