Abraham had faith that we can’t imagine because it was raw, unstructured and real. It wasn’t built on any of the usual props that give context to our experience of faith. That’s why it’s critical to keep returning to him as the Father of Faith, the person who left everything to follow where God would lead. This raw following of God is how my faith should be. However I (we) have this advantage: we know where we are going—our destination is a person: Jesus. It is this relationship with Jesus that is the context for my hope. I can EXPECT Him to work in my relationship because of what I already know about Him.
But this relationship, this following, is always a seeking in the moment. That’s what “staying awake” (which Jesus tells us to do as we wait for Him to return) means: stay awake to God IN THE MOMENT by seeking Him in the moment.
And in the seeking I am fulfilling a key part of the relationship that shows me more about how ALL of my relationships should be: seeking the real person who is there right in front of me, my relative, my friend. As I am seeking, Jesus is already coming, He is coming into the very moment to meet me. But if I am not seeking, I am not likely to see Him present. It is the seeking, the urgent seeking, that keeps me awake to the moment. If I persevere, not give up, I will find Him in the moment.