How We Think About God:

I have started a new devotional series recently which is about the Lord and his characteristics.  There are a lot of characteristics we need to remember when it comes to God and what he shows his children and his followers.  He shows love, grace, peace, and displays mercy.  He also is completely sovereign and knows everything is going to happen.  He is all knowing and all powerful.  One thing I really enjoyed that the devotional has highlighted in the first few devotional days was how we as people spend time thinking about God.  There is a quote by A.W Tozer that says, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”  This is a good reminder that how we see God is foundational for our whole faith.  

If we think of God as a judge, we may be in constant fear of doing something wrong.  We will be fearful of being judged for every thought and every wrong move we make.  Granted, we should care about avoiding sin.  We shouldn’t necessarily go looking to sin.  However, we need to be aware of the grace and forgiveness from God.  We will not easily see the grace, the mercy, and the forgiveness that is so readily available for us. Similarly, If we think of God as some eternal being far away, we may not think much in regard to the relationship we have with Him.  We may just think he is a Big God (which He is) who doesn’t care about our problems or our issues (which He does).  This will definitely depend on how we think about how close we are to God. 

However, If we think of God as our Father who loves us and cares about us, then we will be less likely to think of God as scary or as a judge.  We will also know we can go to Him for love and support, and He will want to help us because He is a good God who also serves as a Father for us.  This devotional is really trying to introduce the theme of knowing God as opposed to just knowing about God. There is a big difference between knowing about God and knowing facts about him, knowing his Bible and knowing verses describing Him to actually knowing Him and knowing he cares about us. 

A group of verses I want to highlight is John 17: 1-3 which says, “After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed:“Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”  I love this grouping of verses because it describes what our eternal life is all about.  Our eternal life is when we have the opportunity to truly know God and get to spend the rest of our lives with Him. 

I will be honest when I say I struggle to know God at times.  Sometimes I consider Him more of a boss figure.  I have certain rules and expectations I am supposed to follow, and He is looking down checking on me to make sure if I am doing my work correctly.  Maybe this is because I have always had an obsession with getting high grades and getting good marks at work.  I always have a fear of disappointing those who are giving me marks at either school or at my job.  However, this is a rough way to view God.  This will not make me do things like spending time with the Lord out of pure love, but rather because I am seeking approval.  This is something I need to be aware of when it comes to my relationship with Christ.  

The challenge for you this week is to spend time in reflection thinking about whether or not you truly know God and whether or not you really know Christ.  Spend time reflecting on whether or not when you think of God, what you think of and how you feel.  What is your gut reaction?  Do you get fearful, or do you get filled with love? Then think about spending time with God and spending time reading His Word.  This is especially important as we celebrate Easter Sunday and really remember all that God has done for us.