the BLESSING
Identifying the Goodness of God
November 16th, 2022
Romans 8:31-32, ‘So what does all this mean? If God has determined to stand with us, tell me, who then could ever stand against us? For God has proved His love by giving us His greatest treasure, the gift of His Son. And since God freely offered Him up as the sacrifice of us all. He certainly won’t withhold from us anything else He has to give.’ (TPT)
Personally Speaking
Our God is relational. There was a person I once knew who had a very jaded and sadly distorted view of God. I would share with this person what I was thinking, stuff like I couldn’t believe God painted that sunset for me to enjoy or He created a hippo or an elephant on a day He must have been enjoying His own sense of humor. I even relayed when I felt as if God understood my struggle, my unraveling, and just as He sewed fig leaves together to clothe Adam and Eve so they wouldn’t hide from Him ashamed of their nakedness, so too He sewed back together the places where my stuffing, my hurt, was poking through. I remember feeling so very sad that this person did not see God in a personal capacity, but rather like an old man, rocking in a rocking chair with a thunderbolt ready to strike whoever chose to stand in His way. I realized we knew two vastly different gods.
Unfortunately for many, the god they grew up with is the god they identify with still today. If you have never been relentlessly pursued, chased down by the lovesick Creator of mankind, then your view and relationship with Him is likely very compromised. We cannot know personally the god who our parents or church friends know; we must know Him for ourselves. He is so gracious when He can become personal. The idea of the God of the Universe waiting patiently for me to come to the end of myself so I spend some time with Him is almost more than I can comprehend. However, I have shown up where He was waiting for me, and I was welcomed, not with chastisement or a tardy slip, but rather, with a ring and a robe and a celebration feast, because, in His Words: “This is My child who once was lost but now is found; was dead but now is alive”. I have known the taste of that feast, the feel of His ring on my finger and His robe draped across my shoulders, the feeling of My Father’s arms as they wrap around me and welcome me home. I really hope someday my friend too was able to let God know him personally.
It is a tremendous blessing to me when I consider that a Holy God chooses to meet with me. He waited for me for many years to get my act together, and when I did not choose Him, He still chose me. He comes close, and His grace and peace invaded the shadowy places where I hid, but it wasn’t invasive—it was just what I needed; it was steadfast and trustworthy and loyal. It is mind-blowing actually, but I am beyond grateful that this Holy God makes Himself personal because of His great love for me.
John 1:14, ‘The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into our neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son. Generous inside and out, true from start to finish.’ (MSG)
