For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse. Romans 1:20

Last week we had Vacation Bible School, better known as VBS, in our church, and my wife introduced something called God sightings to the students.

While it can be a challenging idea, it’s worth it to see them learning about God’s love. A God sighting is, as I learned, something that is undeniably God’s handiwork. For example: The beauty of nature. An answered prayer. A personal encounter with God. An unexpected miracle. A God-orchestrated coincidence.

The title and theme of our VBS was Shipwrecked: Rescued by Jesus. The kids were encouraged to write down their God sightings and stick it on a tattered sail, filling in the holes of the sail. And wouldn’t you know it … by the end of the week the holes in the sail were filled with reports of God sightings.

This made me wonder … how often do we recognize God’s handiwork in our lives? I started counting my blessings, but so many more slip through my mind before I can jot them down. And the number of God sightings only increase as more you look out for them.

The Apostle Paul might have had this very thought in mind when he wrote in Romans 1:1–17 that salvation begins with reconciliation to God. Paul wrote that people have become estranged from God because of their “godlessness and wickedness” (Rom. 1:18). “Although they knew (about, or of) God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him” (Rom. 1:21).

We were created to walk in intimacy with God among the creatures of the Garden of Eden (Gen. 1–2), but our relationship with God has become so broken that we no longer recognize God. Paul calls this state a “debased mind” (Rom. 1:28).

Lacking the presence of mind to remain in the presence of the real God, we try to make our own gods. We have “exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and four-footed animals or reptiles” (Rom. 1:23).

Our relationship with God is so thoroughly damaged that we cannot tell the difference between walking with God and carving an idol. When our real relationship with the true God is broken, we create fake relationships with false gods. Idolatry, then, is not merely one sin among others, but the essence of a broken relationship with God (Exodus 20:4).

I want to encourage you today, keep your eyes open for a God sighting. And when you do, you’ll start seeing God’s hand even in the midst of your everyday routine. Did you experience a God sighting today? Write it down. Share it with a friend. And keep adding to it as the days go by.

JOHN MOXLEY can be reached at Jmoxley1@juno.com.