They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?”
Genesis 3:8–9
Adam and Eve have just eaten of the tree that God has commanded them not to eat of—perhaps the most disruptive moment in the history of humankind. The story goes on to say that their “eyes were opened” and they became “ashamed of their nakedness.” Then Adam and Eve hear God enter the Garden and immediately they hide in the trees. God calls out to Adam, “Where are you?”
Now what is God asking? Has God lost track of Eve and Adam?
God’s kindness…
In a literal sense, this is not a question of geography, but a question of relationship. Embedded in God’s question is not a demand for answers or GPS coordinates as it is an invitation to companionship.
One writer suggests that God asks the question not because God is unclear about where Adam is, but because Adam is unclear where Adam is. There are great consequences surrounding this garden encounter but there is also so much kindness. God’s “Where are you?” is something of an equivalent to Jesus’ “Come to me all you that are weary….” (Matthew 11: 28). You don’t have to hide, Adam and Eve.
Father Thomas Keating writes,
This marvelous story of creation is not just about Adam and Eve. It is really about us. It is a revelation of where we are. The same question is addressed to every generation, time, and person. At every moment of our lives, God is asking us, “Where are you? Why are you hiding?”
Turning our hearts toward God…
We too get lost; we become frustrated; we hide; we pretend; we despair; we rebel; we become distracted; we avoid; we seek to survive on our own.
And God continues to reach out to us — Where are you? He wants to be with us in ways that let us face our condition and responsibility honestly, and embrace his kind companionship and leadership.
If we are to learn to turn our hearts, again and again, toward God, “Where are you?” is an important question with which to involve ourselves. And life upon life with other disciples is the place where we will most often learn to notice God reaching out and inquiring about our whereabouts.
A friend’s “What are you thinking about?” or a teacher’s “Where are you at?” or a counselor’s “Tell me how you are today?” have all been ways I have bumped into the Spirit’s deep interest in me, patiently drawing me out of hiding. I cannot find my way out of the trees without such companionship.
We need safe places…
We each need safe places—friendships, spiritual directors and mentors, leadership teams and small groups—to help us discover where we are and encounter the Lord’s gaze already turned toward us in love and kindness.
May our friendships with one another be places where we find the compassion, courage, and patience to hear and respond to God’s “Where are you?” within the nitty-gritty of our everyday lives.
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Robert Loane serves as President of VantagePoint3 Ministries, seeking to both learn and encourage a more relational way of life and ministry. He is co-author of Deep Mentoring: Guiding Others on Their Leadership Journey (IVP, 2012) and A Mentoring Guide: Christ. Conversation. Companionship (VP3, 2019). He has been the lead writer of The Journey process and other VP3 processes for the last 20 years. At the core of his life and work, Rob loves helping people find ways to have better conversations about the things that matter most in their lives.