What is God Like?

One of the benefits of living in America today is that we have access to so very many resources of every kind. If you have a problem, it seems that that man has found a solution for it here in America.

The bad thing about that is ” we have access to so very many resources of every kind. If you have a problem, it seems that that man has found a solution for it here in America.”

In other words, we have so many man-made resources here that, as a people, we have have been neutered.

The Greatest Generation
One of the reasons that the “Greatest Generation” was the greatest generation is that they were resourceful. Their reliance upon God enabled them to think on their feet. They had a “can do” approach to things. They knew they could because they did. They had confidence: Confidence that God would honor their efforts.

For those with eyes to see and ears to hear, this kind of a lifestyle led to a harmony with life and a dependence upon God that is sadly missing in America today.

In 2019 America , this dependence upon God to help us in the issues of life, and the confidence in Him that this lifestyle incubates is all but extinct among our population.

Seek the Kingdom of God first, even if it seems “basic”
My life verse that God gave me when I was very young is Matthew 6:33; Seek first the Kingdom of God…. I don’t know which came first; the verse or the yearning but there is nothing that I enjoy more than seeking after the deepest, widest and highest things of God. I want it all!

However, in the process of time and over the course of life what I have learned is that remembering the basics is good too.

Go back to the ax head
I have found that when things become complicated and you can’t seem to get your bearings, if you go back to the basics, they will never let you down. This principle has served me well a number of times.

There is a very interesting story in 2 Kings 6:1-7 that addresses this point very well.

One day the group of prophets came to Elisha and told him, “As you can see, this place where we meet with you is too small. Let’s go down to the Jordan River, where there are plenty of logs. There we can build a new place for us to meet.” “All right,” he told them, “go ahead.”

“Please come with us,” someone suggested. “I will,” he said. So he went with them. When they arrived at the Jordan, they began cutting down trees. But as one of them was cutting a tree, his ax head fell into the river. “Oh, sir!” he cried. “It was a borrowed ax!”

“Where did it fall?” the man of God asked. When he showed him the place, Elisha cut a stick and threw it into the water at that spot. Then the ax head floated to the surface.

“Grab it,” And the man reached out and grabbed it.

Elisha

Back to the ax head with God
When I am wondering if a particular situation is of God, an enemy agent or me, one of the things I do is consider the character and nature of God. It sounds basic, and maybe it is, but when I remember the character and nature of God it helps me to stay centered on Him.

So what is God like?
Obviously, there is no way for any of us to answer that question exhaustively.

However, one thing I know is that God is intensely colorful. He likes shapes and sizes, big, small and otherwise.

One time I was in the middle of praise and worship when suddenly I found myself in Heaven being greeted by Yeshua. The visit was very, very short but I recall it very vividly.

He was standing at one end of a very short footbridge that spanned a small creek. I was going toward Him and we were going to cross the bridge. It was a setting like you might imagine the garden in Eden to be. Everything was lush, green, colorful and vibrant.

I didn’t smell or hear anything but what I saw was amazing. Everything was “more”. The air was more clear, the colors more vibrant, the lights were brighter; everything was more intense.

On earth as He is in Heaven
Even when you look at our natural world you can see that God likes colors. Where I live, I am blessed with sunsets that wrap the earth up like a bug in a rug; beautiful, bright colors that make the sky look like it is on fire.

In the spring and fall, the pastures are green and lush as if they were in a picture of the Swiss Alps.

Deer and other animals play in the meadows. On clear nights the stars are so big and bright that you think you could reach out and touch them. I can look out my office window and see the moon sweep across the night sky.

Birds chirp and sing, ushering in the new growth of spring.

I see a nice person smile and I see God in them.

There are fruit trees, herbs, and vegetables growing in season.

Various animals are roaming about feasting on God’s provision.

God created all of these things for you and I to enjoy. They are an expression of God Himself. All good things come from the Father of lights.

God is patient, God is kind, God does not envy, God is not proud, God is not rude, God is not easily angered,  God keeps no record of wrongs, God does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth, God endures, God rejoices in truth, God always hopes, God always perseveres, God never fails.

God is love.

When things get a bit crazy I try to “go back to the ax head” to remember these things. They might seem basic but to me, they are the essence of life.

Conclusion: The closer you are to God’s creation the easier it is to see the Creator. He is evident everywhere you look if you have eyes to see and ears to hear.

To see what God is like stop and smell the roses. Stay centered on Him and He will be faithful to you.

Confession: I purpose to see God in His creation and to appreciate all that He has done for me.

Prayer: Father God thank You for being present all around me. Thank you for giving me eyes to see You. Please help me not to miss you and to see your everpresent grace upon my life.

Dr. Rayphe
God’s Kingdom Realm

Join me on the Morning Watch at 6:30 AM PT M-F

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