What does God look like? Comments anyone? If you get it right, you should be on the cover of magazines because clearly you have all the answers. I think that image doesn't necessarily just mean physical appearance. It could mean His personality or the manner He carries himself. If we could imagine what God would look like today, the image we would get is mirrored by His followers. That's right! According to what a lot of people see on a daily basis, He would look jealous, envious, shameful, hypocritical, pathetic, fake, impatient, etc. The list goes on and on. He would look like an absolute mess because of the fact that:
1. We are not perfect. Take this anyway you want but fact is fact.
2. We don't know how to play follow the leader.
Like kids, we have a small attention span. As God is showing us how to follow Him, we see a butterfly called lust and decide to try and catch it. Not knowing that the harder we try to capture it, the farther we stray from the path.
3. We like to play the blame game.
Adam is to blame because He sinned first. The President is to blame because he's not doing anything for the economy. Terrorists are to blame because we wouldn't be in this mess if 9/11 never happened. My parents are to blame because I don't have my new iPhone to impress my friends at school. The church is to blame because they are so fake in living for this Jesus guy. The police is to blame because they don't catch the bad guys. The justice system is to blame because they are not keeping the bad guys in jail for the amount of time I want them there. We blame everything on everyone else and believe that we can do nothing about it.
I hear more people complaining more about gas prices then try to resolve other issues that are just as bad. College tuition goes up 10-20% and nobody says anything. And what happens to these graduates who were pressured four years ago to get a college degree? You'd see a handful of jobs with a barrel filled with applications and resumes. Yet, gas price goes up a nickel and people start to riot.
Sorry that I got off on a tangent. Just a little frustrated because I too am going to be a college graduate next Spring. I pray that God provides.
Anyway, back to what we were talking about.
The image of God is that of perfection, holiness, love, justice, grace, mercy, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, peace, self-control, joy, gentleness,
passion, and so much more.
God created us to look like Him, to look like His very nature. It looks pretty darn good right?
So, the question is, what do I do with the knowledge of what God looks like? If He is love, and love is very attractive to anybody, then I should look like love. Well how do I do that? Maybe, just maybe, we should learn to love others. And not only that, but ourselves too. WHAT?!
I know, your minds are totally blown but bear with me now.
When people look at Christians, they should see love. It could take on the form of random acts of kindness, feeding the homeless and the poor, hugging a friend in need, smiling, being patient, etc. This is not something profound but simple. But, even the simple things in life are still hard to do isn't it? It's hard to love this annoying person in my class or workplace. It's hard to smile when I'm really hurting inside. It's hard to give someone my hard earned money. It's hard to hug this person because they hurt me before and I want them to feel how I feel. Jesus didn't say it was going to be easy to follow Him. And even if it were easy to love, would you? Let's be honest, we can water down Christianity but at the end of the day, what will it look like? Pretty gross and unattractive I think.
God considers us, the church, to be:
More than conquerors, warriors, His people, His friends, and His children. I could imagine Him looking at us and saying, "This is wicked good. I made a cool one right here. You are going to be awesome like the other billions before you. I don't make mistakes or junk. Be sure to remember that."
More than conquerors, warriors, His people, His friends, and His children. I could imagine Him looking at us and saying, "This is wicked good. I made a cool one right here. You are going to be awesome like the other billions before you. I don't make mistakes or junk. Be sure to remember that."
The question is, do you see it? Do I see it in myself? Does your family see it? Do your friends see it? Do the people on the second floor of your apartment or dorm see it? God is anything but ordinary. You aren't either. The Holy Spirit living in you is not ordinary. You know what's ordinary or average? Not repenting.
Seeing is believing as many would say. So, if you see that God is awesome. Believe that he made you to be too. Search for the truth, know it, believe it, and spread it around. Someone out there is waiting to know that they too are made to be more than just a body and a brain. They want to know that they are beautiful or handsome. They want to know that they are not failures or pathetic. They want to be loved just like the rest of us. God loves you, me, everyone on this planet. He says that we're not ordinary. He thinks we're some pretty cool people. He sees in us, something extraordinary. Isn't it about time we see that?
Seeing is believing as many would say. So, if you see that God is awesome. Believe that he made you to be too. Search for the truth, know it, believe it, and spread it around. Someone out there is waiting to know that they too are made to be more than just a body and a brain. They want to know that they are beautiful or handsome. They want to know that they are not failures or pathetic. They want to be loved just like the rest of us. God loves you, me, everyone on this planet. He says that we're not ordinary. He thinks we're some pretty cool people. He sees in us, something extraordinary. Isn't it about time we see that?
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