The Church transcends itself and thus teaches us to "find God in all things." Not only to search for him laboriously like a jewel in a heap of scrap, but to find him as the one who has always been here before me...
Not only because of this universality of God's omnipresence in the world, but also because of the universality of his intentions for the salvation of the world, we are not further from God in everyday life than in our prayers or during church services...
First, it should be considered that everything that so broadly and noisily displays its worldly existence is a pure gift, given to us not from some untouchable height, but by a God who humbles himself so deeply in his gift and draws near to us as much as he can. Creation, the state of grace, the act of redemption are no longer distinguishable here: they cannot be separated, for God's intention – to share to the utmost – is indivisible. Therefore, the meditating Christian can perceive in the mere being of things the whole attitude of God. It might seem easier, at least seemingly, to find God's attitude in the beauties of untouched nature – forests, mountains, deserts, seas... – but why could he not also be found in landscapes shaped by humans, often so ugly; in human works, often tiresomely unpleasant: to find him as a God who patiently provides space for the inventions of his creatures? His patience and generosity are often understood as absence and emptiness. For the Christian who meditates, it is a gracious closeness...
(Hans Urs von Balthasar /1905–1988/, excerpt from the text Meditating Christianly)
