As I lay in bed meditating on dreams, listening for His voice and knowing it would be a good idea to get up and get going, I found myself thinking about donuts.

I had been thinking about people, including myself, who are where we are, not where we thought. And I immediately thought about donuts. Were it not for the absence of the hole they would not really be donuts. What makes a donut a donut is the absence of its center. (I know that popular chains have called things donuts that have no “missing parts” but a donut is really a ring shaped pastry. Another historical redefining…)

I don’t get hung up on what is missing, but I do ask myself where it is. Why is there absence? It is like the person who tells the story and you know something is “missing”. It is the absence of something that lingers.

So, in the case of life, often it is the absence of something that actually brings definition to our lives. It might be the absence of worry or urgency. It could be the opposite where there is an absence of peace.

Not all absence needs to be filled. As much as nature abhors a vacuum, there is something about absence that creates mystery. I am content with the fact that what I do not know about Him for instance is mysterious. I may contemplate it, but at the end of the day I am who I am and more so in the knowledge of Him and His love for me.

The good news is that God made us. Created us in our mother’s womb. Knew us before the foundations of the earth. He designed us to be filled with Him. Still our choice. Still a requisite. But this absence desired a filling. And when that is happened the good news is that I am complete in Him. With whoever He created me to be.

Too many walk around life seeking that which is missing rather than that which is made plain. The question of what we see is not about what is there, but rather is determined in our perspective and our seatedness with Him. What appears to be missing may be the very thing, as I said above that defines us.

Last night my wife returned after being away. As we sat here, she prayed about our lives and our children. She prayed about the 22 years we celebrate tomorrow. As she went upstairs I thought about the mysteries of God and how He had brought us together. It made me realize as I recollected those thoughts, that often it is about what is here and not about what is missing.

Written by Lee Johndrow

Lee is the Senior Leader of Abundant Grace Fellowship Church in Keene, NH

He is the father of five wonderful children. Married for over 26 years to his wife Tina. Loving life with family, friends, faith, fun and food!