Today I have a devotion running entitled, “Do I Really “Get” God? What about you? Do you “get” God?
Can I be honest? Just when I think I’ve got God all figured out, He does something I would never image He would do.
I use to think experiencing God’s Presence was something I did at church and would fully do when I arrived in heaven. I thought that because I would experience His Presence at church. Sometimes it would be so strong and comforting that I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to stay in the moment. I wanted to be wherever Jesus was. But once I left church, it felt as if I left God behind. Sound familiar?
I just didn’t “get” it. Why would God leave me to myself during the week? Was He just a Sunday morning God?
No, He’s not! I had the wrong idea about His Presence altogether. It wasn’t that God was leaving me. I was leaving Him. It’s always me who moves. I know this because one of God’s names is Immanuel which means “God is with us.” If that’s true, then living in God’s love and Presence is doable. It’s what we were created for—to fellowship with God moment-by-moment—day-by-day.
How? I’m so glad you asked! Instead of living as if God isn’t around, start acknowledging His Presence everywhere! John 15: 5 says, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
The secret of living in Christ’s Presence is staying connected to Christ. Without Him you and I can do nothing.
We can’t properly love or spouse.
Raise our kids.
Do our job.
Love our neighbor. You get the idea.
A branch abides in a vine by drawing all it’s nourishment from the vine. So we aide in Christ by spending time with Him in prayer, reading and obeying His word, spending time with other believers and staying conscious of His Presence.
You see, God is wilh us whether we acknowledge Him or not. But, oh, what if we did? Just think about it… waking up to His Presence in the morning, walking with Him throughout the day and falling asleep in His arms at night. That’s the kind of relationship I long for. What’s truly awesome is that’s the kind of relationship God longs for too.
That’s not all! When we stay in constant contact with Christ, He infuses us with super-natural strength and resources to….
Love God and others.
Raise our children.
Do our job.
Find freedom from fear, anger, addiction, etc…
If I only knew then what I know today things would have been a lot different. Because of that truth, I seek to know all the attributes of God. I want to “get” God. To do that, I have to be intentional about knowing Him.
So what about you? Do you “get” God?
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Here are a few attributes of God from www.allaboutGod.com
Wisdom: Wisdom is the ability to devise perfect ends and to achieve these ends by the most perfect means.” In other words, God makes no mistakes. He is the Father who truly knows best, as Paul explains in Romans 11:33: “Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand His decisions and His ways!”
Infinitude: God knows no boundaries. He is without measure. This attribute by definition impacts all of the others. Since God is infinite, everything else about Him must also be infinite.
Sovereignty: This is “the attribute by which He rules His entire creation.” It is the application of His other attributes of being all-knowing and all-powerful. It makes Him absolutely free to do what He knows to be best. God is in control of everything that happens. Man still has a free will, and is responsible for his choices in life.
Holiness: This is the attribute that sets God apart from all created beings. It refers to His majesty and His perfect moral purity. There is absolutely no sin or evil thought in God at all. His holiness is the definition of that which is pure and righteous in all the universe. Wherever God has appeared, such as to Moses at the burning bush, that place becomes holy just for God having been there.
Trinity: Though the actual word is not used in the Bible, the truth of God revealing Himself in three persons is included. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are all called God, given worship as God, exist eternally, and are involved in doing things only God could do. Although, God reveals Himself in three persons, God is One and cannot be divided. All are involved completely whenever One of the Three is active.
Omniscience: “God possesses perfect knowledge and therefore has no need to learn. God has never learned and cannot learn.” Omniscience means all-knowing. God knows everything, and His knowledge is infinite. It is impossible to hide anything from God.
Faithfulness: Everything that God has promised will come to pass. His faithfulness guarantees this fact. He does not lie. What He has said in the Bible about Himself is true. Jesus even said that He is the Truth. This is extremely important for the followers of Jesus because it is on His faithfulness that our hope of eternal life rests. He will honor His promise that our sins will be forgiven and that we will live forever with Him.
Heather says
Hi Micca-I am currently doing Lysa TerKeursts study “Unglued”, and got stumped by the question “How have I experienced Gods gentleness in my life?” (paraphrased, of course). Now that I have read your devotion and your blog post, I’m beginning to understand that I have been limiting God, putting Him in a box, so to speak. Sometimes it’s hard to wrap my head around the attributes described above, and so I don’t really “get” Him. Your post has really helped me (but I think I’ll have to read it a couple of times for it to really sink in!).
Micoli says
WOW, Micca. This post really settled into my mind this morning–thank you! There are a lot of great devotions out there addressing the challenges of parents today. But, putting all that busyness, pressure, and responsibility into the perspective that we sometimes apply our own limitations to God raises a critical point. He is a big boy; he doesn’t NEED us to do a good job (as we see it). He needs us to rely on him, teach our families about Him, and yield to His perfect plan. Thank you for sharing!
Emmie says
Thanks for this, it really helped me, it’s very relevant to what I am going through at the moment with believing that I am healed of my illness.
I love your devotions and that is why I checked out this blog. Thanks for writing such great stuff.
Keep it coming. God Bless you
Emmie
Patty says
Micca- Thank you for sharing this post. As a mom I have been heartbroken over some decisions my children have been making- especially the one who just started college. I have really had to dig deep and part of that was new learning for me…on how to trust Him and truly rely on His being Almighty- I do feel a lot of pressure to get everything right…and when it doesn’t turn out right I feel totally to blame. I have been learning though that every decision made by another person is not mine to own…and also that God can be using these very things to draw my daughter to Him in a way that I don’t understand. Thanks again for sharing and giving me more to contemplate and helping me find rest in Him…cause this doing it on your own is exhausting : ).
Debbie says
Micca, really needed to hear this today. I have always been one to think I had to do everything and do it right. And honestly, sometimes GOD was there. Thanks for the WORD! Forwarded a copy to my daughter. Pretty sure she will enjoy. Thanks again!
Donna B says
Micca, love this devo and you! Thanks for sharing. Praying for you friend!!!