My faith teaches that our God is not just distant but intimately familiar with who we are and what we all face.

The difference between Him and human beings is that He actually has the power to address things.

I teach my kids that maybe we don’t find God.

He finds us and meets us where we are.

Over time, I’ve started to realize that God is often not in the places you expect and in the places you think He isn’t.

Not thinking or realizing otherwise is antithetical to much of the examples described in Scripture – the prodigal son, the lost sheep, the great pearl.

Sometimes I ask – what f____g book are people reading when they talk about the Bible. It’s almost like they are describing a wholly different work. Forget even living any of it out.

Pretty much all of it deals with the presence of the divine, miraculous, and supernatural in the “real” world – and somehow one can find more religion or faith at a concert, game, or even bar. I don’t mean to be profane here but there is somewhat more community, vulnerability, and shared humanity at these places.

In the parable of the prodigal son, the father runs to his kid, not the other way around. Because that is what a real, good one does.

I was taught this at church – if God seems far away, maybe it’s you who moved. Guilt trip and shame culture aside, and who is responsible, the distance does not matter.

God is a fast runner.