You are probably as familiar with definitions as I am. You find them in dictionaries. They are can be fairly wordy. Sometimes they are of great value. Sometimes they don’t help at all. Something that I have learned over the years is that not all definitions that work are in the dictionary. Some definitions that are the most useful are a word picture instead of a specific explanation. For example, take the definition of God.
Take a look in a dictionary and no doubt you’ll find something like this: A Being to whom worship is ascribed. The Supreme Being. Creator. Omnipotent Rule of the Universe. Those definitions are all well and good but sometimes they are too technical. They don’t really get at the heart of who God is. Allow me to craft my own definition of God:
God is Someone who created everyone. He loves them and provides for their needs. Every day. Food. Drink. Shelter. Clothing. Security. The breath of life. On top of this He provides much more. Talents. Intellect. Understanding. Strength. Wisdom. And houses. Vehicles. Boats. RV’s. Campers. 4-Wheelers. Vacations. Various forms of possessions that are too numerous to mention. Family. Friends. Other relationships. Significance. Purpose. And last of all, salvation. For free. At the cost of His Son’s life.
In return, God gets ignored. Denied. Flaunted. Taunted. His commands are disobeyed. His name is taken in vain. People claim that He is out-of-date. In some cases they pretend that He doesn’t exist. They ignore His church. They spend the resources He has given them on themselves. Whenever there is a natural disaster, everyone asks where God was? How could He let such a thing happen? He also gets blamed for war. And famine. And sickness. And disease. He gets blamed for letting abuse take place. And divorce. And rape. And accidents.
But when people are desperate, when they have nowhere else to go, they come to Him. They say a prayer. They put in an appearance at church. They may even crack open a Bible. They have no problem asking Him for things. Heal me. Help me. Bless me. I promise I’ll change. I promise I’ll take you seriously.
And the amazing thing is, God often listens! He doesn’t ignore them. Or lecture them. Or punish them. Or curse them. He helps. He heals. He blesses. He does so without strings attached. Because He loves them. Because He wants them to respond to that love.
And many people, after they have gotten what they want from God, they forget all about those promises they made to Him. Life is back to normal. The crisis is past. God gets put back on the shelf. Again. Yet He still continues to provide. And call. And wait.
Now, admittedly this is a very long definition of God but, to me, it says a lot about who He is. If any of us suffered the same kind of treatment that God suffers, on a daily basis, we would have long ago toasted a lot of people. Or just ignored them. But that’s not God. He forgives. Over and over again. His grace, mercy and love are constantly poured out on people who don’t deserve it. On people like me. What an awesome God we have!
Lord, I admit that I can’t begin to fathom what it is like to be You. How much blame, how much grief, how much heartache You take from people on a daily basis. I also can’t begin to understand the depths of Your grace, mercy and love to me. Or to the world. How patient You are. How forgiving. May my response to You always be one of love, obedience, and joy. May I bring a smile to Your face. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Take a look in a dictionary and no doubt you’ll find something like this: A Being to whom worship is ascribed. The Supreme Being. Creator. Omnipotent Rule of the Universe. Those definitions are all well and good but sometimes they are too technical. They don’t really get at the heart of who God is. Allow me to craft my own definition of God:
God is Someone who created everyone. He loves them and provides for their needs. Every day. Food. Drink. Shelter. Clothing. Security. The breath of life. On top of this He provides much more. Talents. Intellect. Understanding. Strength. Wisdom. And houses. Vehicles. Boats. RV’s. Campers. 4-Wheelers. Vacations. Various forms of possessions that are too numerous to mention. Family. Friends. Other relationships. Significance. Purpose. And last of all, salvation. For free. At the cost of His Son’s life.
In return, God gets ignored. Denied. Flaunted. Taunted. His commands are disobeyed. His name is taken in vain. People claim that He is out-of-date. In some cases they pretend that He doesn’t exist. They ignore His church. They spend the resources He has given them on themselves. Whenever there is a natural disaster, everyone asks where God was? How could He let such a thing happen? He also gets blamed for war. And famine. And sickness. And disease. He gets blamed for letting abuse take place. And divorce. And rape. And accidents.
But when people are desperate, when they have nowhere else to go, they come to Him. They say a prayer. They put in an appearance at church. They may even crack open a Bible. They have no problem asking Him for things. Heal me. Help me. Bless me. I promise I’ll change. I promise I’ll take you seriously.
And the amazing thing is, God often listens! He doesn’t ignore them. Or lecture them. Or punish them. Or curse them. He helps. He heals. He blesses. He does so without strings attached. Because He loves them. Because He wants them to respond to that love.
And many people, after they have gotten what they want from God, they forget all about those promises they made to Him. Life is back to normal. The crisis is past. God gets put back on the shelf. Again. Yet He still continues to provide. And call. And wait.
Now, admittedly this is a very long definition of God but, to me, it says a lot about who He is. If any of us suffered the same kind of treatment that God suffers, on a daily basis, we would have long ago toasted a lot of people. Or just ignored them. But that’s not God. He forgives. Over and over again. His grace, mercy and love are constantly poured out on people who don’t deserve it. On people like me. What an awesome God we have!
Lord, I admit that I can’t begin to fathom what it is like to be You. How much blame, how much grief, how much heartache You take from people on a daily basis. I also can’t begin to understand the depths of Your grace, mercy and love to me. Or to the world. How patient You are. How forgiving. May my response to You always be one of love, obedience, and joy. May I bring a smile to Your face. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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