What words and images come to mind when you think about God?
Some people imagine an old guy with flowing robe and long beard. Some imagine a strict ever-demanding father type while others know a personal loving God whose lap they can climb into. Some can’t identify any vision of God because he seems so distant and uncaring to them.
It seems we have a tendency to try to put God in a box. We say he is a God of love, which is so true, but we neglect to recognize that he is also a just and holy God. Where would I stand under an all-powerful and just God? Could I even stand at all? I know some people who have said they were going to give God a piece of their mind when they get to heaven. I wonder if I will be completely speechless and fall to my knees when I first meet my Savior on the other side!
As we climb the mountain of God we come to understand that his complex character speaks to our complex lives. A simple God will not do. Our great God is:
Eternal – he always been and will always be God
Holy – he is perfectly pure
Unchanging – the same yesterday, today, tomorrow
All powerful – only that which he allows prevails
Ever present – always accessible to you
All knowing – perfect in knowledge and wisdom, past and future
Love – the essence of his relationship with his creation
Just – justice accompanies holiness
Merciful – he extends such amazing grace to us
Sovereign – he is in control even when we think he is not
Faithful – he keeps all his promises
Patient – he continually waits for us to turn to him
True – his light overcomes darkness because it is always true
For sure, he is all of these and more! But which of these attributes and characteristics of God speak most dearly to your heart in this season of your life? You can turn this experience back into praise by thanking God for who he is. Increasingly, I find myself more thankful for his great mercy and for his amazing grace in the middle of difficult trials. His faithfulness gives me such hope and cause for more thanks.
Our great God cannot be limited by our lack of comprehension or by our inattentiveness. He does not change simply because we cannot or will not come to grasp the fullness of his character. We need and we have a great big God. And in him we find our purpose, our passion, and our hope.
“My God is a great, big God
My Lord is a mighty Lord
My King is an awesome King
He’s my help in the time of need.”
– Sion Alford, My God
