Tangible (as defined from the Miriam Webster Dictionary)
- Easily seen or recognized
- Able to be touched or felt.
I recently came across a blog post where the author explained she struggled with believing in God, due to the fact that God is not tangible. Believing in something that is not tangible is difficult. Even the disciple Thomas could not believe what he did not see. It wasn’t until Jesus appeared before him that he believed.
Love, gravity or wind cannot be seen, but they can be felt in a tangible way. Our Creator is tangible though we cannot see Him. He is, in fact, the most tangible thing in my life. I feel His presence, see Him working and recognize His goodness. That is His desire for us all. He wants us to be touched by Him so tangibly that others will also SEE Him in our own lives.
Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him! Psalms 34:8 (NLT)
Eleven months ago we brought our daughter home from China and during those eleven months, I learned a valuable truth about the tangibility in my relationship with God. It taught me how our faith moves from the intangible to the tangible, just as my love for her did.
Unlike the easily recognizable, tangible love a new mom feels when her baby is set upon her breast, love through adoption is built over time, or at least it was in my experience. Those “gotcha” videos, which tend to circle in social media, are very emotional and the love seems so tangible in those moments. It’s when the “I love you on paper” moment meets real life. Soon after though, reality crushes expectations and the real work begins, the work of attachment.
In those first months, it truly felt as though I was caring for another mom’s little girl. Thankfully I had a strong adoption community that helped me see how normal this was, otherwise I may have drowned from the nagging guilt that I should have fallen in love instantly. I just wasn’t there yet, even if I wanted to be. My feelings for her were not seen nor felt. They were intangible. So I did what I knew I had to do: I went through the motions. I fed, cared, kissed, hugged and nurtured her just as I did my other children. Slowly through every interaction, the feelings of love began to surface. We began to create a mother-daughter relationship and to attach to one another. Now eleven months later, my love for her is tangible. I feel it. I recognize it. It’s visible.
The truth I discovered is that this is how it works with my relationship with God. I need to play an active part in our interactions if I want to experience Him and know Him tangibly. I need to separate myself from the business of life and “go through the motions” in connecting with Him no matter if it’s always easy or convenient. I need to come to Him in song, in his Word and in prayer. I need to repent of my sins and forgive. Because when I do, He promises me that I will able to “taste and see” Him. He promises me rest and peace. He promises me that He will be there, tangibly.
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28 (NLT)
So let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Say a quiet yes to God and He is there. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The “fun and games” are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet. James 4:7-10 (The Message)
God is always near, always faithful, always present. He is just waiting for us to reach out to him to prove his tangibility. So in essence, the attachment work is on us.
–Rebecca
Rebecca Thorpe lives in Manhattan, KS where her and her husband are stationed. Her husband, a Lt. Col in the United States Army and her have four joyful kids. She is a home-schooling mama, a triathlete, has completed two half Ironman races, and most importantly is madly in love with her savior. Her passion for him is inspiring as she runs this race with her eyes on the Prize!