The Sacrament of the Present Moment — Part VI: the Hidden Work of God in Chrisi
- Apr 15
- 4 min read
We continue the unfolding path of learning to receive each moment as the place where God is already at work.
The Hidden Work We Cannot See
We have begun to learn a simple pattern:
Do what is given. Receive what is sent.
But now we come to something more difficult—
to trust what we cannot see.
What feels like delay…what feels like interruption…what even feels like loss—
may be the very place where God is most deeply at work.
Scripture does not shy away from this mystery:
“Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard… the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9)
What is unseen is not absent.
It is prepared.
The Refusal to Judge Too Soon
We are constantly tempted to interpret our lives too quickly.
We want to know:
Why this is happening
What it means
Where is it leading
But the Word of God gives a sober warning:
“Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who… will bring to light the hidden things… and make manifest the counsels of the hearts.” (1 Corinthians 4:5)
Much of what troubles us is not wrong—
it is simply unfinished.
The present moment is not the conclusion of the story. It is the place where the story is still being written.
Faith Is Trust in a Person
It is easy to speak of “trusting the process” or “accepting the moment.”
But the Christian life is not trust in a process.
It is trust in a Person—
Jesus Christ.
He did not walk a path of constant clarity.
He walked in obedience:
in hidden years no one recorded
in suffering no one fully understood
in a cross that appeared, for a moment, like failure
And yet, this was the very center of the will of God.
To live the present moment faithfully is to walk with Him—trusting the Father as He trusted the Father.
The Spirit and the Deep Things of God
If God’s work is hidden, are we left in darkness?
Not entirely.
“The Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:10)
What we cannot grasp outwardly, the Spirit begins to form inwardly.
A quiet strengthening.A growing steadiness.A deeper capacity to trust without seeing.
The understanding we seek is not always given as explanation—
but as transformation.
When Nothing Feels Sacred
There are days when nothing feels spiritual.
Prayer is dry. Work is ordinary. Life feels repetitive.
And yet, this is where the truth becomes most important:
The moment is not holy because we feel it. It is holy because Christ is present in it.
Not only in the extraordinary—
but here.
In the task in front of you.In the interruption you did not plan.In the quiet duty you would rather avoid.
The Hidden Christ
God has already shown us how He works.
Not first in explanations—
but in Jesus Christ.
The life of Christ was, for the most part, hidden. Thirty years of obscurity. Moments misunderstood. A kingdom that did not arrive as expected.
And yet, in Him, the hidden work of God was being accomplished perfectly.
This means something profound for us:
What is hidden in your life is not outside the work of God.It may be the very place where Christ is being formed in you.
A Quiet Invitation
This day will not explain itself.
It will simply come—with its responsibilities, its limits, its quiet opportunities for faith.
Receive it.
Not because you understand it—
but because you trust Him.
The One who gives the moment is the One who entered it, redeemed it, and now meets you within it.
Closing Prayer
Lord Jesus, You walked in faith when the way was hidden.
Teach me to trust as You trusted.
When I cannot see what You are doing, keep me faithful in what You have given.
By Your Spirit, form in me a quiet confidence—not in my understanding, but in Your presence.
In the hidden work of this day,let me walk with You.
Amen.
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HE HIDETH MY SOUL
A wonderful Savior is Jesus, my Lord,
A wonderful Savior to me;
He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock,
Where rivers of pleasure I see.
Refrain
He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock
That shadows a dry, thirsty land;
He hideth my life with the depths of His love,
And covers me there with His hand,
And covers me there with His hand.
A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord,
He taketh my burden away;
He holdeth me up, and I shall not be moved,
He giveth me strength as my day.
Refrain
With numberless blessings each moment He crowns,
And filled with His fullness divine,
I sing in my rapture, oh, glory to God
For such a Redeemer as mine!
Refrain
When clothed in His brightness, transported I rise
To meet Him in clouds of the sky,
His perfect salvation, His wonderful love
I’ll shout with the millions on high.
Refrain
Fanny Cros¬by, 1890
And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by: Exodus 33:22
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