For a long time I didn’t believe that God loved me. I called him a “ghost God,” because no matter how I tried, I couldn’t see or sense him in my life. He was absent, silent. He had “left the building.” He seemed to bless everyone except me. How could God love me if I didn’t feel his presence, especially during the darkest times?

Then, one day, my spiritual director suggested I look back at pictures from my life to see if I could find God there. And as I looked at these pictures, I saw my ghost God lurking behind the smiles of family and friends, working behind the scenes in a way that was apparent only when I was far down the road. He was there, but I failed to have eyes to see. If he cares for a little sparrow, Scripture says, then we don’t need to worry. He cares for us, too. We just need to open our eyes.