How to Live an Unseen Life
How to Live an Unseen Life
“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High..” Psalm 91:1
When I read about those “secret” places, I thought my friend Stephanie. My mother used to babysit Stephanie when her and her sister were little. They would spend their summer days at our house. We would play Barbies and paper dolls. Remember the cut-out paper dolls? Hours were spent outside swimming in a small pool on the patio or swinging on the swing set.
One night I got to go home with her to have a sleepover. It was the best thing ever to my nine-year-old self. Stephanie only had one sister, and they had separate rooms. (I shared a room with my two sisters and had to live next door to a brother.) Stephanie also had a huge basement full of toys and secrets. I’ll never forget the first night she showed me her “secret place.” It was under a stairwell and filled with blankets, pillows, and a small lightbulb to illuminate the hideaway. We giggled and laughed until late into the night, hidden away.
When I read Psalm 91:1, I used to think it was this kind of “secret place” the author was talking about. A hidden place where I couldn’t even find it….because, you see, I wanted refuge. I wanted a place to abide, but never could I imagine myself finding this secret place. For so long I though God’s secret place was a place to look for, instead I found is a place I already live in.
Tweet ThisWaiting in car line.
Dealing with fussy 4 month olds.
Recording their second smile on your phone’s camera.
Running to the doctor because of a running nose.
Staying up late to make sure they fall asleep.
Dear Mom,
Today I want you to know I see you. Sitting with your coffee, tea, or Diet Coke, you feel like your days and hours are hidden places. Motherhood is done in the hidden places. I get it. No one really posts real life on social media. A life of a mother is is lived in the hidden spaces. No one posts about the hospital bed and no one updates their status detailing the fight they had with their children. The bed-head morning hair, the quiet feelings of sadness, and the secret prayers we pray in the middle of the night are hidden places. A space we feel invisible and unimportant. What if told you the God of the universe is found in this place?Â
God’s secret, hidden places are where we will find shelter. Most of life is silent and full of moments not documented for the world to see. Today I see you, momma because I’m in the midst of piles of laundry, sticky floors, and dirty dishes too. Children up all night, these are not hidden places when we are hidden in the secret place of the Almighty.Â
Psalm 91:1 say, “ He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” (KJV)Â
The name for God, Almighty, means the All-Powerful God. A God who commands armies of angels sweeps down into our hidden places to show Himself mighty and powerful. To be hidden, accepting our hidden places, means we will be humble before the power and might of God. We will abide here. We will make our home and dwell in the presence of God.
Dear mother, God sees you in the hidden places. When your loved one who is suffering, and you carry the guilt of unspoken words, God knows the pain. With heartache just around the corner, God is covering you. Dwell with and in Him. Find solace in His presence.Â
How? God says in Psalm 91:14, “Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.” (KJV)
Know His name. In the promises of His Word we will find rest in these hidden places. Knowing God better through His Word is the only place where we will be seen in the secret places. How to live an unseen life is about living in the presence of God. In the hidden places we thrive because we will find solace for our souls, and be restored day by day.