I’ve been staying at a hotel on Pacific Coast Highway in Long Beach the past few days. We’re tantalizingly close to the ocean here, but I don’t have a car and my feet won’t carry me the distance. I walked uphill on PCH the other morning until I got a dim and narrow view of the water, looking down a cross street. It was hard to see the line between the ocean and the haze, but it was there, even if it doesn’t show up in the photo I took (above).

Our home today in southwestern Ohio is the farthest I’ve ever lived from big water — the Great Lakes, the Pacific or the Atlantic. I miss it. I miss boating and fishing, but more than that I miss looking across the water where there is no land in view, just the continually tossing, constantly changing waves. It’s about the most peaceful place on earth for me, and yet it’s awesome in its size; and there’s mystery, too, in the unknown directions it can invite a man to dream about going. I walked as far as I could go, looking for a clearer view. This was about the best I got.

And even though I was a couple miles above the shoreline here, barely making out a glimpse, I felt a moment of the same peace and wonder. The Pacific was there. It took some patience as the haze shifted, but there were moments I was able to see it clearly enough to be sure. It was there. It had to be there. If you look the right direction, the Pacific Ocean is just way too big to miss.

Which put something else in context for me: the “Out of the Closet” Thrift Store and Pharmacy right there on PCH where I was walking. Offering free HIV testing, it obviously caters to an gay, lesbian and transgender clientele.

My first thought was “Okay, God loves LGBT people, too. They can enjoy Long Beach, too, better in some ways than I can, since they live here.”

My second thought was the symbolic reminder that in spite of His love, they’ve rejected God’s moral and spiritual instruction. The gay rights movement has sought to stamp Western culture with its false and destructive version of marriage, its mixed-up moral opinions, its disregard for God’s design in creating us male and female. (Gen. 1:26-27) In fact the reason I had come to California was to strategize with other leaders on how to graciously, compassionately and persuasively tell the world the truth on these very matters. That was what I was here for.

Our talks were challenging and very serious. The gay rights movement has advanced from success to success, reaching the point where one state might soon require churches to accommodate transgender persons preferences for what bathroom they use.

But my walk up PCH gave me perspective. You could look at all the gay activist successes and wonder where God is. The answer is, He’s there. You might need to look away from the world, and go where you can catch a clearer view of Him. Even there you still might find you can’t get close enough to Him to feel His warm and loving touch on your soul. Seek Him out anyway. Seek Him on His terms, approaching Him first through salvation offered through Jesus Christ, and from there keep pursuing Him. (He’s pursuing you, too.)

Start there, and keep your eyes open and your gaze in His direction. If you look long enough, You’ll see He’s there. He’ll show Himself to you. The world may be growing disturbingly weird, but no matter how big the problem seems, God is far, far greater. He’s too big to miss.