Isaiah 40:22-24 (NLT)
God sits above the circle of the earth.
The people below seem like grasshoppers to him!
He spreads out the heavens like a curtain
and makes his tent from them.
He judges the great people of the world
and brings them all to nothing.
They hardly get started, barely taking root,
when he blows on them and they wither.
The wind carries them off like chaff.
Matthew 22:37-38 (NLT)
Jesus replied, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment."
Throughout much of my life, I've been afraid. Of being alone. Of being insignificant. Of being abducted by aliens for exponential purposes. Of clowns (who I’m still not enthusiastic about). But the most irrational of fears was being terrified of GOD. I somehow knew that when I messed up, GOD put everything else on hold, pointed wrinkled hands at me, and shot lightning bolts out of his fingertips like the Darth Lord from the Star Wars Trilogy (the classic ones). You know, pop me and make me flop around a bit until I’d learned the lesson. Compounding that was my guilt and shame over missing quiet times or coming to the harsh realization that I hadn't prayed until I curled up in bed half asleep. This entire time my perceptions of GOD- what I thought, learned, and knew of Him- were drastically different from the GOD described in Scripture. I began to quote the verses of GOD’s love until it began to sink in. They relate how GOD love us…not how he hates us or despises us or zaps us with the blue lighting from his fingertips.
The Bible defines GOD as love. In fact it says, “GOD is love.” When we come to realize this and return to that love, our perceptions change. We then can possess peace within our selves- even if we miss a quiet time every now and then. Let’s be clear on this however, in all of our love and freedom, we should fear GOD. Not in the biting-your-nails-and-peeing-your-pants type of fear. But a holy reverence knowing that He and His ways are beyond our understanding. And He holds everything- including all the power.
Author’s Note: for more on this topic, read pages 56-57 of Crazy Love by Francis Chan and Danae Yankoski
