"Where Is the Pavilion?"

     I really enjoy this talk and it has helped me significantly with how I have viewed my relationship with God. It is titled, "Where Is the Pavilion?"
     He begins by saying, "The pavilion that seems to intercept divine aid does not cover God but occasionally covers us. God is never hidden, yet sometimes we are, covered by a pavilion of motivations that draw us away from God and make Him seem distant and inaccessible. Our own desires, rather than a feeling of 'Thy will be done,' create the feeling of a pavilion blocking God. God is not unable to see us or communicate with us, but we may be unwilling to listen or submit to His will and His time." It is interesting to think about how much pride it takes to think that it is not our fault we don't hear from God. I am guilty of it myself sometimes. I then have to ask myself, why would God hide from us? He loves us. It only makes sense that we are the ones too proud to take down our "pavilion."
     He tells us that, "We remove the pavilion when we feel and pray, 'Thy will be done' and 'in Thine own time.' His time should be soon enough for us since we know that He wants only what is best." It is as simple as being patient. God knows what we NEED. Just as any good parent he will give us what we need when we need it, and the things that we may WANT may not be things that we will get quite yet or maybe not ever.
     He gives a couple of examples where the desires of men were not fulfilled in their time table, but as God promised they were fulfilled in His time.  I conclude with this, "For any of you who now feel that He is hard to reach, I testify that the day will come that we all will see Him face to face. Just as there is nothing now to obscure His view of us, there will be nothing to obscure our view of Him."