The Hiding Place
DO YOU remember the children’s game hide and seek?
I’m not sure about you, but my favourite role in that game was the role of “seeker”. I loved the thrill of finding people in their spots, that I would later then use for myself when the roles were reversed.
I will admit, there is a certain element to finding a hiding spot that is absolutely pleasing. Especially if it’s a really good one. I mean, one where no one can find you. If you were particularly great at hiding, the game would end and you would still be left hiding.
And somewhere within our being, this need to hide manifests itself in our lives. For some of us, it’s more than a game. It’s a way of life.
Hiding is a protection mechanism. It’s like most things: it’s a protection mechanism that can be used for either the positive or the negative. And we hide for valid reasons.
Negatively, we hide because of fear. Fear of unknown, or more likely, fear of the known. We hope that our hiding spot is good enough for what we fear to pass us by unknowingly.
We hide because of hurt. We hide our scars, we hide our shame. We hide our true selves because we’re afraid of what others might think. We hide our talents because we’re afraid of what others might think.
On the flip side, there’s positive aspects to hiding.
It is positive to hide something in order to provide a pleasant surprise to someone you care for.
Lovers find spaces and places that only they can call their own, like a secret grove or garden.
People build bunkers and hideouts they can hide in for when danger is near and emerge from when the danger has passed.
Monks build monasteries to hide themselves away from the world to build their devotion to God.
In a season where a lot of us find ourselves social distancing and self-isolating – hiding – from the danger, I would like to pose two questions:
1) What are we hiding from?
2) What are we hiding in?
The first one might be a bit more obvious, a bit more intuitive. A lot of us are hiding ourselves from a virus that we can’t see. But when the virus gets contained, what will we still be hiding from?
And is it good for our souls?
But before we get any more introspective, any more uncomfortable, it’s probably worth visiting that second question first.
What are we hiding in?
Every major hero had a secret space to call their own. Superman had the Fortress of Solitude. Bond had Skyfall. Jesus had the wilderness and the mountains.
Quite often, Jesus drew away to pray in the wilderness before and after ministering to the masses and performing miracles (Luke 5:16). In his book, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, John Mark Comer expands on this. The word ‘wilderness’ in the Greek language is eremos.
It means:
· Desert place
· Deserted place
· Desolate place
· Solitary place
· Lonely place
· Quiet place (Comer, 2019)
And this eremos is the place that Jesus often withdrew to. Although hanging out in the desert doesn’t sound immediately attractive to most of us, there has to be something to it.
This kind of place is where Jesus chose to spend a fair chunk of his downtime. A place for no distractions. A physical hiding place where there’s no hiding from who you are.
Us humans like to distract ourselves to numb the effects of reality. And predictably, we become less human. Less able to feel, to focus, to deeply enjoy, to deeply grieve. Less able to deeply process. Because sometimes process means pain.
But the hiding place here doesn’t mean to hide from pain. From failure. From yourself. If anything, it’s a safe place. A safe place to bare your soul. To feel again.
Sometimes the best way to feel alive is to feel uncomfortable. To let yourself get wet in the rain. To let yourself cry. To let yourself get dirty. To get warm. To get cold.
Comer notes wisely “the wilderness isn’t the place of weakness; it’s the place of strength” (Comer, 2019).
A place of strength and safety where you can freely be yourself. But don’t just stop there. It’s a place where you can commune with your Heavenly Father.
We see this same habit of Jesus’ in full view in the Garden of Gethsemane, in Jerusalem. A few hours earlier Jesus is sharing a feast with his disciples, knowing that it would be the last time all twelve of his disciples and He would be gathered in this way. A few hours later Jesus knew He would be arrested and in the trials of Jewish and Roman courts; bound for crucifixion.
But we have an important pitstop. The Garden. The secret place.
And here we have a full glimpse into Jesus’ mix of being fully human, yet fully God.
They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”
Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” – Mark 14:32-36
The garden is where we get a picture of what Jesus’ conversations were with His Father. Deep honesty. Deep pain. Deep transformation. Deep courage.
In prayer, Jesus confesses that He is deeply distressed and troubled. But nevertheless, His prayer becomes “Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
It is interesting to note that before Christ performed his greatest purpose here on Earth, He still took time in the garden to pray and spend time with His Father alone. If Jesus found strength in His secret place regularly – even before fulfilling His ultimate mission - then maybe we can too.
It is most likely we will never have to face the situation of an impending and imminent crucifixion. But we do have to face our situations that daily life presents us.
But the secret place isn’t just for finding the elixir of strength and courage: it’s also a place of joy!
We can actually feel alive in this secret place. There is great joy in being able to be yourself with God; to spend time to praise Him. No matter how bleak the external situation, there is still joy to be had. David puts it this way in his famous song, Psalm 23:
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. - Psalm 23: 5-6
In his hiding place, his secret place, in the house of the Lord, David found a feast in “the presence of his enemies”. And goodness and mercy followed him!
The hiding place for you might look different than a desert or a garden. But whatever it is, wherever it is, it should be a place where you’re alone and where you feel safe to open up to God. It doesn’t have to seem “holy” – it’ll be holy by virtue of the fact that you’re meeting God there. And you don’t have to be anyone special to meet with Him, in fact it’s said of God “God does not show favouritism” (Acts 10:34) – He is for every person!
Proverbs 18:10 says of God “The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe.” God wants to be your safe place.
So now we’ve established that there is a safe place to hide, we’ll go back to our first question:
What are you hiding?
The truth is only you know what you’re hiding. And only you know how much what your hiding is costing you.
If your constant hiding is knocking about your confidence, then perhaps we need to look at the root word of confidence, which is the Latin “fid”. Which means to trust. Our confidence in life is built on trust and who or what we place our trust in.
And depending on what it is you’re hiding, perhaps you should confide in a trusted friend, a counsellor, psychologist or pastor. It’s incredible how much your confidence can rebound once you’ve stopped hiding!
Can I encourage you to place your trust in the “strong tower” which is Jesus? He is never failing and a safe place! Confide in Him. He knows you and is waiting at your secret place to meet you there.
And if it’s good enough for Superman, Bond and Jesus, it’s good enough for me.
References:
Photo by Artistiq Dude on Unsplash
Comer, JM 2019, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, Waterbrook, United States