My brother has been missing for about three months now. I can't explain what other people feel when a family member goes missing, but I can tell you what happened to me. The minute I found out, my stomach felt like a clinched fist unable to release it's grip. My mind began to race wondering what happened, where he had gone, what was happening to him, and if he was safe or not. I found myself developing a ferocious desire to go out and find him. Friends and family pulled together to post flyers, spread the word on facebook, and even form a search party. We had people coming out of the woodworks offering to help in anyway they could. My heart has never been so moved and touched.
We actually did search for him, but had no luck. The feeling of searching for a missing person that you care very deeply for is unmistakably surreal. It's like living in a dream. Nothing seems real and everything is under intense inspection.
The drive home from our failed attempt was long and profound. Humanly speaking, I was completely helpless in this situation. My eyes never left the side of the road in a final effort to hopefully find him down an embankment. As we drove home, I had to come face to face with the reality that we may never find him. If he was alive and well and just didn't want to be found, I would never see my brother again in this life. If he was not alive and well, I would have to wait until I get to heaven to see him again. While the certainty of a heavenly reunion is reassuring, the pain of not having him around is certainly not something I want to face. I love my brother dearly and I miss him so much.
As I reflected on today's attribute of God I realized it has been the ONE thing that has brought me peace in this whole ordeal: God is omnipresent. Even though I don't have any connection with my brother right now, I have a deep connection with His Creator and His Creator is with him wherever he is. How do I know? Being omnipresent means that God is everywhere all at once. The same God who comforts my heart right now as I type this is also with my brother wherever He is.
Take a look at how scripture describes it:
Psalm 139:7-12
7 I can never escape from your spirit! I can never get away from your presence! 8 If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the place of the dead, you are there. 9 If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, 10 even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. 11 I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night -- 12 but even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are both alike to you.
If my brother is in trouble, I can feel the assurance that he is not alone because my prayers for my brother are being heard by the God who is with him. Even if he is no longer alive, I know that he is in the presence of God and will never be alone again. The same God who is faithful to me and so many others is faithful to my brother who is out of my reach, but he's not out of God's reach.
It's at times like these when the fact that God is omnipresent really means so much. It is a comfort during this difficult and painful situation. The situations that are too big for us are NOT too big for God.
A song for my brother and anyone else out there who needs to know you're not alone:
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