Finding God in Ordinary Moments

Most of us look for God in the big moments. In worship that moves us. In an answer to prayer. In a miracle that makes us believe again. And while God can certainly meet us there, I think we miss something if that is the only place we expect him. The truth is that God most often reveals himself in the ordinary.

Part of our problem is the way we read the Bible. We turn from one story to the next and think that is normal life with God. But those stories are snapshots, extraordinary moments stretched across years and generations. Abraham went long seasons without hearing from God. Elijah experienced silence right after fire fell from heaven. Most of life with God happens between the mountaintops.

Some of us were also shaped by spiritual environments that equated God’s presence with emotion. If we did not feel something, maybe God was not there. But if that is the measure, what do you do with the quiet seasons. The truth is, the same God who speaks through fire also whispers through stillness. The same Spirit that moves in revival also moves in the early morning when you make coffee.

So here is a better question. Instead of asking God to show up in a big way, what if you asked him to open your eyes to what he is already doing right now. Every morning I pray, “God, help me see what you are up to today, and give me the courage to join you in it.” That prayer has changed how I live. Because when I pay attention, I start to see God everywhere.

I saw him in a small, unexpected moment recently. My wife Jane and I were meeting with a young couple for premarital coaching. Somewhere in that conversation Jane turned to me and asked when I last felt like I truly experienced God. I thought for a moment, and the answer surprised me. It was not during a sermon or a worship set or a retreat. It was in my kitchen, goofing around with my daughter Lydia. We were throwing fake slow motion punches and laughing until we could not breathe. For a moment I forgot the weight I usually carry about needing to act my age or take myself too seriously. Lydia lets me be myself. She reminds me that the way God made me is good. In that silly, ordinary moment I felt seen. And I think that is what experiencing God is. It is being reminded that you are fully known and still fully loved.

That moment was sacred, even though it did not look like it.

There is a story in John chapter twenty one where Jesus meets his disciples after the resurrection. He could have shown up in the sky shining like lightning, but he did not. He showed up on a beach, built a fire, and cooked breakfast. He did not just fill their nets with fish, he filled their hearts with peace. What strikes me most is the simplicity of it. Jesus, fresh from defeating death, decided to fry fish over a charcoal fire and feed his friends. No fanfare. No spectacle. Just presence.

Maybe that is the whole point. God does not need a stage to show up. He meets us where we already are, on beaches, in kitchens, in long drives, in laughter, in tears.

The question is whether we have eyes to see it.

So if you are struggling to find God right now, stop waiting for fireworks. Look around you. God is already in your story, in the laughter you share, in the quiet conversations, in the moments you feel safe to be yourself. He is in the sorrow too, holding space for your pain.

Pray that simple prayer. “God, help me see what you are doing today.” Then pay attention.

Because God does not only meet us in the extraordinary. He turns the ordinary into sacred ground.