By Sandy Mittelsteadt
Faith Contributor, Valley Ag Voice
Meet God, Your Creator
According to my cosmos teacher, we as humans are not much of anything at all in this huge universe. In fact, our lives are insignificant in the vast history of the universe. Life itself is considered just one great celestial accident. There is no grander purpose and no greater truth.
But this isn’t the perspective of God. Although we are just a “small speck” in a huge universe, we have a purpose, and this purpose is larger than anything we could possibly envision. We have been made for God Himself.
And, we in the church, are not doing a good job of teaching about the love of God for us. I was just reading an old article (four years old) about “Googling for God.” In this article, author Seth Stephens-Davidowitz shares that the three most googled questions about God are:
Who created God?
Why does God allow suffering?
Why does God hate me?
Question three both shocked and sadden me. Why do many people in the world feel that God is indifferent to them or chooses them to be troubled and ill-treated? (This is the exact opposite of the truth!) This is because there are numerous incorrect ideas about God in the world. These ideas come from Satan, whose main goal is to deceive the world, just like he deceived Adam and Eve. We as human beings make it easy for Satan to do this work as we – many times – demonstrate a judgmental and a fickle message to the world. We prize physical appearance and membership in certain groups. The problem lies with us human beings and not with God, because we do not show the love of God to others.
This quote, (which is the title of this article) of St. Augustine invites you to claim your true identity in God. As you read and think on what St. Augustine has to say, be prepared to encounter God. Meet Him in His glory, grace, and mercy. See God’s fingerprints in the world He has made. Allow Him to change the way you love yourself and the way you love your community. Love Him. Praise Him. This is who you are.
Think of God as Your Father
Have you ever cuddled a baby in your arms? Touched the warmth of his or her body? Looked into their eyes when their tiny fingers grabbed your big finger?
What does thinking of God as your father reveal to you about God’s love? Imagine yourself as a child, wrapped up in the comfort of your father’s arms. Remember that this love does not depend on what you do as a child; a parents’ love is unconditional, selfless, and never wavering.
Reflect on how God, who created the universe and is the most powerful force that is and that has ever existed, loves your personally. Can you fathom that thought? God not only loves people in general, but He loves you as a person and as His child!
He arranged to adopt you and me into His family through Jesus Christ. More than that, as a proud Father, He wants to be a part of our lives and to have a relationship with us! He did not adopt you and me by accident, because when you adopt a child, you must choose that child by purpose and design and promise to love, cherish and care for that child. God chooses us and He delights in us and wants the best for us. There is nothing we can do to change God’s love for us. We cannot lose it, because God is love and He first loved us, according to John 4:19. God wants us close to Him because this is where we belong. We are his beloved!
God loves you as if there were only one of you, because you are the only one like you in the whole universe.
