When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.”
Genesis 28:16

“Tim!” The man shouted excitedly to me, “I had a God-Sighting!” I had not seen the man for many years but he remembered the time I spoke at his church and introduced the “Daily God Hunt”. That’s how meaningful doing the Daily God Hunt had become for him. I take no credit for this wonderful spiritual discipline but have been happy for years to tell people about it. I have seen it help draw many closer to God. I am happy to pass it on to you today.

I learned about the Daily God Hunt from David and Karen Mains’ book, Daring to Dream Again. It is one way of practicing what Ignatius of Loyola introduced centuries ago as “The Daily Examen”.

People like to go hunting for many things! For gold, buried treasure, baseball trading cards, great bargains, special gifts… The Daily God Hunt is going hunting for God during your day. It is simple and fun to do, but comes with great reward.

Here’s how the Daily God Hunt works: you start first thing, when waking up in the morning, saying to God something like this: “Lord, I am going to be looking for You today. Help me to be alert to Your presence in my day.” Then with eyes wide open to however God might show up in your day, you look for God in some of the following ways:

• An answer to a prayer;
• God showing Himself to you in a wonder of His creation, like a glorious sunrise, beautiful flower, or shimmering color of a hummingbird, for examples;
• God present to you in the words or actions of a friend;
• God helping you to serve someone or to do His work in the world;
• Some evidence of God’s love for you in something that happens in the day;
• You can probably personalize many more ways to experience God in your day….

Now, as you come down to the end of the day and you’re getting ready for sleep, take time to look back over your day for any God-Sightings. Then, as you remember a God-Sighting from your day, thank God for His presence with you. People find that just by taking time to do this they actually sharpen their spiritual vision for seeing God in their day.

You can double the delight of your God-Sighting by sharing it with someone. Sharing your God-Sighting with another can be an encouragement to them as well as yourself. You might even take the opportunity to help start them on their own Daily God Hunt. I am amazed at how people remember this spiritual practice across the years.

As you practice the Daily God Hunt you will share the joy that the patriarch Jacob expressed in today’s scripture: “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” You will increasingly live into the reality of Jesus’ wondrous promise: “And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).

Here’s to good hunting!

A fellow traveler,
Tim