You've Got Mail -- Beyond a Shadow of a Doubt!

Once Joe had decided to win Kathleen's heart, he had a LOT of convincing to do!

Jesus had promised his disciples that he would never leave them or forsake them, then he went and got himself crucified! So after that, his disciples certainly had their doubts about Him, especially Thomas.

Jesus had a lot of convincing to do!

Scripture records an encounter that two disciples had with the risen Christ on the road to Emmaus. They walked together, and talked together, for the better part of the day with a man they regarded as simply a fellow traveler. This man, who was a stranger to them, explained everything written about the Messiah from the time of Moses and on.

They convinced him to stay for dinner with them and finally:

“When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him.”

Luke 24:30-31

Even while the disciples were grieving his death, He was right there with them. They just didn’t recognize Him. It is very much like the scene where Kathleen is anguished that her mystery date didn’t show up, and she was actually sitting across the table from him. She just didn’t recognize him.

Discovering the presence of Jesus in your life is a little bit like a baby discovering their toes. Have you ever witnessed a baby discovering their toes for the very first time? It is not that the toes suddenly appeared. It is that the infant had just never noticed them before. The toes existed from birth – even from conception – within the DNA code. Jesus’ presence in your life is like that. He has always been there, since before the dawn of creation, waiting for you to discover Him.

Once Joe determined in his heart that he was going to woo Kathleen, he orchestrated numerous circumstances to place himself in her life. He ‘coincidentally’ ran into her at the coffee shop, the grocery store and the park. He prompted her to question NY152, and he was the one who answered her. He took an interest in everything that mattered to her. He spent time with her.

The whole time she didn’t know who he was, he was right by her side all along.

Joe was especially close to her when she confided via email just how brokenhearted she was over closing out her little bookstore. It was when she was at her emotional low point that he was closest to her. Jesus works like that too.

If you’ve ever read the popular poem “Footprints” by Mary Stevenson, perhaps you have already entertained the thought that it is when we are at our weakest point, that he is our strength.

“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted

and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

Psalm 34:18

Joe went the extra mile to be a blessing to Kathleen because he knew she was brokenhearted. When you are feeling crushed in spirit, Jesus is closer to you than ever.

The fact that you are reading this blog is evidence that Jesus is orchestrating the details of your life in order to get closer to you. It is only one piece of the puzzle that Jesus has created to make you aware of how close to you He really is.

Whether you were aware of Him before, or are just discovering for the first time His presence in your life, I promise you, He wants you to know He has been nearby all along. He wants to draw you closer to Himself than you’ve ever been before.

And even now He is closer than you think.

• Question for today: How close do you feel Jesus is to you right now? Why?